TimelyVC

Fix Your Pitch Deck Opening

BADideas.fund

Suhas Ghante

Venture Partner | 650+ decks reviewed | 120+ founders coached

Master the investor checklist to get funded: market, wedge, traction, timing, and path to the next milestone.

The 5 questions investors are silently asking

See why “good” decks still lose VCs: buried lede, weak wedge, fuzzy traction, and no clear reason to raise now.

Why polished decks still fail

Watch me tear down a real seed deck opening live and show how to make it clearer, sharper, and more investable.

Live teardown: fix a weak opening

Learn how to stand out, get real responses, and turn investor interest into commitments.

ex-VC Partner | 50+Investments | 8 Exits

Bloomberg

Forbes

FORTUNE

TechCrunch

CNBC

Haris Khurshid, CFA, MBA

ex-VC Partner | ex-Startup CFO | 50+ Investments | 8+ Exits

Cohort II (2026) 

Cohort 9

❌ What I’ve seen repeatedly from the investor side:<ul><li>Founders treating fundraising as a series of pitches instead of a process.</li><li>Strong products failing to raise due to poorly structured, reactive fundraises.</li><li>Good founders losing leverage because of weak sequencing and timing.</li><li>Momentum fading quietly from confusion (not from rejection).</li></ul>✅ What This Course Gives You<ul><li>A repeatable investor narrative investors understand and can sell internally.</li><li>Intentional sequencing and outreach that builds momentum across meetings.</li><li>A clear, time-boxed fundraising process investors recognize.</li><li>Momentum that turns interest into real commitments (not the dreaded 'let's stay in touch').</li></ul>⚠️ Why This Program Exists<ul><li>Fundraising has fundamentally changed.</li><li>Capital is more selective and investor attention is scarce.</li><li>Old playbooks no longer work (and a revamped deck isn't the answer).</li><li>Founders need process and judgment, not more opinions.</li></ul>📌 Bottom Line<ul><li>If you need to raise capital, you don’t need generic advice.</li><li>You don’t need theories from people who’ve never run a fundraise.</li><li>You need a clear process that serious investors recognize and respond to.</li><li>That’s exactly what this program is designed to give you.</li></ul>

Fundraising Has Changed. Most Founders Haven’t Caught Up.

How Investors Actually Decide in 2026

Build Investor Relationships (Even Without a Warm Network)

Craft a Fundable Story Investors Repeat Internally

Build Investor FOMO (Without Faking It)

Build a High-Velocity Investor Pipeline

Run a Tight, Time-Boxed Fundraise

Founders actively raising or planning to raise who want a structured, investor-tested approach instead of trial and error.

Founders stuck in “interest but no commitments” mode who need to create momentum, urgency, and real investor movement.

Founders who want to run a tight, time-bound raise, attract multiple investors at once, and compress decision timelines.

Stop over-explaining and start guiding decisions. You'll become the professional who walks into senior rooms and walks out with a yes.

Cohort 2

24-Year Banker -> Presentation Expert

JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Commerzbank

Royal Bank

MaryBeth Hazeldine

24 years at JPMorgan, PwC, RBS. Now training executives to win decisions.

Cohort 1

You've done the work. You know the material. You've prepared the slides.And yet the decision stalls.Polite nods. Reasonable questions. Then: "Let's take this offline." "We'll circle back." "Good discussion."Translation: No decision today.If this keeps happening, it's not because you lack expertise or presentation skills. It's because the way you're structuring your message doesn't match how senior people decide.Here's what nobody tells you: executives make their decision in the first few minutes, then spend the rest of the time looking for reasons to trust that instinct—or doubt it. When you lead with context, build to your recommendation, and back it up with extensive data, you're triggering doubt, not confidence.The unspoken question in their mind: "If they need this much explanation, is the recommendation actually solid?"This course gives you a different approach—a system built on how decisions actually happen in senior rooms. You'll learn to structure your message so that "yes" feels like the obvious, low-risk choice.Not through tips you'll forget under pressure. Through a repeatable system that works even when you're tired, rushed, or facing pushback.

