EP 104: The Psychology Driving Fundraising, VC Decisions, and Founder Failure w/ Aram Attar

Most founders fail for psychological reasons—not tactical ones.

In this episode of $100M Exits, Jason Kirby sits down with Aram Attar, founder of The VC Factory, to unpack the hidden psychology shaping fundraising outcomes, VC decisions, and why smart founders keep repeating the same mistakes.

With 15+ years advising founders, sitting on boards, and training venture capitalists, Aram shares a clear conclusion: most failures aren’t about intelligence, strategy, or effort—they’re about how decisions are made under uncertainty.

They explore the difference between trying to win versus trying not to lose, how VC psychology impacts fundraising more than your pitch, the hidden risks in earnouts and partial exits, and why the strongest teams balance promotion- and prevention-focused thinkers.

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Key Takeaways

Why founders repeat mistakes—even after seeing others fail

Trying to win vs trying not to lose

How VC psychology shapes fundraising outcomes

Risks in earnouts, partial exits, and misalignment

Why balanced thinking drives better decisions

What you’ll learn in this episode

Why a “5-year plan” often turns into a 20-year journey

How VCs avoid the sunk-cost trap in bridge financing

The mindset frameworks behind outlier investment betsHow to spot “what can go right?” vs “how do I not lose?” investors

The #1 mistake first-time fund managers make with fund size

Raising capital?

Get a list of vetted VCs for FREE:https://web.thunder.vc/list-of-investors-vcs-for-founders?utm_source=YouTube&utm_medium=Video&utm_campaign=Episode104&utm_id=%24100M++Exits

Get the latest fundraising insights:https://blog.thunder.vc/funding-101?utm_source=YouTube&utm_medium=Video&utm_campaign=Episode104&utm_id=%24100M++Exits

Timestamps:

00:00 Introduction

00:39 A 20-year journey to a $2.2B exit

01:57 How VCs make decisions

03:50 Investing in a Mexican retail company

06:20 What mindset-based investing really means

10:04 Behavioral insights every founder should know

15:34 Research behind successful VC thinking

23:43 Missed deals and costly VC mistakes

24:20 How investment committees really work

24:51 The champion rule in venture capital

26:06 Inside the investment committee process

29:37 Why founder empathy matters

33:04 The power of honest communication

36:28 How to evaluate emerging fund managers

43:01 Advice for new fund managers

46:29 Final thoughts and key resources

ABOUT ARAM

Aram Attar is a venture capitalist and founder of The VC Factory, focused on improving venture outcomes by shaping how investors and founders think, decide, and align. His work spans advising VC funds, CEOs, governments, and accelerator programs, with an emphasis on psychology, character, and long-term performance.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aram-attar/

Website: https://thevcfactory.com/

ABOUT JASON KIRBY

Jason Kirby is the co-founder of Thunder, a tech-enabled investment bank helping founders navigate capital strategy and M&A. A serial entrepreneur with four exits, Jason has coached hundreds of founders and led transactions totaling $200M+ through Thunder.

Email: jason@thunder.vc

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonrkirby/

ABOUT $100M EXITS

$100M Exits equips founders with the insight and guidance needed to navigate capital strategy through conversations with founders and investors who’ve already done it. Best suited for founders doing $5M+ in revenue.

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