Happy Thursday - let’s dive straight in.

I’ve sat through hundreds of GP first meetings. By minute 15, I usually know if we’re leaning in - or out.

The LP introduction

We always started with a short LP deck: who we are, what we look for, how we run diligence. Four minutes, tops. Most GPs sit through it; a surprising number get weary, try to talk over us, or wear the “are we done yet?” smile. If two minutes of context feels like an obstacle, diligence will feel like dental work.

We often let juniors run that opener - part training, part signal that every voice counts. In a glass-walled NYC high-rise, a first-timer was sweating, nervous and ran long. The GP noticed it, smiled, and coached him through. No eye-rolls, no chair swivels - just grace. I don’t think they were a great GP - but I remember them for how they handled that moment.

The First 15 Minutes: Can You Define Yourself?

I’m listening for clarity. If you’re a “focused manager” in business services, industrials, and consumer… that’s the economy. Either narrow the hunting ground - or show me a system that makes breadth make sense.

What I want to hear:

To me, it doesn't matter what your approach is. It matters that:

This is the tell. If you just sold me a “sourcing advantage” and “buy-and-build,” but every example starts with “Harris Williams called” and ends with “we professionalized finance,” the story and your process don’t match.

The best GPs don’t need to connect dots - the pattern is obvious:

It’s always easy for a GP to point to 3 or 4 case studies that match their process. So ask about the companies they don’t highlight. That’s where discipline and consistency shows up… or doesn’t.

C-Rated vs. A-Rated: How You Talk About Deals

Another pattern I’ve noticed in case studies is the following:

That’s usually where you start to separate storytelling from systems.

The best first meetings don't feel like pitches. They feel like pattern recognition - watching someone describe a playbook, then prove they've run it before, then realizing you want to see them run it again. The hour flies by.

Oh, and that sweating, nervous, young team member in the NYC high-rise? That was me.

What signals make you lean in during first meetings? Hit reply - I'd love to hear what separates the A's from the C's in your book.

Note: I have invested with Arlington several times and wrote more about their fundraise here.

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