But make sure you understand how, and who you're getting the financing from. It's easy, when you're a desperate company, to take any dollars that are waved your way. The hard part is going fundraising when you don't need the cash, and being able to discriminate among all the funds out there.

Take the money before you need it, and don't give away too much of your company. This is a hard balancing act. However, if you're going to err, err on having enough money in the bank to keep the company alive, not, in taking too little money, and seeing your dreams flush down the drain.

Do your due diligence on the fund. Ask for permission to speak with their portfolio companies, and then call and ask 'positive' questions to the entrepreneur. No one likes giving negative answers. But you're smart enough to read between the lines. Open ended questions such as: "What's the best thing you VC has done for you?" Or "Who was the most active investor you've had." Etc. Give the company every opportunity to praise their investors with REAL compliments, not "he showed up to the board meetings on time."

Ask for examples of when they helped during a crisis. Get a sense of which partner/associate was working with the company. You'll find that the stars will shine through, and in part of your negotiations with the investment group, see if that star has taken a liking to your business. If so, great, if not, understand who is your champion in the firm, and what his/her role is there.

And for those folks trying to find a job in VC, it's not a crime to ask this of potential employers as well. I had my hand slapped when I was making some of these phone calls to portfolio companies. Yes, the entrepreneurs will go back and talk to the investors. And No, I did not end up working at that fund. But it was enlightening for me to understand who were the real workers at the fund. Which names I'm on the look out for when considering an investment or a follow on. And which names I'm wary of in the industry.

Be polite, be considerate, but ask.