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You may think you want to work in VC, but make sure you know both the good and bad of it.  Vault takes a look at VC uppers and downers.&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;Venture Capital uppers&lt;/b&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;ol&gt;&lt;li&gt;You often get to be the one making decisions because you have money. .&lt;br&gt;&lt;li&gt;Over the long term, you will certainly become rich because the job is well paying and you should eventually get &quot;carry&quot; or equity in the firm. .&lt;br&gt;&lt;li&gt;Being &quot;in the middle of it all&quot; in some of the most interesting industries. .&lt;br&gt;&lt;li&gt;You have access to the best minds -the people you work with are typically very smart and interesting.&lt;br&gt;&lt;li&gt;Your job is to absorb and enjoy the positive creative energy of entrepreneurs and direct it toward successful execution. .&lt;br&gt;&lt;li&gt;You could suddenly become rich if one of your companies does extremely well and you were able to co-invest or you have carry. .&lt;br&gt;&lt;li&gt;You have access to the best information systems. &lt;br&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ol&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;Venture Capital downers&lt;/b&gt;Here is a list of some of the negatives we hear from people who have worked in the industry for a while.&lt;ol&gt;&lt;li&gt;You don&#39;t have pride of ownership in anything.  You&#39;re just an investor, not a builder.&lt;br&gt;&lt;li&gt;VC is a slow path to wealth compared with the immediate cash income you get in investment banking, hedge funds or even management consulting. .&lt;br&gt;&lt;li&gt;You are a jack-of-all-trades, not an expert.  After a few years, you can&#39;t do anything other than VC because you grow spoiled by making decisions without much compromise. .&lt;br&gt;&lt;li&gt;Venture capital is fundamentally a negative process.  Because you reject 99 of every 100 plans, year after year, over time you focus on figuring out what is wrong with a company so you can reject it and get onto the next deal.  What is wrong with the management?  The technology?  The deal terms?  The strategy?  After just a few years, that mentality may bleed into your life.  What is wrong with my partners?  What is wrong with my spouse?  What is wrong with me?  Oh, the angst!  .&lt;br&gt;&lt;li&gt;Because you reject 99 of every 100 entrepreneurs, you make a lot of enemies, no matter how nice and helpful you try to be.  No one likes rejection, and passionate entrepreneurs have long memories.&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ol&gt;

Derek Loosvelt

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