2 years on Emperor?! I commend you! I’d make an off-color joke about you also being part of team Masochist, but, that would just be me.
So what’s your biggest take-away, in terms of experiences that you’ve had and changes that have occurred in your life since starting Emperor?
NGL, I’m still blown away by the whole 2 years thing. That’s the equivalent of a marriage for me.
This was a joke peeps, thank you for the clarification though 
Do you perceive your getting sick as a form of recon or
Have you been running Emperor X and then got sick?
Yes, the inability to rest, or chill out, was something I experienced at times on certain versions of Emperor, quite the double edged sword. If it has me on fire/ in flow on productive things it’s great but if I get stuck in a ‘grey zone’ of can’t really be productive while driven too, and can’t really rest/rejuvenate- its a waste of time
Thanks @Demian
It was not just Emperor
it was Emperor in customs and in stacks
The most obvious result is I’ve quadrupled + my yearly income
and am about to do another multiple on that.
I went from working multiple dead end jobs to just having launched an investment firm in private equity (with zero previous experience in that field) as a founding team member- with a chance to 5-10X my income and have equity and percentage of return in a half a billion dollar AUM fund.
For a year while on Emperor I started freelance marketing work (with zero experience in that) that brough in another $3-7K a month. (I’ve since completed that)
I’m someone who deals with things rather than avoids them
I no longer place my self worth in the amount of, and attractiveness level, of woman I can sleep with
I can be a public presentation, speaking, and ‘be seen’ in a way I was very uncomfortable with before- and have confidence in whatever I do and if I don’t I deal with what I need to to get it.
I’m someone who is fundamentally productive rather than procrastinating like I used to be.
Those are a few of the big ones
And sometimes it feels like nothings changed and I’m no where near where I want to be
Another double edge sword of Emperor -I have to stay present to progress.
Emperor has me present to using pain as a form of growth and I have to be conscious to value the progress rather than have it mean nothing and keep pushing foward.
There is a masochistic element to Emperor lol
I lose sight of it and then
that after running other subs like Khan, HOM, or Chosen, without Emperor and return to Emperor
I’m like -wow I see it now.
Wow. This post in and of itself, is a testament to what someone is capable of achieving if they stick with a sub long enough, as you have. Consider me inspired!
I’m also running HoM. Similar interests as yours, especially in the Private Equity and market trading spaces. But I’ve just gotten started, and the road ahead will be long. I can see that already.
There’s a quote from one of my favorite movies, Margin Call, where Kevin Spacey’s character (his personal actions aside, the man was a monster of an actor), talks about how if he dug a ditch, at least he would have something to show for it.
While the comparison is probably the worst I can make, my brain works in funny ways when it comes to connecting things, the point is, any time you have spent on something and you can show quantifiable progress or returns on, you know that time was well spent or the effort yielded a reward.
My hats off to you sir. And, I’m proud to be joining you as an initiate in the Emperors Masochist Club.
In a level of all seriousness, thank you for taking the time to respond to my question and providing such an insightful answer. I really do appreciate your willingness to share that information with me.
It boggles my mind how one goes about doing this. Being in banking for 22 years myself and knowing all the red tape and government regulations involved, at least in the US, I can’t fathom how I would even do this. Very inspiring and well done.
Congrats
Yeah so that’s the price…
Ahhh idk really I think it’s a seasonal cold. Been coughing a lot and feel like 60% tbh.
Either way. Was stuck in bed for past 2 days. Like nothing interests me besides work.
I tried to Netflix… didn’t work
I don’t wanna play video games. Idk man my work has been the only interesting thing for me besides girls.
Literally girls and work has been my own interest lol.
Like sex drive has been insane even while sick which is odd
Actually pretty simple.
Dissect exactly what the complex thing is. And break it down into parts and find an expert to be for that part.
Ex. Private Equity - E-commerce
@Azriel would u say this is roughly accurate?
OK, being the newest squid on the block, I hate to overstep my bounds, but… I think you are vastly over simplifying what it takes to start a PE Firm. Especially one that has raised half a billion dollar fund.
First, there is the fund domicile, meaning where do you actually setup the fund - ie, onshore, offshore. What are the tax benefits for setting the fund up in one place or another.
You would also need to consider the investor base of the fund.
