10 Years, 10 Contradictions: What Venture Capital Really Teaches You

What is it really like to be a VC when you're not from finance—or even from “the club”? In this episode, I speak with Puiyan Leung, who’s spent the last 10 years in venture capital, after starting out in a corporate role. She opens up about feeling like an outsider, learning to trust her gut, and what it means to support founders through both the highs and the heartbreaks.We talk about mental agility, making tough calls, and why being a VC is sometimes a team sport—and sometimes a lonely solo climb.IN THIS EPISODE(00:00) What happens when you don’t fit the VC mould?(02:40) No finance degree, no founder background—so how did she make it?(04:55) Mental agility vs. rabbit holes: the VC’s balancing act(07:40) Is VC really about startups—or just the people behind them?(10:55) Collaboration or solo survival? Why this job can feel lonely(14:40) “Am I wasting time?”—The self-doubt VCs never talk about(18:25) Move fast. Be thorough. Pick one—or try to do both?(21:10) Why sharing your thinking builds better deals(24:40) The truth about fast deals, long deals… and deals that go nowhere(27:10) 9 out of 10 startups won’t make it—so how do you choose?(29:55) Breakups, hard calls, and knowing when to walk away(35:40) Founders, fires, and staying present when everything is urgent(40:10) Numbers vs. people: Which really drives venture success?Puiyan LeungPuiyan Leung joined Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia and India in 2020 and focuses on opportunities in Southeast Asia.Prior to joining Vertex Ventures, Puiyan was a Director of Investments and Operations at Singtel Innov8, the corporate venture arm of telco group Singtel. In her role, she built a pipeline of tech startups that fit with the firm’s investment themes and established strategic alliances and managed partnerships with key ecosystem stakeholders.Prior to that, Puiyan assumed a range of operating roles and once served as Singtel’s Indonesia-based lead in representing the local market development and expansion interests for Singtel’s digital portfolio.Puiyan is a Kauffman Fellow and graduated with a Bachelor of Electrical Engineering Degree from the National University of Singapore.https://www.linkedin.com/in/puiyan/Rahul ThayyalamkandyDirector of Comms & Community, Vertex Ventures SEA & IndiaRahul Thayyalamkandy joined the SEA/India team as the Director of Communication & Community in 2024 and is based in Singapore.Before joining Vertex, Rahul served as a Product Manager at BLOCK71, an incubator and joint venture of NUS Enterprise and Singtel Innov8, where he developed scalable services for portfolio startups and designed mentorship programs. He also gained experience as a Summer Associate at Cocoon Capital, working with the Managing Partner on investment deals.https://www.linkedin.com/in/rahulthayyalamkandy/—-Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia & India is a pioneer in investing in tech start-ups in this region and has helped to build a number of unicorns. In this podcast, we seek to share and uncover the Hard Truth - raw, unfiltered insights and venture capital knowledge from across Southeast Asia and India. Tune in to learn from leading founders, innovators, venture capitalists, and industry experts in the region and gain industry insights from those in the know.If you like what you hear, please follow or subscribe to the show so you don’t miss out on any of our upcoming discussions.—Follow us to get notified whenever new episodes are shared.—For more information, please visit: https://www.vertexventures.sg