Vacations are over.
September is just round the corner and Investor meetings are back on the calendar. The runway clock is ticking again.
Every year, I watch founders come back from summer vacation all energized to pick up the speed and motivated to build something extraordinary. But when it comes to the pitch - they have a tendency to slip back into old patterns that feel comfortable and that will cost you attention, trust, and funding.
Why do founders fall into these traps?
Because comfort is seductive. Because summer slows the tempo, and we forget what high-stakes pitching feels like. And because in our heads, we’re better storytellers than we actually are in the room.
The good news? You don’t have to carry bad pitch habits into the rest of the year.
It’s time to use that energy to do something extraordinary and get your fundraising accelerating.
Therefore I have compiled a list of 10 common pitch pitfalls to leave behind and what you can do instead.
1. Flat, Corporate Robot Voice
Have you ever sat through a presentation where the speaker’s tone never changes? It is monotone - flat and lifeless. It’s so boring you just want to get out of there.
Monotone pitching is the fastest way to make investors’ brains check out - no matter how brilliant your startup is.
I’ve sat in on pitches where the founder’s tech was revolutionary… still they lost the investors focus halfway through because the delivery never changed. It wasn’t the idea that was boring - it was the sound.
Fix: Vary your pace, tone, and volume. Speed up your pitch down by 10–15%. Drop your voice OR Raise your voice and slow down when you hit the big points. Slow down when talking about the ROI, investment or anything related to the financial.
Action Step: Record yourself pitching. Experiment. What stood out? Listen for the moments that should stand out - then make them stand out more.
2. “Uhm… So… Like…”
Filler words such as “Uhm,” “so,” “you know…” - they creep back in when you’re out of practice. Might seem harmless, but they disrupt the flow and scream nervous unprepared founder. More importantly, they drain authority and interrupt from your story.
Fix: Own the pause - Pause. Breathe. Let investors digest your point. Silence feels longer to you than it does to your audience, and it makes you sound interesting. A well-timed pause shows confidence and control. And what I love about a great pause - is that it commands attention.
Action Step: Speed up your pitch down by 10–15% and consciously insert pauses where you really want to make an impact. Where investors might need time to digest what you just said for a second. I always write manuscripts for all my presentations - and in the manuscript I write in where and how long the pause should be (I work with 3s or 5s pauses).
3. Practicing in Your Head
If your first real pitch run is in front of investors, you’re setting yourself up for mistakes. Mistakes that easily could have been avoided. Nerves can take over… you don’t know how your message land… is it clear enough?
Fix: Not just in your head. Start in front of the mirror but then it is really important that you run your pitch in front of a trusted peer or advisor. Ask: “What stuck with you?” and “What was unclear?” Those answers are gold. It will sharpen your story.
Action Step: Book a 15-minute live run-through for constructive feedback before your next investor pitch.
4. Relying on Words Alone
Investors read your body language before they hear your valuation. Words are important, but they’re only one part of the equation. Relying solely on them misses the power of non-verbal communication. If the mouth and the body signal different things - it will break the trust.
Just Imagine someone saying, “It’s great to meet you,” while crossing their arms and frowning, it’s confusing and off-putting.
Fix: Match your energy to your message. Be more aware of how your body language aligns with your words for maximum impact. Align your posture, gestures, and eye contact with your words. Let your body sell the conviction.
Action Step: Film yourself pitching. My best advice is to watch it on mute. Does your body say the same thing as your words?
5. Data Dumping
Flooding investors with every metric you have isn’t “thorough,” it’s exhausting.
I’ve seen founders burn through their first 5 minutes listing every KPI they could think of - only to have the investors ask, “So… what’s your business actually about?”
Fix: Strip your pitch to its core: problem, solution, traction, and why now. Leave the deep dive for Q&A.
Action Step: Write one sentence that captures your pitch. Does every slide serve that sentence?
6. Slides as Manuscript
Reading your slides word-for-word is death to investor engagement.
Years ago, I sat with an angel investor who whispered during a pitch, “Why am I here? I could have read the deck myself.” Brutal - but true.
Fix: Use slides to support your message. Let it strengthen it. as prompts, not scripts. Strong, clear images and minimal text are key. One image, one number, or one keyword can drive a point home faster than a paragraph.
Action Step: Practice pitching with slides that have only 20% of the text you think you “need.”
7. Talking At Investors
A one-way pitch is easy to forget and pitching like it’s a broadcast leaves investors cold.
I’ve had investors tell me that the most memorable pitches are the ones where the founder involved them, even in small ways. One founder asked, “Who here has had this exact problem in the last month?” And suddenly everyone was leaning in.
Fix: Make it a conversation. Ask questions. Check in. Let them react. Adjust in real-time. Make them feel like they’re co-creating the vision.
Action Step: Add one intentional investor interaction to your pitch - a quick question, a show of hands, a market insight they can react to.
8. Numbers Without Meaning
Numbers alone don’t stick - context does. Your audience needs to understand why the data matters to them.
I once heard a founder proudly share, “We have 50,000 users!” Investors nodded… and then glazed over. Without the story - that those 50,000 came in just 60 days, with a 72% retention rate - the number was just a number.
Fix: Wrap each key metric in a story about what it means. Show the customer journey where you have identified their challenges, their needs, and how your solution will help them reach their goal.
Action Step: Take your top three numbers and write a 20-second story for each that explains the “what’s in it for them.”
Explain what the numbers mean in terms of market potential, risk reduction, and return. Wrap them in a story that investors can repeat later.
9. Ignoring the Hook
Investors decide in the first minute whether they’re leaning in… or mentally checking email. Too many founders waste that window with small talk, long intros, or explaining how they got here.
I’ve seen brilliant founders lose the room before they even got to their solution - not because the idea wasn’t good, but because they buried the hook under five minutes of backstory.
Fix: Lead with impact. Open with your boldest, clearest statement of what you do and why it matters now. Then earn the right to go deeper.
Action Step: Rewrite your opening so that within 30 seconds, an investor can answer: “Why should I care?”
10. Waiting Until You’re “Ready”
Perfect is an illusion. Waiting kills momentum.
Fix: Pitch now. Improve in the field. Every pitch in front of an investors makes you sharper.
Action Step: Book two investor conversations this month, even if your deck feels “not quite there.”
You sharpen faster when you’re in front of real investors, getting real reactions.
The Bottom Line:
Summer is over. Investors are watching for founders who are already moving.
Drop the dead habits, bring the energy, and own your stage.
Investors aren’t funding a deck - they’re funding you. Funding is not a game of perfection. Every pitch is a trust-building exercise -it’s a game of connection.
When you step into that room, your job is to make them believe. And that belief is built in how you pitch, not just what you pitch.
That's all for today. Hope you liked it!
See you next Thursday.