Executives decide before your presentation ends. Structure accordingly

Structure presentations that win decisions

Remove the anxiety before you even start

Build credibility without over-explaining

Choose proof that reassures, not proof that defends

Handle pushback without becoming defensive

Use AI tools without sounding generic or losing authority

<code>You present to executives, boards, or steering committees—and need decisions, not "good discussions." Your credibility is on the line.</code>

You pitch to clients and present recommendations for a living. Stalled decisions cost you deals, revenue, and repeat business.

You're in relationship management, business development, or sales—presenting to win deals, budgets, or strategic alignment.

Go from curious to confidently writing your first (or next) angel/LP check, with a documented strategy you can reuse across real deals.

General Partner of The Council Fund

Apple

Snap Inc.

Eli Lilly and Company

Cruise

Amber Illig

Operations leader, angel investor, VC fund manager

Partner of The Council Fund

Komodo Health

Rachel Tsui

Healthcare & customer success leader, angel investor, VC partner

Spring Cohort

Most tech leaders want to angel invest. Very few know how to start and build a repeatable strategy.After 80+ early-stage investments, we organized our internal frameworks, decision models, and templates into a practical investing playbook for our private operator community and are making them public here on Maven.

Go from curious to a confident investor with a clear alternative investing plan

Clarity and confidence in decision-making

A complete, end-to-end investing strategy

Real-world tools you can reuse. You'll walk away with:

Access to lived experience from our experts, not just advice 

We're operators focused on investing from an operator POV. Your experience leading functions within top organizations is key.

Leaders with 5–10+ years of experience

Whether you've completed 0 or 10+ deals, our playbook will help you level up.

Aspiring & Current Alternative Early-Stage Investors

This course is most actionable for accredited investors who want to immediately apply an operator-led investing approach.

Investing Readiness (Accredited or Preparing)

Tech professionals who want to make their first angel or LP investment but don’t want to rely on gut feel or hype

Builders - operators, c-suite executives, &amp; tech professionals - who want to be a value-add investor and not just a check

Professionals looking to expand their networks &amp; influence through strategic investing, with a clear framework behind every decision

The system behind Alex landing @ Salesforce, Harrison landing @ Microsoft, Rebecca finding a job in ONE month, & Christine getting promoted

Senior CEO Communications Manager

Microsoft

Harvard University

University of Washington

Karen K. Ngo

Growing 1% everyday through finding inspiration to share with the world.

Founders Cohort

Ambitious professionals switch jobs every 2-3 years. Investing in these skills once will advance you throughout the rest of your career. Even if you have solid experience, meaningful projects, and the right qualifications — interviews &amp; career conversations may feel awkward or unstructured. Instead of clearly communicating your value &amp; impact, you find yourself repeating resume bullets and failing to be memorable.This course teaches you what I've learned from 400+ career conversations that helped me advance from new grad with no connections to Senior CEO Communications Manager at Microsoft (5 role changes/promotions in 6 years).You will end up with a completed Career Walking Deck and the confidence to use it in future interviews, networking conversations, and career/promotion discussions. Instead of being passed over for opportunities, you will attract them by bringing clarity, showing up with confidence, and building personal connections with hiring managers.Join this course if you're actively interviewing or preparing for next level opportunities. I will provide you with a unique, hands-on approach to transform your career story and convince hiring managers to take a bet on you.

Stop getting ghosted. Learn the system that gets you job offers & promotions.

Ready-to-use Career Walking Deck

Craft Your Career Story

Discover the Psychology of Interviewing

Career Switcher: You want to move to a different role, function or industry but you're having trouble convincing the hiring manager.

Strong Resume, No Offers: You're constantly getting interviews, but are struggling to stand out in the interview process and get an offer.

Ambitious, Proactive, Open Minded: You want to establish a strong personal brand to attract and prepare for future job opportunities.