3 reasons why I joined Front Row Ventures - and you should too

Front Row Ventures is Canada’s first student run Venture Capital firm investing $10 million in student startups across the country.

Applications for next years team are open until January 26th.

Here’s why I joined:

1. Meet the Best People

Who will I be working with? This is the most important question I ask myself prior to joining any organization. I noticed that my most valuable experiences have been about working with the best people. It’s these people that inspire me to do better and push myself.

The FRV team attracts curious, like-minded people from all over the country. I personally found it difficult to find others interested in entrepreneurship and venture capital, but through FRV I found other people from different schools and backgrounds that share my interests.

In addition, we get to meet ambitious student entrepreneurs. It’s inspiring meeting so many students that want to disrupt that status quo. Some of the crazy ideas that I’ve seen have blown me away. FRV gives us a platform to meet and provide value to the best entrepreneurs.

2. Learn about Venture Capital

My interest in Venture Capital stemmed from my fascination with Silicon Valley giants such as Marc Andressen, Reid Hoffman, Peter Thiel, etc. I wondered what attracted so many brilliant people to VC. I wanted to learn more.

What better way to learn than to join a venture fund?

Through FRV I’m learning the economics, the mental models, and how to evaluate startups. The best part however, is leading your own investments and learning through experience.

3. Join an Early Stage Organization

Common advice given to students finding their first job is to join an early stage company on a breakout trajectory.

Why?

• Rate of learning. Learning is accelerated due to the high growth of the company.
• Network. The cultures of early stage companies are conducive to attracting A-players and the size allows you to work with top talent closely.
• Real Impact. The impact for every unit of work is multiplied at the early stages. The work here sets the foundation for the later growth stages of the company.

The same principle applies to student clubs.

As someone that has led student teams previously, joining FRV was analogous to joining an early stage startup. The difference here is that the only risk is opportunity cost. I saw it as a unique opportunity to be on the first Ontario team and help lay the foundation. For me, it was low risk, high reward. A year later, I still see it that way.

If I had the opportunity to join FRV, I wouldn’t hesitate. I’d get on board immediately.

Feel free to send me an email james@frv.vc if you have any questions!