You may recognize these two fine looking gentlemen as Jeff and Sam McCamy. Sam invited me to Angel Capital Group back in 2008 and I’ve loved every minute of being involved with this organization. I’ve seen many presentations and had the opportunity to invest in many startups via ACG! ACG is kinda like the TV show, Shark Tank, except there’s no camera and we’re much kinder to the entrepreneurs. Early stage investing is more akin to gambling. Members of ACG are accredited investors, enjoy helping entrepreneurs with their startups, and don’t mind losing money on these VERY risky investments. It’s more about the ride. Instead of being a shareholder in Apple today and hoping for some growth, it’s like you were hanging with Steve Jobs and Woz in the garage and they hit you up for $50k for 25% of the company. It’s like a backstage pass. It’s much cooler than just investing and making money.
So, how did I come to be President of the Knoxville Chapter? Well, I met with the CEO, Eric Dobson, and provided some constructive criticism. Eric responded, “Leo, those are great observations and even better suggestions for making improvements. How would you like to take the role of Chapter President and make sure those items get addressed?”. So, if you don’t like the way I’m running the Chapter, just tell me and maybe you could be the next President.