Any time I meet a VC, especially an emerging manager, I think about this passage by Tony Hsieh reflecting on Venture Frogs (his fund with Sequoia's Alfred Lin)

Heard from LPs -- 2 debates dominate convos: 1) The eventual demise of SaaS & its impact on loaded PE/VC portfolios 2) The IPOs of megacap private tech (SpaceX, etc). Many think #1 inevitable and #2 needed to save us all (need liquidity for returns keep $$ flowing in!)

Wild stat from StepStone about emerging managers: In 2021/2022 there were 938 managers who raised a Fund I Since then, only 190 subsequent funds have been raised by this group

🎶Eagles released ‘Hotel California’ 49 years ago, February 22, 1977

The StepStone Group AGM is always a highlight of the year. Some of my favorite conversations: 1. Venture is becoming more important at the exact moment it’s becoming less forgiving. More value is being created in private markets, but fewer companies (and managers) capture it.

Get up again, and again, and again.

Malcolm Gladwell explaining why some people succeed and some don't.

.Las Vegas Raiders now have 11 picks for ‘26 draft, and the most cap space of any team for ‘26 by $20M+. They can get this thing turned around in the next 2 years… If they can develop and utilize the players they end up signing/drafting. The pressure is on the entire operation. No

Maya Angelou said it right: “Forgive yourself for not knowing what you didn't know before you learned it.”

I will either find a way or make one.

Heard from LPs this week: The past 9 months have felt like groundhog’s day - a very small set of deals dominating all LP convos. The fever pitch to access rounds of OpenAI and Anthropic by LPs (and even GPs calling us) at times - has reached levels I’ve never seen in my

🎶Tears for Fears released ‘Everybody Wants to Rule the World’ 41 years ago, March 18, 1985

Heard from VC LPs this week: Multiple banks offering direct access - at large scale - to a premier company’s latest private round at relatively low minimums and a small placement fee Welcome to the Private IPO. Turns out “the doctors and dentists” aren’t so bad after all!

Every quarter I send an LP update: Everyone does this through mailing lists. Do not do this. I spend 4-6 hours individually sending personalised emails to each LP. Over 85 emails personally sent every time. Response rate is 95% compared to 15% on a mass update list.

Huge fan of the annual Hamilton Lane Market Overview for great charts and important private markets sentiment takes. Hot off the press! hamiltonlane.com/2026-market-ov…

Heard from VC LPs: one of my favorite charts from the Hamilton Lane market overview. The simple case for steady and consistent allocations. From mid 2022 - 2024, late stage/VC growth was a bad word with LPs. Extremely hard to raise/sell. But if you managed to close your fund

a moving man will meet his luck 🥀

DUBS WIN

WARRIORS WIN ON THE ROAD 🚨 THEY WILL PLAY THE SUNS FOR THE WEST 8-SEED ON FRIDAY!

A COMEBACK VICTORY IN A MUST-WIN CLASH! With just under 10 minutes to play, the Warriors trailed by 13 points. From there, GSW: ▪️ Outscored LAC 41-23 ▪️ Shot 14-18 (.778) from the field ▪️ Drained 8 threes