Next, you have the actual investors that will 1, need to be accredited, and 2, need to be vetted. You have to know where the money is coming from that you are investing.
Sourcing deal flow is another issue, which can be easily resolved by signing up for multiple sites that are not cheap, but list information around the companies that are looking for capital sourcing.
And I didn’t even talk about the domain expertise. If you’re doing Angel investments, then yes, it can be as simple as writing up some contract for an equity piece in a company.
If you’re doing private equity, market sectors are vast, the type of fund you run will also determine the viability of your returns. Another example of that would be VC, versus Growth, versus Distressed, Versus LBO.
You also need to do some fancy financial modeling to determine if your initial capital infusion is going to carry the company forward through first year sales and how will that impact the entire portfolio of the fund itself.
So, I would very much agree with the other gentleman that was equally impressed at the level of effort of getting a fund off the ground. The paperwork alone just to get setup and running, along with the PPM’s you have to submit to potential investors is a many month long process that is essentially a mental and physical slog.
Nothing easy about this I’m afraid.
Edit - I forgot to also mention the best part, the legal fees in just getting all of this going can land somewhere between 250k and 500k. And that’s money out of the partners pockets, because this all happens before the first bit of capital is actually invested into the fund itself.
Let me clarify -
This is not MYfund
I am part of the founding team and spent the last 6 months working like crazy to launch it.
The fund does not currently have half a billion AUM. The last fund I was at with the person I launched this one with, who was managing partner at the last fund, did close to that. And given our relationships/network, current interest, and commitments, this one will likely do that as well.
That said if that still boggles your mind, here are my thoughts
3 ways (not a formula, luck/ fate/ destiny/ karma may certainly play a part)
The right relationships, I partnered with someone with a 10+ year incredible track record in the family office space and then as a fund manager. They have all the credentials, accreditation, and track record. They did the same with someone else for their first fund. Find the right partner/mentor.
Get in the door where you can and work around where you need to work around. I had no background in finance, accreditation or credentials. My original job was purely menial and I looked for where I could teach myself, and take on more and more responsibility and add more and more value and kept negotiating up. Even without a background in finance I could still contribute to operations, marketing, strategy, investor relations, business development, executive coaching (essentially) etc. As long as the people I was working with valued my being there more then not being there, there was leverage.
Be Audacious. At times out of desperation, and at times flippantly out of complete willingness and interest in doing something else I would confidently put everything on the line for something better, and also make an offer that would benefit the people I work with slightly more than me while asking for a lot. My favorite part of the job has been these negotiations. Whenever I felt hopeless, useless, or ready to give up in some capacity is when I would ask myself what is the minimum I need to do or ask for to feel some sense of ‘possibility’ here and then go do that.
Broker- this is where HOM shines. The only skill I need is connecting. We passed on this deal in hospitality, outside our mandate, who in our network would value that- quick email- Hey I work with (name partner) thought of you for this. Relationship capital for myself and the firm. There is always a way to add value by understanding people, their wants, and needs, and making connections.
I’m not an accredited investor, partner, or have equity or IRR negotiated yet. Just made a lot more money with this, other endeavors, and the launch of the new firm, since I started Emperor.
To go from being a line cook making $8 an hour, and a warehouse manager making $15 an hour to have to where I am now for me is a large victory.
Since running EOG stage 1 though I see faster and more compelling ways to make a lot more money now than even making partner there though.
You validate the reason why I decided to stick to HoM and EOG and possibly adding Emperor Black to the mix (or a custom build around LBFH and LE).
Yeah thanks for adding the detail there but that was essentially a more in depth explanation for what I summarized lmao
But I did leave out the private equity type which is really important.
Strategy:
VC Or distressed… how to add value to businesses…
Deal structure: Syndicate (smaller deals, much easier to establish reputation) vs Fund (accredited vs unaccredited)
I never said it was easy, it’s simple.
Over complicating stuff is the number one reason for failure because you think it’s “sooo complicated” but really it’s an internal excuse/justification for not being able to get the results or preventing ya from taking action or first step.
Anything is simple if u break it down to its categories.
Agreed, well said.
All the time the people I work with say that exactly ‘what we do is not hard…its really simple’.
