​Happy hello! You are receiving Lolita’s Latest newsletter because you are in it, subscribed to it, or are considered a friend, mentor or are family to Loita Taub. This newsletter goes out every 3 months and includes Lolita’s latest updates, reads, and life hacks. The goal is to stay in touch and share goodies.

​Road Trips, Transitions, and Family

​Location: Carmel by the Sea. Lolita, Choco, and Josh Taub.

​Did you have a good time celebrating the Mexican Army's victory over the French Empire at the Battle of Puebla, on May 5, 1862, this Cinco de Mayo? Like good Mexicans, Josh, Choco, and I did not celebrate. We did go on a fun road trip to the Bay, though! We saw wild zebras 🦓 near Hearst castle and elephant seals in San Simeon.

​So, why the Bay? It’s all for the dream to learn from the best, and invest in and support the diverse founders who are building the future of tech. And with Backstage shifting its focus to an accelerator model and my mentors pointing me in the direction of the Bay, it was the right time to come out. So, I’m here - looking for the right fit fund.

​Ideally, I get to work with a B2B enterprise-focused seed fund that’s in the $50-100M range that appreciates diversity and is committed to the development of - not only the portfolio companies but also - the team. You can read more in my All Raise #WCW Enterprise Feature here (thank you ✨Sharvari!).

​🚨Until I find the right fund and role, I plan to take on consulting gigs with young and diverse pre-seed and seed funds working on ops (e.g., collaboration wikis, CRM) and investment team projects (e.g., deal flow strategy, due diligence structure).

​I’m excited about what’s to come and grateful that I get to enjoy a bit more time with family!

​📰UPDATES

​Mentee | My All Raise VC Champions mentor, Mark Suster, Partner at Upfront Ventures and author of the renowned blog Both Sides of the Table, shared these words with me. They shifting my thinking and might shift yours too.

​Writing | Blogged about alternatives to VC funding, VC fundraising prep, CVCs, and M&A on Medium. Posted my 2019 AI Market Review on Slideshare.

​Community | Held Backstage Office Hours at SaaStr and SXSW. Mentored the Techstars Anywhere Cohort and judged the Startup of the Year Pitch Competition. Took on a volunteer role at All Raise as Co-Lead for the Intersectional Working Group and participated in First Republic Bank’s Women In Venture Summit.

​Transition | Started my job hunt with this tweet storm (it’s earned 33.6K impressions)! Here are my current stats: 33 leads (21 inbounds). 9 turned out to be duds. I passed on 5 funds and 5 funds passed on me. I have 5 qualified opportunities and 9 leads that need to be qualified. Fingers crossed.

​Health | Got bed bugs in my first apartment in SF. That took me out for a bit. I’m recovered, now, armed with a bed bug detector from Amazon, and back on the job hunt. Grateful for good health!

​
📚READS

​May is #mentalhealth month. So, I’m sharing some of my favorites on the topic.

​Dyslexia | The Dyslexic Advantage: good for those who are dyslexic (like me) and are curious about the superpowers that come with dyslexia. This book is written by two physicians.

​Workaholism | Chained to the Desk + #Chill: good for those of us who work too much and want to learn to chill. This book is written by a recovered workaholic + psychotherapist.

​Self-Help | What I Know for Sure: good for anyone who has gone through some tough stuff and wants to be uplifted. This book is written by the soulful billionaire Oprah Winfrey.

​🤩LIFE HACKS

​Bed Bugs | Detect bed bugs before they bite you. I got this detector and plan to use it forever.

​Introverts | I’m an introvert and don’t often find social channels that delight me. So, I was happy to find Marzi’s @introvertdoodles on Instagram. Check out her posts. They just might just make you smile and nod.

​Sinuses | My sinuses flare up when I travel and sleep in too dry a room. This month, I started using this mini travel humidifier and my sinuses are much happier.

​Rewards | A better service needs to be created for managing rewards (so they don’t expire before you use them). The best one I’ve found is AwardWallet.

​
🙏ASKS

​Intros | Is there anyone with whom you would recommend I connect - for consulting gigs, fund roles, or just because he/she is awesome?

​Parent | Do you know a good person who can provide advice on taking care of a parent who is not yet in retirement age, has no insurance and may become disabled?

​You | Tell me what you’re up to and how I can be of help to you!

​
🎉🎉🎉SPECIAL THANKS

​Josh T for being my rock and being the best partner anyone could ever have in life. Christie P and Arlan H for your warmth, care, and job hunt support. Mark S for your mentorship and documentary and book recommendation. Charles H for your mentorship and intros. Suzy R for being a friend and introducing me to an awesome AI company. John O for your mentorship, inside scoop, and friendship. Al G for opening up your network to me! Nnamdi O and Aaron H for your job hunt support! Nick N for going above and beyond for me. Kevin B and Karim C for the awesome cap table waterfall session + model. Kim P for sharing what you’ve learned over the years in the business. Navrina for constructive feedback and intros. Ryan K for the invitation to be a mentor at Techstars Anywhere and for your candid feedback. Bryan L for peer editing my posts. Hana Y for the invite to First Banks women in venture summit. Aileen L for entrusting me with the intersectional working group co-lead volunteer role at All Raise. Sharvari J for the AR #WCW series feature. Matt W for being you. Todd K for snail-mailing over your Built for Change and Steve C’s The Third Wave book. Al G, Adina T, Evan M, Michelle M, and Greg S thanks for being allies.

​I am so grateful for all of you.

​Lolita Taub

​@lolitataub