John Dimmer and Scary Investors

"After all is said and done, the term sheet is not a document that should be taken lightly, as it can seriously impact the rights that you have to control your business. It is not something that the individual investor should negotiate themselves, without an attorney." -from Blog of Kyle

I heartily agree with Kyle on this one. While some investors may JUST want you to succeed, I imagine it's almost always driven by money in some form or another. Investors are sending large sums of money your direction, in hopes that they will get a good return on their investment. Doesn't it make sense for them to negotiate terms that are in THEIR best interest, potentially at the risk of your own? Attorney or no, I see a lot of room for bullying here. Investor interest is going to push hard, and you're going to need to be able to push back and hopefully just as hard.

The article felt more like a crib sheet to me. Though useful, I found it so only in the sense that it says, "See, you have no idea what you're talking about!" I don't think there's any amount of reading that can properly prepare you for negotiating terms. Cold, hard experience is what the job calls for. I used to think school got you ready for the REAL world and the job market. Nope. Like learning to swim, one can only blow bubbles on the side of the pool for so long. Eventually, one has to flail around and choke on water for a bit. Don't worry though, people never drown... well almost never.