Self-funded software startups can raise outside funding someday if it makes sense. Or not. Or sell it for under $100M.

Venture-funded software companies don’t have the option to be unfunded at some point. The race is on until you exit for big $$. Or not.

The biggest lesson funded founders tell me about their funding game is this:

• They took funding too early.
• Too early to know what growth and exit game they were really playing to find the right funding partner who plays exactly that game too.
• Too expensive to try to grow fast before they really understood what their narrow product-market fit and scalable growth and LTV/CAC looked like.
• Too much distraction with raising money and satisfying investor-partners that could have been focused on product and customer love.
• Harder to pivot when markets change or competitors hit hard.

They wish they did it later.

#optionality

What are other good reasons to procrastinate funding?