Hacker News Reader

Marc Andreessen says, to "[raise] as much as you can. Without giving away control of your company, and without being insane." (http://blog.pmarca.com/2007/07/the-pmarca-guid.html)

I don't have the experience to say whether or not I agree, but it's another viewpoint worth considering.

It kind of depends on what your strategy is. Netscape had to staff up quick so they raised as much as they could. In their case, they needed as much as they could get, I suppose.

Absolutely agree. Thats the dilemma - I want to be completely upfront. We dont need and dont want money. What we would love is guidance, advice, networking etc. But I imagine VCs aren't really in that game (btw, just read your essay!)

Most VCs you can safely tell you're not currently looking for money, and they'll still help you. If you're good, they'll want to start a relationship in case you need money later.

Wasn't it Eugene Kleiner who said, "Take the money when it's available." :P