Founder Gym is an online training center for underrepresented founders who want to build successful tech startups. Incorporating best practices from entrepreneurship, education, and sports psychology, Founder Gym offers an innovative approach to develop the world's next great entrepreneurs.
During the span of 4 weeks, founders complete structured exercises to increase their strength in a core area of startup success, and receive expert training from investors and experienced founders. The program is 100% virtual and highly selective.
Who are venture capitalists, where does their money come from, and what do they really care about when making investment decisions? Learn who these people are and what makes them tick, so you can better position your startup to be an attractive investment opportunity.
There are some things only people on the inside know, like the importance of warm intros, the etiquette of social media, and the red flags of pitching. It’s crucial that you learn what the small things are that make a big difference when fundraising.
As an underrepresented founder, there is an extremely high chance you will be pitching investors who don’t share your identity, background, or lived experiences. You must learn how to articulate your differences as your strengths.
The best way to prove you have learned something is to demonstrate it. For Demo Day, you will craft a polished deck and pitch in front of your Gymmates and invited guests. You will also get to step in the shoes of an investor and score your peers.
Investor
Parker Thompson is a Partner at AngelList, a former Partner at 500 Startups, and he has made over 70 investments to-date.
Investor
Suzy Ryoo is a Partner at Atom Factory & Cross Culture Ventures, whose investments include Warby Parker, Lyft, and Dropbox.
Investor
Monique Woodard is a former Partner at 500 Startups, Co-Founder of Black Founders, and her investments include Blavity and O.School.
Investor
Mitch Kapor is the Co-Founder and General Partner at Kapor Capital. His investments include Twilio, Uber, Clever, and Class Dojo.
Investor
Charles is the Co-Founder and General Partner at Precursor Ventures, with over 70 pre-seed investments. He was previously a Partner at SoftTech VC.
Investor
Ellen is a Partner at Kapor Capital. She was previously the interim CEO at Reddit and has served on the boards of Flipboard, Datameer, and Lehigh.
Founder Gym was an immensely valuable experience for me as a founder that is new to institutional venture fundraising. The expert trainers and personal coaches demystified the process for us and showed us the blueprint for navigating the Silicon Valley fundraising dance. It was like getting an insider’s look at how the game works. Because of the cohort, we are much more prepared to fundraise and I would definitely recommend this program to others.
Co-Founder of dealWIP
Brooklyn, New York
When I applied for Founder Gym, I was personally very exhausted and discouraged with my fundraising experience. However, being accepted into FG really changed that. Because of the program, I found renewed energy and motivation to continue on with fundraising and was successful in raising capital! I really appreciated getting to learn from experts that I never imagined I could interact with, as well as getting to know many amazing founders.
Co-Founder of Because Learning
Salt Lake City, Utah
Because of Founder Gym, I was able to get clear about the fundraising needs of my business, and I am now much better prepared to go out and secure capital. This has truly been an awesome experience. Mandela and her team are pros and it shows in the quality of information and mentors they were able to bring to the table. I feel very fortunate to have been a part of the inaugural cohort.
Co-Founder of The Brightly
San Francisco, California
Even after writing almost 100,000 lines of code over the summer, I can confidently say that participating in Founder Gym is the most important step I’ve taken as a CEO so far. With the techniques I’ve learned, I feel way more prepared to not only fundraise, but build a company that scales. I just wish I would have known about Founder Gym sooner; it would have saved me a lot of time and energy.
Founder of Notearise
Dallas, Texas
Set aside 15 minutes to complete the application and give yourself a chance to get admitted. If you pass the application screen, you will be invited to participate in a video interview.
You will receive an email notifying you whether or not you’ve been selected for the cohort. You have 72 hours to submit your down payment to reserve your spot.
Congratulations! You’re officially a member of the cohort. You will be granted access to the orientation materials, and begin preparing for the start of the cohort.
The cohort kicks off with Orientation. You will get the chance to meet your Gymmates and get your life in order, so you can focus on going hard in the Gym for the next 4 weeks.
You did it! One week of Orientation and 4 weeks of intense training is over. Now it’s time to use your new skills, strengths, and network to catapult your startup to the next level.
There are more people like you represented in the population than there are in the startup industry.
A company that develops its own technology and wants to grow as big as fast as possible.
You would rather work 24/7 building your own business than 9-5 working for someone else.
You have already built something (MVP counts) that people are using and/or buying.
You’re not sure if you’re doing the right things, and you need advice from experienced people.
Founder & CEO
A former Division I soccer player and professional educator, Mandela began her career in Silicon Valley in 2011 as a startup founder backed by Kapor Capital, 500 Startups, and Imagine K12 (acquired by Y Combinator). Thereafter, she led a global entrepreneurial program called Startup Weekend Education (acquired by Techstars) that spanned six continents and empowered thousands of entrepreneurs to launch edtech startups. Most recently, Mandela worked at venture capital firm Kapor Capital, where she supported the success of over 120 tech startups and launched the Founders' Commitment, a first-of-its kind initiative teaching founders how to bake diversity and inclusion into the DNA of their early stage startups. To-date, Mandela has shared her frameworks for success on over 65 stages, including TEDx, Google, and Facebook. She has also received several recognitions, including being named to the Forbes 30 Under 30 List, LinkedIn's Top 10 Voices in Venture Capital and Startups, and Medium's Top 10% of Writers.
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