Free The Monk and the Riddle: The Art of Creating a Life While Making a Living by Randy Komisar, Kent Lineback Page A

brink of forty, he's been in the business for more than a decade. He knows as well as anyone that it is important first to evaluate every aspect of a new idea with analytical precision but that, in the end, the decision to fund or move on is a matter of instinct. Frank can apply all the right metrics, but it is his nose that gives him his edge. He has a deep respect for entrepreneurs, coupled with a no-nonsense attitude toward performance. He would pull his support in an instant if he felt a founder wasn't cutting it.
    Until Frank's note, though, my morning with Lenny had become a distant memory. Funeral goods. Bacteria. Make it big, then cash out.
    I hit “Reply” and tapped out an answer:
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TO: [email protected]
     
FROM: [email protected]
     
SUBJECT: Re: Dead or Alive?
     
We missed you at dinner tonight. All the usual suspects and the usual conversation—denigrating your portfolio and discounting your returns as the blessings of an innocent. I tried to defend you, but it was futile.
     
As for Funerals.com, the funeral goods market appears to be huge, so it merits some serious consideration. Lenny himself seemed bright, energetic, and driven, and also naïve and inexperienced. He doesn't have a team. His plan is fairly polished but incomplete, and his strategy limited—lots of fundamental issues still to be resolved. All in all, I didn't find anything here of particular interest to me, but you might do some more due diligence because of the market potential.
     
best
     
r
     
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    I looked the note over. I wanted to be honest and fair. Lenny was hard to read. His drive and desire were plain to see, and he had the makings of a good promoter, but something was missing.
    Yawning, I hit “Send” and then deleted Frank's e-mail. Case closed.
    I worked through the remaining messages one by one— FYIs from some of the companies I work with, a few queries from friends of friends suggesting we meet to discuss new ideas, and one from my sister the accupuncturist in Boston letting me in on a new herbal remedy. Then an e-mail from Lenny. I noted the time; he'd sent it well after midnight in Boston.
    ----
TO: [email protected]
     
FROM: [email protected]
     
SUBJECT: Thank You
     
Randy,
     
Many thanks for meeting with me this morning. I learned a lot from your reactions, and I revised the Funerals.com plan on the flight home. It's stronger now, with your help.
     
Thanks.
     
I hope you'll have a chance to look at the revised business plan I've attached. I incorporated the changes you suggested. It's a huge market, and someone is going to make a killing in it.
     
Let me know any thoughts about the new plan. I hope you'll reconsider working with us.
     
Thanks again.
     
Lenny
     
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    I replied:
    ----
TO: [email protected]
     
FROM: [email protected]
     
SUBJECT: Re: Thank You
     
I appreciated hearing about Funerals.com this morning. I've passed on my thoughts to Frank, as I said I would. You're right. Someone will figure out the on-line market for funeral goods.
     
Thanks for your interest in my working with you, but as I said at the Konditorei, I can't get excited about a business whose biggest idea is making money. Nothing wrong with that, but it's not where I want to invest my time. That's a personal choice, not a judgment.
     
Good luck.
     
best
     
r
     
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    I finished off the remaining three e-mails and thought, finally, I was done for the day. Then a ping—a reply from Lenny. I looked at my watch. It was almost 3:00 A.M. in Boston. The guy must not sleep.
    ----
TO: [email protected]
     
FROM: [email protected]
     
SUBJECT: Re: Re: Thank You
     
Randy,
     
Thanks for your quick reply. I'm disappointed but understand, I think.
     
If you don't like Funerals.com, that's fair, but I have to confess I left our meeting feeling I had somehow misled you. Your reply makes me sure of it.
     
All you know about me is Funerals.com, and I wouldn't want you to believe that's all I'm about. While I think of