What an Angel Investor Decides in the First Minute

Taya Kudashkina grew up in Siberia with an engineering degree and a dream of Silicon Valley, built startups across the United States and Russia, then left everything behind after the invasion of Ukraine and rebuilt her career from zero in a new country as an angel investor. This is a conversation about reinvention, starting over with no network, and what investors really look for in early-stage founders. Hit subscribe to join our community of builders! In this episode, we cover: → The values exercise she used to reinvent herself: list every path, then try each one on by talking to people already living it → Why Silicon Valley treats failure as normal, and how different that felt from the shame she grew up with → Why a six-month financial cushion is the real key to reinventing your career, especially for women → What angel investing actually is, and how to start small through syndicates for as little as two thousand dollars → The real question every early-stage investor is asking: can this founder deliver → Why so few women are in the room, and the risk-aversion she wants to change for her daughter Chapters: 00:00 - Meet Taya Kudashkina, angel investor 02:16 - Chasing Silicon Valley from Siberia 12:55 - Silicon Valley's failure mindset vs the shame she grew up with 17:07 - A $2M raise, a failed startup, and the darkest time of her life 19:46 - Resilience: letting the hard moment pass 27:47 - Leaving Russia and starting from zero in Luxembourg 30:37 - The values exercise: trying on careers to find the next step 43:03 - What angel investing is, and how to start small 51:22 - What she looks for in a founder 56:24 - Why so few women are in the room Subscribe to Little Pursuits for raw stories from founders, leaders, and experts:    / @littlepursuits   Watch Next:    • The Question a Deloitte Partner Asks Befor...   Host: Dar Patel, Founder of Little Pursuits Connect:   / darpatel   Join Founder Circle, our small-group coaching for seed-stage founders: https://littlepursuits.life/apply/ Newsletter: The Inner Game, on the inner game of building and leading: https://littlepursuits.substack.com/ Guest: Taya Kudashkina, Angel Investor Connect:   / taisiyakudashkina   #Startups #Founders #Entrepreneurship #Leadership #Business #podcast