I’m a venture capitalist at Bessemer Venture Partners' Tel Aviv office fulfilling a mission to bring American venture standards to Israel and Israeli innovation and irreverence to America. I discovered Israeli venture capital while studying abroad in 1996, when business plans still arrived in manila envelopes and the office had a shared dial-up Internet connection.

I don’t have an engineering degree or an MBA and didn’t serve in an elite military unit. I studied political science and economics, then worked in think tanks and drove battle tanks…in that order. I’ve written more poetry than code and never managed more than a handful of people, who were always chosen for their independent style.

As an early-stage investor, I take a long-term view to partnership, investing only in entrepreneurs that I’d like to work with through the inevitable ups and downs of the startup journey. When I invest in a team, they are people I want to succeed with and the people who I don’t mind failing with if that’s the company’s fate. I derive immense satisfaction watching entrepreneurs I’ve backed grow into the industry leaders the next generation of entrepreneurs wants to emulate. And with 22 startup exits in my career, I’ve taken as much pride in helping my most challenged startups eke out a profitable outcome as I have in witnessing the winners exceed everyone’s wildest expectations.