Wall of Love

I'm a three-time exited founder turned VC, so I'd written plenty of decks before Mike. The problem wasn't substance — it was that my story wasn't doing any work. The slides were thorough and forgettable. Mike's coaching fixed that. Two ideas reshaped how I tell the Good AI story: framing the deck like Ocean's Eleven, with every player a distinct character and a clear role; and leading with my bio, because as an emerging manager the GP is the product — the reader needs to know who I am and why I win before the thesis. That reframe changed the whole arc. The feedback was direct and specific — he tells you exactly which slide isn't landing and why, and he's right. You leave with concrete fixes, not vague encouragement. If you know your substance is strong but your story isn't carrying it, work with Mike. Five stars.

Mike was a phenomenal resource - he was very constructive, kind when critical, and implored us to think more like our target demographic. He was easy to work with, professional, empathic, and offered very tangible feedback. We have noticed a marked improvement in reception on our marketing materials after working with Mike.

The worst thing to do when creating a pitch deck is to solely live inside your own head. There's a chance you'll get lucky and "nail it," but that chance lives on Slim St. at the intersection of To-None Ave. Mike, his team, and the rest of the GPs in the Mastermind were pivotal in pulling me out of my head and helping me see through fresh eyes, with proper lenses. Our pitch is a ton better as ar esult.

Mike has an incredible knack for storytelling—he makes complex ideas simple and engaging, which I truly appreciated. Through our sessions as part of the VC Include Fellowship, Mike challenged me to think deeply about the story behind my fund thesis, ensuring it resonates with others. Even after just two sessions, I’ve already seen significant improvements in how I communicate my vision. As someone who tends to focus on data and numbers, I look forward to working with Mike in the near future to strengthen my narrative and position myself for fundraising success. Thanks again, Mike, for such a valuable and impactful experience!

Mike is super sharp. I was impressed how he immediately "got" my thesis and understood what messaging was most important to LPs. 10/10 recommend!

Hands-down amazing! As someone who focuses on ops and moving forward, I find storytelling crippling. Now I feel empowered with great results and a formula to apply in the future.

Before working with Mike my partner and I felt we had a good handle on storytelling, in fact we'd received many compliments on our deck. BUT what I learned from Mike is that we were leaving a lot of our value on the table the way we were communicating our story. He gave us a better perspective on how to engage LPs through the deck when you're not in the room. Highly recommend working with Mike!

Mike basically summarized our entire strategy in 3 sentences that I will now use as our elevator pitch. He immediately understood what we were doing and how to best position ourselves in the competitive market based on his own past experiences and immense knowledge.

TL;DR: You should work with Mike. We've all been there... it's hard to talk about yourself, you've done so many great things it's hard to pick what to highlight, you have multiple audiences to reach, etc. Luckily, Mike appears to have seen it all and knows what to do. He uses that experience, his storytelling expertise, and supportive nature to help you cut through the noise and craft a compelling narrative to achieve your goals. He certainly did so for us. I'd work with Mike again in a heartbeat and recommend you do, too.

Before this course, it was miserable to create a succinct narrative about the firm I am building. There was too much nuanced information banging around in my brain and I was not being effective at communicating the high level story. I was getting in my own way. After one session with Mike, I started over and began creating an outline of a children's book version. I will continue to iterate and apply insights from Mike's course. I only wish I would have had this course a decade ago!

Mike helped me create a "story" with a sense of mystery that creates curiosity in the reader and builds to a payoff. He also convinced me to increase the number of slides but reduce the amount of text on each slide, which works much better when pitching live.

I had the pleasure of working with Michael on designing and refining the storyline for my deck, and I can't recommend his expertise enough. Michael has an incredible ability to distill complex ideas into clear, impactful messaging that truly resonates with the target audience. He not only helped me structure the content to highlight the unique value proposition but also brought fresh insights that elevated the overall narrative. Beyond his technical skills, Michael was a delight to collaborate with. He is responsive, thoughtful, and genuinely invested in the success of a project he works on. If you're looking for someone to help you craft a top-tier presentation, Michael is absolutely the person to work with.

Mike has a unique combination of a knack for storytelling and a good eye for what resonates in the world of venture capital. He helped us get to the heart of our offering in a clear and concise way. It would have taken us months of investor feedback to arrive at the same place.

Michael's approach reveals how to build a story and narrative that works by getting you outside of your comfort zone and zeroing in on a strategy that is effective and works.

Articulating what we do at Sturgeon Capital has always been one of our biggest challenges, because the markets we operate in our so alien to our potential investors. Our tendency has therefore been to overcompensate by adding more information, leading to a cluttered presentation and disjointed narrative. I cannot praise highly enough Mike's ability to see through that clutter and identify the true essence of what we are doing and why we do it. After his direct and clear feedback we have been able to cut back on the excess and hone in on our true narrative in a more compelling and interesting way. Thank you!

