Do you remember your first real date?
The anticipation. The butterflies. The silent hope that this person might just get you.
You probably planned what to wear, practiced what to say, rehearsed how to seem interested - but not too eager. (I know I did...)
Let's face it:
You didn’t walk in with a 12-page CV.
You didn’t open with your high school GPA or your 10-year roadmap.
You wanted to be interesting. Present. Human.
That’s exactly what your pitch should do.
But for some reasons most founders pitch like they’re trying to get hired - not courted.
They lead with metrics. They list achievements. They try to prove they’re the one.
And I get that - on a first date, you want to show your best self.
But here’s what people forget:
You’re not there to prove your worth.
You’re there to spark interest, connection, and a reason to meet again.
Just like a first date...
You don’t talk about every skeleton in your closet.
(That comes later, if the relationship goes deeper.)
You don’t try to “close” in one conversation.
Your goal is to get that second date - you want the second meeting.
Yet most founders treat their pitch like a slide dump.
Like rattling off a LinkedIn profile.
Like they’re applying for a job, not building a relationship.
And in doing so, they lose the most important thing:
✨ Sparks ✨
You leave your audience cold.
Investors lose interest before the second slide.
And you walk away wondering why your “clear, logical, fact-based deck” didn’t land.
Investors aren’t just looking for logic.
They’re looking for energy. Chemistry. Confidence.
Are You Pitching Like a Person… or a PowerPoint?
Here’s the trap:
You build a solid deck.
You’ve got your market size, your unit economics, your business model locked in.
You’ve rehearsed your lines, nailed the transitions, memorized the flow.
But then you say…
“We’ve built a superior architecture with a scalable API and strong unit economics.”
“Our go-to-market strategy is robust, with multiple growth levers and channel partners.”
“Our team combines 37 years of cumulative experience.”
Technically accurate.
Emotionally dead.
I see it all the time:
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Brilliant founders rehearsing stats, not stories
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Decks that look like technical whitepapers, not conversations
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Pitches that impress on paper - but bore in real life
Why?
Because they’re trying to be perfect.
Not human.
They think the goal is to be impressive.
But the real goal is to be memorable.
And just like on a first date…
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You’re not there to recite your resume. You are there to reveale who you are.
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You’re not trying to “close”. You’re trying to create curiosity.
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You’re not there to dominate. You’re there to connect.
Takeaway:
Would you date someone who talked about themselves for 20 minutes straight, never asked a question, and ended with, “So… are you in?”
Reflect:
When’s the last time your pitch felt like a real connection - instead of a performance?
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