Starting up: It’s not easy to tell people you won’t invest in their start-up. Mark Solon of Highway 12 Ventures

Every single day, I have to tell great entrepreneurs that I’m passing on an investment in their company. For me, saying "no" to someone who has poured his or her life’s work into a start-up is the hardest thing I have to do as a professional investor. Imagine working in a maternity ward and telling every new mother that her baby is ugly. Unfortunately, it’s something I have to do every day.

Early in my career, I wasn’t very good at this. Actually, I was awful. There were many ways I would say "no." There was the Excalibur No – like the legendary sword of King Arthur, I would tell someone that I would invest if he or she brought me a Google-size customer.

By Mark Solon, Highway 12 Ventures http://www.highway12ventures.com/ – Special to the Idaho Statesman

Full Story: http://www.idahostatesman.com/1298/story/321965.html