Yesterday at lunch with two super smart startup founders, we got talking about their pitch deck. 

Pitch decks are super fun. I look at the nearbuy pitch deck every other week – trying to make it clearer, sharper, more succinct. And surprisingly find obvious ways of doing so, that weren’t so obvious before. 

I told them – your first slide should be declaring who you are. 

And you should be ok with it. Ok with what you you have written. Ok with who you have projected yourself to be. Ok with who you are. 

That set me thinking. If you had pitch decks, what would your first slide say? 

Would the world get it? 

Would they see the same image when they meet you in person?

Would they agree with it? 

Would you be comfortable with it? 

The first slide of our pitch deck should be what we wish to tell the world. Not what the world wishes to hear.