Angel Portfolio Returns Pattern

Ryan Begelman shares his experience with angel investing and the importance of portfolio approach.

"I've made many angel investments where I had no clue about them. Someone would say 'you should throw 50K in this thing' and I'd ask 'what's the least I could do? Could I do 10K?' Over time, I've made about 25 of these investments, and most of them have gone to zero. But a few of them popped, so I'm looking at this like an angel investment - like 1 in 10 will succeed.

I've had situations where I met great entrepreneurs, like the guys at Calm, through Summit early on. For whatever reason, I didn't persist and get the ability to invest in their company. Maybe I missed the email, or wasn't at the right event when they were raising. I met them 3 months earlier but couldn't get in.

When I got into some awesome investments like Uber, I couldn't share them with anybody. I'd call my mom and say 'Oh man, sorry, I can't even get you in.' That's why I'm excited about new opportunities where everyone can participate."