The Fort #115: James Beshara - Angel Investing, AirBnb, Clubhouse, & Being Content
James Beshara is a full-time Angel Investor & Founder of Magic Mind. He also is the host of the podcast Below the Line.
In his third appearance on The FORT, James and Chris discuss the origins of their friendship, the concept of lives being made on 12 seconds of courage, and the metrics of their first venture fund. James also details his experience building Tilt, which was acquired by Airbnb in 2017, and the downside of that journey that you won't ever hear from other start-ups in the media. He talks about running out of cash while trying to find a suitable buyer for the business, having to lay-off employees, and taking the news of the acquisition to the team as well as transitioning to Airbnb.
Finally, James and Chris discuss the ego-centric world of tech, what it means to be happy, the philosophy behind building a business, and more. Enjoy!
Follow Chris on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/FortWorthChris
Learn more about Chris Powers and Fort Capital: www.FortCapitalLP.com
Follow Chris on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/chrispowersjr/
James Beshara on Twitter: www.twitter.com/jamesbeshara
James' Podcast: www.belowthelinepod.com
(03:26) - How James and Chris Met
(07:22) - Lives Are Made on 12 Seconds of Courage
(12:15) - Going to South Africa
(16:24) - The Metrics for Chris & James First Fund (Cat Empire)
(24:20) - The Process of Deciding to Start a Venture Fund
(30:02) - The Downside of Building and Exiting Tilt (Acquired by Airbnb)
(36:10) - The Last Few Months of Tilt
(50:03) - Telling the Team About the Acquisition
(59:06) - Initial Experiences at Airbnb
(1:02:10) - What’s the process like getting stock in a pre-IPO company?
(1:05:12) - Being Made to Create
(1:07:20) - Working Alongside AirBnb’s CEO
(1:10:55) - When someone is emerging with a start-up, are they getting executive coaches along the way?
(1:17:04) - Vulnerability is a Strength
(1:22:33) - Ego in Today’s Society
(1:25:27) - Envy
(1:30:51) - Eastern Philosophy & Starting a Business
(1:33:17) - Wheat does an internal pursuit mean?
(1:36:36) - What does it mean to be content?
Living life backwards by David Gibson
(1:49:08) - Clubhouse and James Being One of the First Investors
The FORT with Chris Powers is produced by Straight Up Podcasts