If This VC Sold His Company Today, He'd Do These Things Differently He did well, but could have done better.

Five years ago, I sold my startup and started working in venture capital. And while that sale made me very happy, it didn't make me all that wealthy -- especially not compared with the deals I see now, where big funding rounds and lucrative exits carry the day. So sometimes I wonder: What would I have done differently in my company if I could go back five years? Now that I'm working in VC, what bits of wisdom do I have now that I wish I had then?

Related: Know When and How to Sell Your Business

Here's the first insight: Define "success" very early. Is it money? Changing the world? What do you want -- and what, realistically, do you think is possible? I had built a company that sold gift cards over the internet; it was a fine idea, but not a world-changing one. It was never going to be the next Facebook. When I finally realized the limits of my company, the truth was hard to swallow. But it didn't need to be! I wish I had taken the time, at the very beginning, to put my actions in context. I had found a smart new way to sell an old product, and it was going to make me a few bucks. There's nothing wrong with that -- unless you're not willing to accept it.