Fail Fast, Pivot Faster: What It Takes to Build and Back Startups | Rob Adams, Unlocking Moves Ep. 46

Want tips for becoming an entrepreneur, navigating venture capital, and living well to 105?! This might be the episode for you! Join us for this week's episode of Unlocking Moves, the show that dives into the pivotal moments in a leader's journey that unlocked their true potential! Many leaders only like to talk about their "glory" stories - but host Kurt Wilkin is a firm believer that we learn more from our stumbles and mistakes, our "gory" stories. On this episode, Kurt talks with Rob Adams - Executive Partner at Alumni Ventures and seasoned venture capital investor - about the venture capital industry's relationship to entrepreneurship. Rob cut his teeth as a tech entrepreneur in the 1980s, and came to a realization that a combination of preparation, visualization, and motivation can help you achieve your goals. Rob's experience and vision led him to teaching, and ultimately creating and running the University of Texas' Venture Labs. This episode is full of insights on venture capitalism and its relationship to entrepreneurial success. Kurt and Rob also discussed Rob's latest interest -- creating a No-BS approach to health and longevity -- to help others cut through the noise around those topics. About Rob Adams - Rob is an Executive Director with Alumni Ventures, where he founded both Congress Avenue Ventures and Ring Ventures, venture funds focused on the University of Texas and Texas A&M communities. He has been active in the venture business for 30 years and previously he was on the faculty of The University of Texas where he taught entrepreneurship in the MBA program and was the Director of Texas Venture Labs. He’s a former software executive, entrepreneur and institutional fund manager. He has served on many corporate boards and has founded or financed more than 300 companies and raised significant amounts of capital in both public and private markets. About Kurt Wilkin - Kurt is a connector - of dots, ideas, and people. For the past 30 years, he has advised high-growth companies, starting his career with Ernst & Young, and today in his roles as chairman of HireBetter and managing partner of Bee Cave Capital. He's a serial entrepreneur with multiple successful exits and has helped hundreds of entrepreneurs and CEOs build their companies. Chapters: (00:00:00) Intro (00:04:37) Rob's Background, Alumni Ventures and Who are they funding? (00:11:00) How Rob and Kurt Met thru Ron Kesler and Rod Kurtz (00:12:06) Sponsor: HireBetter (00:12:18) Meeting with Bill Gates and Steve Jobs (00:15:51) What drew Rob Adams to go to academics (00:20:38) A Good Hard Kick in the Ass - Business Porn (00:25:01) Navigating High Valuations: Strategies for Startup Funding (00:26:07) Rob Adams Unlocking Moves (and some Bloopers) (00:30:07) Faith, Visualization, and Opportunity: Unlocking Career Potential (00:32:07) Choosing Potential Over Pay: An Unlocking Move (00:35:21) Rob Adams in longevity space - Lifespan.agency (00:42:15) Top 3 tips from Rob Adams (00:45:47) Rob's secret to a younger physique - Sleep and Cold showers (00:49:30) Immigrant Instincts (00:52:12) Like and Subscribe to Unlocking Moves (00:52:38) Outro (00:52:51) Wanna know Who's Your Mike? Take the Quiz Here