An amazing catch setting up a 4th quarter come from behind victory against a team we weren’t supposed to beat.
Where have a seen this before?
The Giants did it again, winning their fourth title in my lifetime.
Now I know how Yankees fans feel—except that this year and in ‘07, these were teams that were counted out before they really got started.
It made me think about teams and confidence. This weekend, I judged the Mashery API hackathon and the Startup Weekend EDU edition. I got to watch teams come together in a short period of time to achieve success.
Confidence, especially when you’re the underdog, is empowering. It makes people on your team want to work together to achieve a common goal. The Giants were clearly confident going into this game due to their late season momentum. They felt like they deserved to be there and not like a 9-7 team that barely made the playoffs.
You could tell which Startup Weekend and Hackathon teams gelled during the weekend and came together when it counted. Those are the types of teams I want to back as an investor—because it’s not how you start or what you look like on paper.
Too often, raising money is a proxy for success. Raising money is winning your division—but come playoff time, it really doesn’t matter much. The teams that come together on the same page win—not necessarily the 13 win teams or the teams with the $13 million in the bank.
I will hopefully be at the parade on Tuesday. You can win VIP tickets here:
The City will conduct a public giveaway for 250 winners (500 tickets) to the ceremony in City Hall Plaza on Monday, February 6th from 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM through www.nyc.gov and 311 by phone or text by sending a text message to 311692. People will also be able to access the entry form through the New York City Mayor’s Office Twitter page.
So stop counting wins and dollars raised. Go out there and be the last team standing.
See you around this week. I’ll be speaking at the Find a Cofounder event tonight and Ultralight on Thursday.