We had the pleasure of participating in one of Mike’s courses with an Accelerator program. What we thought would be a typical presentation turned into a fun and informative learning experience. Mike provided an outline of how to make an engaging deck and gave direct feedback on our presentation that was very helpful. Mike also took the time to listen to our story, ask questions and help us reframe our narrative. We hope to work more with Mike in the future!

Chloe Capital has partnered closely with Mike to support our accelerator cohorts with pitch and pitch deck coaching. Mike's engaging sessions are always packed with valuable insights, providing participants with clear, actionable feedback that the founders could implement immediately. The value Mike brings to the table ensures every session is, as our founders have shared with us, "100% worth the time".

Mike is a stud. He has an uncanny ability to take a very complicated story and distill it into an easy-to-understand narrative that highlights the most important pieces. His support was invaluable for us as we completed our deck for our second fundraise. We are now nearing full subscription. We will be working with Mike again ahead of Fund 3.

Mike's course was a huge unlock for me in putting some structure around how to tell our story. He has an uncanny ability to quickly diagnose your stumbling blocks and intuit the right path forward. Highly recommended!

The Hate Your Deck course is fantastic! The approach and process are clear and insightful. I’ve seen a lot of decks and built a lot of decks and most of them aren’t very good. This program provides one of the best approaches to developing a compelling pitch deck. It’s easy to understand and will almost certainly point out the unseen flaws in your deck. I recommend this course to founders and funders. It’s worth the time, cost and effort.

So, I have been building decks for 10+ years. Having founding and sold multiple businesses and working on Wall Street. Decided to start a fund with my co-founder, and we stressed over the fund deck for a long period. We had one session and got an immediate response from investors including an invite from one of the largest investors in the US. Great team to work with.

Storytelling in a deck is a challenge, but the frameworks and the exercises that we went through were immensely helpful in rethinking, revising, and improving. It was intensive and a lot to digest but our deck is certainly better off for it.

Look, it's very common for a pitch deck to be dry and declarative. We all struggle to connect with our audience, get them to care, and persuade them to take action. What if you could shape your pitch deck into a narrative arc that hooked your audience and got them invested in your success? This is what Mike did for our deck, and the result was outstanding. We have a clearer, more compelling story. 10/10 recommend.

I was very hesitant to take/pay for this course given my background working at tier 1 venture funds and advising several companies personally, thinking I wouldn't learn anything new, but Hate Your Deck turned out to be absolutely necessary. I found this program most valuable in nailing the story down and simplifying it. When you are at your own devices and in your own echo chamber it is very easy to end up overloading your deck with information. Mike was invaluable in helping me focus in on the most important and differentiated angles of my story and being able to correctly display that story in slide format.

I’ve participated in 20+ deck building workshops throughout my career and Mike’s approach is second to none. He’s not just helping you build a deck, he challenges you to uncover the truth of your story and drives you to present what is most valuable to your audience. As a VC myself, I look at hundreds of decks. After working with Mike, the way I think about decks has fundamentally changed (for the better)!

Attending the Hate Your Deck course was a game-changer. The biggest takeaway for us was the importance of framing our deck in a way that truly resonates with investors. Before the course, our deck felt more like a data dump than a compelling story. The workshop taught us how to weave a narrative that highlights our strengths and vision, making our pitch far more engaging. The course provided us with practical tools and strategies to refine our fundraising deck. We learned how to structure our content to create a logical flow, making it easier for investors to follow and understand our message. The emphasis on visual storytelling also helped us make our deck more visually appealing, which in turn made our presentations more impactful. One of the most significant shifts in our perspective was understanding the power of storytelling. We realized that investors are not just looking for numbers; they want to connect with the story behind the business. The course helped us craft a narrative that not only showcases our achievements but also conveys our passion and vision for the future. I would highly recommend the Hate Your Deck course to any founder looking to enhance their fundraising deck. The insights and techniques we gained have been invaluable in improving our pitch and increasing our confidence in front of investors. This course is a must for anyone serious about raising funds and making a lasting impression.

I've struggled to put together a strong, cohesive deck for over a year. (Don't) Hate Your Deck provided the tools to finally pull the pieces together. It's more than simple formatting; Mike helped me think critically about my unique offering, the root problem my firm is solving, and how to tactfully brag about myself. The end result has been a persuasive (and beautiful!) deck. To top it off, Mike is lively and fun to work with. He won't hold back on giving his feedback. Overall, great experience working with the team!