Honestly, the best pool is people you’ve worked with in the past. If you don’t have anyone in that pool worth pursuing who is interested, then expand that pool by, for example, partnering with people on consulting projects.

Leaders lead.
Managers manage.

Just awe inspiring insights here. Dazzling stuff.

That is an absolutely terrible way to distinguish between leadership and management.

It’s clear you’re a know-nothing just talking out of your ass.

I was with you on the other comments. But this one’s a bit odd. No one is going to thank you for being an employer. Even if you’re paying bonuses out of your own pocket. It’s just not the way it works.

This post is specifically asking for recommendations for leadership education. So you’re about two steps behind with your smug, useless “advice.”

“Not my job” isn’t the right attitude for founders in the earliest stages.

How does this work? How do you partner with the cruise liner?

Sounds like you don’t want VC money, you want Angel or Seed money. Yes, it’s possible to get a bit of capital pre-product on a SAFE or convertible debt but doing so will really heavily depend on your network. Do you know people who write checks who think highly of you?