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I Never Thought I Could Be an Investor

The Story

“Not to be overly humble, I used to think that investors were something that I could never be,” Packy McCormick said. “At first, I’d be like wow a company wants me to invest?!” (Source 1).

His first angel investment ever was in July 2020, in Apt, a startup that standardizes housing development. There was no Not Boring Syndicate then. “I never thought that I would be a VC. There was no master plan. I just wanted to help my friends Fed and Petr tell their company’s story” (Source 2).

One year later, the Not Boring Syndicate had invested over $4 million in over twenty companies (Source 2). McCormick then raised Not Boring Capital Fund I, an $8 million venture fund (later reaching $9.9 million with 133 LPs). The anchor LP was Thrive Capital. LPs included Marc Andreessen, Chris Dixon (a16z), Bain Capital Ventures, Josh Kopelman (First Round), and dozens of other prominent investors and founders (Source 2).

He then raised $30 million for Fund II. Fund III targeted $30 million with a hard cap at $50 million (Source 3).

“I only invest in companies that I want to write about,” McCormick explained. “Otherwise, why would I invest in them?” (Source 1).

Lesson for Creators

Packy didn’t start with a plan to become a VC. He started by writing about companies he found interesting, which attracted founders, which led to deal flow, which led to investments, which led to funds. The identity of “investor” wasn’t something he claimed first and then earned. It emerged from doing the work of writing deeply about companies. For creators, new revenue streams and career identities often come from unexpected extensions of what you’re already doing.

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