Most guides on portfolio construction are written for VCs, not founders. They tell you what to do, but not why, or how to negotiate from a position of strength. This is the guide I wish I had when I was raising my first round—a founder-friendly approach to building a portfolio construction that protects you.
What I've Learned From 44 Companies
Across 234 angel investments, including Anthropic, a few patterns in portfolio construction come up again and again.
The founders who handle portfolio construction well understand that you should focus on one thing and do it exceptionally well.
The Counterintuitive Truth
In portfolio construction, the best practitioners often do less, not more.
The lesson: most founders overthink this and underspend on execution. It sounds simple. It's incredibly hard to execute.
The Numbers Don't Lie
Investing early in portfolio construction can be the difference between raising your next round and running out of runway.
One of my portfolio companies went from struggling to profitable in under a year after they finally got serious about this. The founder told me later that they wished they'd started sooner.
This connects to broader themes around portfolio construction, secondary markets, syndicate investing, rolling funds, term sheets that I've been thinking about a lot lately.
What's Next
Best practice in portfolio construction is changing fast. What worked last year might not work next year. That's both the challenge and the opportunity.
My advice: stay curious, stay humble, and stay close to the people who are actually doing the work. Read less thought leadership and do more experiments. Talk to fewer consultants and more practitioners.
If you're building in this space, the best time to get portfolio construction right is before you need to. Don't wait for a crisis to force your hand.
I'll keep sharing what I learn. This stuff matters too much to keep to myself.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q:How do I measure success with this approach?
Pick one or two metrics that directly tie to your goal and track them weekly. Vanity metrics like page views or follower counts rarely matter. Focus on metrics that reflect real engagement or revenue impact.
Q:Do I need technical skills for portfolio construction?
Not necessarily. While technical understanding helps, the most important skills are clear thinking and the ability to break problems into smaller pieces. Many successful founders I've invested in started with zero technical background and either learned enough to be dangerous or found the right technical partner.
Q:What tools do I need to get started?
Start with the basics. You don't need expensive software or fancy tools. A spreadsheet, a note-taking app, and direct access to your customers will get you further than any enterprise platform. Add tools only when you hit a specific bottleneck.
Q:How long does it take to get portfolio construction right?
The timeline varies depending on your starting point and resources. For most founders, expect 2-4 weeks for initial setup and 2-3 months to see meaningful results. I've seen teams move faster when they focus on one thing at a time rather than trying to do everything at once.