How VCs Become Jerks
Read time: 4 min
Let’s face it, there’s a culture in VC.
A lot of unspoken rules everyone witnesses.
You’ve probably met amazing investors…
and some real asshole investors.
The Nightmare Scenario
Our biggest fear?
Waking up one day and realizing we’ve become the thing we hated most.
You know the type: late for meetings, always on their phone, ghosting founders, stressing founders out for no reason, imposing unnecessary terms.
Good Intentions, Bad Outcomes
I truly believe most investors are good and mean well.
They want to create value and change the world.
But even with the best intentions, it’s easy to become an asshole if you’re not careful.
Invisible forces push them down this path.
The Jaded Investor
Sometimes I see investors who’ve become jaded or overly negative.
You became an investor because you believe in stuff.
Being positive is the only way to succeed as an investor.
You must believe that you will find that one big company that returns the fund and makes a huge impact.
That core belief is what keeps us going.
The Numbers Game
In pursuit of those few outliers, investors spend a lot of time saying no.
VCs invest in less than 1% of the companies we see.
For every 100 projects, we pick 1.
We have to say no to the vast majority of pitches.
Many of them aren’t even bad ideas.
They’re just not big enough.
To be venture-backable, your company has to have the potential to return the entire fund!
Even for the companies we invest in, only a few will create a massive impact.
That’s part of the game.
We all understand we’re going to miss more than we hit.
But over time, this takes a toll on investors they don’t always acknowledge.
The Pressure Cooker
They feel like they must find the next big thing to justify their fund’s existence.
This pressure can contribute to apathy and cynicism when most of those investments fail.
A downward spiral.
The Emotional Toll
Being a founder is one of the hardest jobs you can do.
We live that life right alongside you.
We want to see you succeed because we are literally and figuratively invested in your success.
And remember, we’re invested in dozens of companies.
It’s like being a superfan of 20 different football teams.
Not every team is going to win the championship.
Sometimes you get your heart broken.
Sometimes, you get your heart broken over and over again by 20 different teams.
Each process can be very high drama.
The Burnout
After a series of these, investors get depleted.
Those who’ve gone through especially dramatic ordeals will put up a shell.
It becomes harder to emotionally invest and give it all.
Sometimes when investors emotionally check out, it’s due to an abundance of heartbreak.
The Reality Distortion Field
Some investors truly don’t know they’re being assholes.
They live in a reality distortion field.
When you become an investor and raise a fund, the power dynamic shifts.
All of a sudden, you have money to give out, you become the most popular person at a conference, everyone wants to talk to you, and people stop telling you the truth.
It becomes hard to course-correct when you don’t know you’re becoming an asshole.
The Deal Volume
Founders don’t realize the volume of deals we get every day.
It creates a recency bias and a feeling of always getting excited about the shiny new thing.
When you’re on top of the pile, communication is fast and easy.
But as a process drags on (either for good reasons, or because we are losing conviction), the communication process may break down.
The hard truth?
If you are a top company, we will be moving very fast, trying to win the deal or get diligence done.
Communication should not break down.
Conclusion
No one sets out to be a jerk.
But the pressures of VC—constant rejections, emotional burnout, the relentless hunt for the next big thing—can push even the best-intentioned investors down that path.
Soon, you're ghosting founders, dragging your feet on deals, and slowing down everything—without even realizing it.
Stay aware, stay engaged, and remember why you started.
Lose sight of that, and you risk becoming the that asshole VC you never wanted to be.
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I'm loving this Yoann! Super valid points.