"You're always going to buy the trusted brand unless there's a big difference." - Elon Musk

In 1998, Nike's operating profit fell 37% Here's what Phil Knight wrote to shareholders:

Peek at our Brand Guide Encyclopedia: collateral.com/socials/brand…

NASA's 1976 brand guidelines

Pickens made his fortune in Texas Want to know what’s bringing investors there today? Watch this 15-minute breakdown: youtube.com/watch?v=jsFfRXIL…

T. Boone Pickens once said: "My IQ is the gas price. At $3 I'm a genius. At $1.50 I'm a moron." Here are 5 lessons from the Texas oil billionaire:

Why Is Everyone Investing in Texas? A short documentary, produced by Collateral Partners

Working in capital formation long enough will make you realize how many people are successful in fundraising, purely because they know how to build and keep relationships rather than the quality of their investment thesis Every mega-fund has a core team of leadership who are simply there because they know the right people and can bring in the capital Some of them can’t underwrite a deal, haven’t touched excel in a decade, and lack proper judgement on the viability of an investment But at the same time, the firm continues to promote them because they’re rainmakers. They have deep relationships, know the right people, and source funds nobody else on their team could As automation dilutes the edge in many investment strategies, these traits only become more important. He who has the distribution, polish, and relationships will win Close excel and go shake hands - your career will thank you

Here's what investment strategies are getting funded:

In 1977, Nike was a $70 million company fighting Adidas for market share. Its culture was intense, scrappy, and built around winning. Here’s a Nike staff memo from that year: