Brad Feld: Give Before You Get

Original image by Founder Institute.

Brad Feld has been an early-stage investor and entrepreneur since 1987. He co-founded two venture capital firms: Foundry Group and Mobius Venture Capital, as well as multiple companies, including a nation-wide accelerator program, Techstars. He also runs the Anchor Point Foundation with his wife, Amy Batchelor. Brad has written several books on entrepreneurship and venture capital, and started blogging in 2004, long before VC Twitter was even a thing.

After two years of hibernation, Brad will be a virtual keynote speaker at the 2025 Startup Mountain Summit, where we will be giving away copies of his most recent book, Give First: The Power of Mentorship.

If you’ve been following Brad’s blog, you know this moment has been a long time coming. The phrase “give before you get,” now widely recognized as #GiveFirst, was first introduced in his book Startup Communities.  The timing of his book feels almost poetic, a fresh start for a philosophy that has shaped countless entrepreneurial ecosystems across the country.

FoundersForge, a non-profit entrepreneur center in Johnson City, Tennessee and the organization behind the Startup Mountain Summit, adopted this phrase early on—integrating both the phrase and its mindset into the curriculum of their new six-week accelerator program, Avante. 

According to Brad, to “give before you get” means adopting a mindset of helping others without expecting anything in return. Sure, it’s human nature to want something back, but setting up a transactional relationship goes against the philosophy of the phrase. 

In his 2020 blog post, he defined #GiveFirst like this:

“Be helpful, with no expectation of getting anything back.”
“Do it because you want to, not because you feel obligated to.”
“Care about the person and the relationship.”
“Expect nothing in return.”

That definition might sound simple. But in a startup world full of pitch decks, equity negotiations, and ROI, it’s a radical idea. It challenges us to build trust first, not transactions.

Giving before getting is more than just a mindset. It’s a practice. Sometimes that gift looks like making an introduction. Other times, it’s simply listening or offering encouragement when it’s needed most.

As Brad Feld returns to the 2025 Startup Mountain Summit, this philosophy serves as a reminder that the strongest communities are built on generosity. Showing up with a willingness to share your time, your knowledge, or your support can create a ripple effect that reaches far beyond a single event.

Because in the end, success in the startup world isn’t just about what you build. It’s about the people you bring with you. And when you give first, the journey becomes something much greater than the destination.