“A lot of times when people are trying to pivot into a new industry or even get into venture capital, I tell them not to tap out on their first-degree network. How can you leverage these secondary and third-degree networks? Because from those, you’re going to learn new things and get exposed to new networks themselves.”
– Earnest Sweat
Are you a business owner or entrepreneur looking to get funded? Our guest this week on The SimplyBe. Podcast is venture capitalist Earnest Sweat. He is here to demystify the venture capital process and talks about the importance of your personal narrative when seeking funding. Earnest is also on a mission to open up the venture capital space to more Black investors and discusses his community, BLCK VC. Listen for his advice!
When you think of venture capital you may automatically think of the tech industry, but the truth is, business owners from a wide variety of industries may one day reach the point where they are seeking to get funded. Earnest Sweat had a non-traditional path toward becoming a venture capitalist and has since leveraged his networks to found the BLCK VC community to encourage more Black investors to get into the VC space.
Earnest joins Jessica to talk about how the VC process works, what investors look for, and talks about what it’s like to be one of the only Black people in the room. Listen in for his insights on crafting your narrative, branding, and just being a nice human.
In this episode of The SimplyBe. Podcast:
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[02:54] – Cutting through on LinkedIn
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[05:48] – Three core functions of a CEO
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[07:20] – Who is Earnest Sweat?
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[16:46] – Breaking into the venture capital industry
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[22:10] – Founding BLCK VC
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[27:05] – Fundraising 101
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[35:56] – Mitigating demographic challenges
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[46:03] – Instituting change
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[52:31] – The power of narrative
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[56:57] – What’s next for Earnest?
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[58:31] – What does SimplyBe. mean to Earnest?
This show is produced by Soulfire Productions
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The SimplyBe. Podcast is for anyone seeking to bring inspired authenticity into their business and their life. Our guests come from all career verticals and backgrounds, but they all have one thing in common… unapologetic authenticity.
Join us in unpacking the only marketing tool you will ever need: an authentic personal brand.
Follow Jessica:
IG: @jessicazweig
Visit jessicazweig.com
Be. is the permission slip to set yourself free to simply be who you were born to be.
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