It’s not easy but its not complicated. All the pieces can appear overwhelming but it is actually very simple. Compared to neuroscience, theoretical mathematics, complicated philosophy, or even choosing the right stack it’s very simple.
What makes the people I work with successful and the people in this environment successful
is an insane level of confidence.
Yes it is backed by deep understanding of industry and investing, positive feedback loops from achieving conventional success, but fundamentally there is a confidence there that is simply adopted/intrinsic. A confidence based in a get it done no matter what attitude, and a willingness to examine and challenge everything down to the very last detail to gain certainty. (not great for other areas of life I’ll add)
I’ve really been challenged and grown from that and without Emperor I would have been spit out of that environment very quickly
This is where Emperor has shined
Its complex but not complicated
**It’s all figure-out able **
or someone else knows who can advise/just tell you
When there is emotional confidence that something can be done-it becomes a lot easier.
For domestic this one’s pretty easy. There is one state that is commonly considered to be the best domicile
This is typically the largest challenge.
It really comes down to seeing what and who (do they invest in emerging managers etc) other asset managers/investors/ institutions like to invest in.
There is either an obvious size/sector fit or their industry agnostic and opportunistic which is an opportunity to sell someone on something. (the outreach and networking of that is a whole other endeavor)
One of our strategies is understanding people’s areas of interest and really ruling anyone out who is not a fit for our general mandate. Were not trying to get everyone on board, just the right people.
We do spvs/ direct deals/ co-investments in addition to the fund
doing a co-invest builds the relationship and investors or investment managers know exactly what they are getting into, so there is less need to base it purely off track record. Especially if the secured allocations are for a company that is a fit/sector that the investor/investment manager already wanted to be involved in. Then were essentially acting like an access/ sourcing broker while getting paid and building a relationship with a capital source. Then that investor gets brought into our whole world/community (another way I’ve added value-is working to build a world/appeal outside of simply investing for the investors)
They may not be interested in the fund for an emerging manager
It comes down to trust in track record/manager, good personable relationship, current offering fit.
Most of the business I’ve seen done starts by people liking each other. That’s definitely not sufficient but its a reason for people to want things to work or support each other. Which is why I like this industry, its very relational first.
No one who is not already an accredited/vetted investor would jump into starting a fund where they were the sole GP responsible. They’d have to have been accredited for some background in managing wealth or investing on other’s/institutions behalf.
yes, and always be in communication with network around what your looking for and what there looking for. This is even better. Also attend conferences, events, engagements with entrepreneurs, founders in the sectors areas of interest and be social. They’ll usually be investors there as well.
Good interns
About that- glad I didn’t foot that bill
bookmarked.
Did you run Emperor with HOM or exchanging them?
Edit - @Vinci - had to shout you out as it doesn’t seem like this post replied to yours, but that could also be because I am technologically disabled. 
I will agree that if you break down the steps, it can help you get something jump started.
I’ll even go as far as to say that starting anything is easy. Having the discipline and fortitude to see that thing through to the end can be much more difficult.
Making it successful, that’s a combination of destiny and luck with a good helping of the gods shining down on you. And I say this from first hand experience. But, your experiences are probably different than mine, so I welcome your exchange on this.
Your journey is nothing short of impressive my friend.
More than a decade ago, my friends and I started a PE Firm ourselves, we did OK, nothing that I would rate as being successful.
At the time, all of us were emerging fund managers that had a mix of operational experience from our previous work, along with the traditional IB experience, so it lent itself well to what we were trying to do.
We actually used Delaware as the domicile for the company, but we went offshore for the fund domicile.
But, all that said, the capital outlay that we put in to getting the fund started all the way through to our exit, it was a fucking marathon, not a sprint. It turned me off from PE for a long time, and it’s only now that I am even considering stepping back into that pool.
So I commend your efforts. I hope the new fund you’re part of is a resounding success!
And like I said, you’ve definitely inspired me to go at it again myself. So thank you for that!
PS - sorry for hijacking thread - going back to topic, two weeks of Emperor and I can definitely feel the gears running in the background of my head. Interested to try out the HoM Experimental once it gets released, as I think the two experimental stack should be fun and induce a level of self proclaimed misery that I am eagerly awaiting to devour.
I’ve run HOM for several cycles on and off alongside Emperor the last couple months