“I’ve seen this with friends who go into VC with the intention of eventually leaving and starting a company.”
The friends get into a top-tier fund, then find a hierarchy inside the fund, then learn the real inner ring is whoever lands the hottest deals. Some of them give up on starting a company at all. Tech sells founders the dream of getting funded by Sequoia or going viral, and the people selling it are stuck on the same ladder. Rosengren’s fix for status anxiety is coaching and founder retreats, which he sells.