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art of the pitch
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Surbhi Sarna had no intention of becoming an entrepreneur when she was faced with a potential cancer diagnosis. As a high school student, she just wanted to survive. But Sarna’s cancer scare changed her life and probably the lives of millions.
Sarna started nVision Medical after graduating from college. She created the device in the hope that one day she will be able to detect ovarian cancer early. She then sold her company to Boston Scientific for her $275 million.
That’s the short story. But in the longer version, Sarna’s pitch was rejected by her 50 investors. They were skeptical because Sarna didn’t have his MBA or medical school degree. In other words, she didn’t check all the right boxes.
“I was underestimated and doubted my whole life,” Sarnah told me in an interview about her new book. no doubtThe transformation from underrated Sarna to unbeatable is a valuable lesson for anyone with an idea to share or a startup to pitch.
Definitely by Surbhi Sarna
Simon & Schuster
Sarna was in the capital raising stage to build her startup, but entered a pitch contest to improve her presentation and generate much-needed revenue. But it wasn’t until she was accepted into a program run by renowned billionaire and venture capitalist Tim Draper that Sarna learned to sharpen her winning pitch.
“I learned to tell my story and make a business case at the same time,” recalls Sarna.
“I was afraid investors would think I didn’t grasp the side of the business if I told them why I came to the table. He told me how I got in so that I could talk about it comfortably.”
Now a partner at legendary seed accelerator Y Combinator, Sarna enjoys mentoring entrepreneurs from product design to team building. Communication and storytelling are essential skills in building and growing a startup at every level.
“Investors know it takes seven to 10 years to succeed. Your personal story—the reason that brought you to the table—is important.
It’s easy to pitch facts about market opportunities and sales projections when pitching to investors. But Sarna tells leaders, “Investors, potential advisors, and employees are all human, and people get bored easily. Engage your audience with stories that help them understand what’s going on.”
Yes, investors are just people and what attracts people is the story.
A good story can answer questions like:
- Why are you excited about this opportunity?
- Why should investors get excited?
- When faced with a hurdle, do you stumble or challenge yourself?
“Sometimes leaders and entrepreneurs try to suppress their emotions and passion for something because they think it’s unprofessional,” says Sarna. “But it’s okay to be genuinely excited when you talk about something you love. People often feel connected to you and are rewarded.”
Stories convey emotion and passion. Leverage personal stories to engage investors, customers, partners and stakeholders.