Aileen Lee | DNA of a MAKER

**Lilliana Vazquez** (0:00)
The DNA of a MAKER podcast is brought to you by 23andMe. Discover your DNA with 23andMe, and what makes you, you. Join us whenever and wherever you listen to podcasts. Since launching in 2012, MAKERS has been helping to accelerate the women's movement by sharing stories of real life experiences that ignite passion and action. With the DNA of a MAKER podcast, we wanted to push the conversation forward to the next level, a deep dive into the traits of our MAKERS and ask what are the traits that make MAKERS leaders? What traits give them the courage to fight for diversity and inclusion, and in turn, the courage to affect change? On DNA of a MAKER, we're bringing together all different kinds of change makers, unified in their commitment to do better and be better, and see what we can learn from their journey. I'm Lilliana Vazquez, and this is the DNA of a MAKER podcast.
Today, I'm talking to one of the biggest names in tech, Aileen Lee. She's the founder of Cowboy Ventures, a venture capital firm that takes the risk and invests millions of dollars in other businesses, like Rent the Runway and Guild Education. She's also the force behind All Raise, a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the lack of diversity and inclusion throughout the tech industry. In 2018, she was named one of the world's most powerful women by Forbes, and in 2019, she was named one of Times 100 influential people for her work with All Raise. Today, we'll be discussing empathy and diversity in venture capitalism, how women need to work together to make sure they are heard in the workplace, and how Aileen overcame a serious fear of public speaking. She's joining us today on the phone from San Francisco. Aileen Lee, welcome to DNA of a MAKER.

**Aileen Lee** (1:50)
Thank you. Holy cow, what an intro.

**Lilliana Vazquez** (1:53)
Well, listen, you have quite the resume, and we are so excited to talk to you because I love your story. I think that it's a story that so many people can identify with, especially being first generation and the trajectory you've had and the risk you've taken. So we wanted to get into your DNA as a maker. We want to talk about the traits that make you you. And, you know, we want to talk a little bit about your work. Obviously, Cowboy Ventures, your firm, is one of the first venture capital firms to be launched by a woman, and it is incredibly successful and so successful that you landed on the Midas list for being one of the best dealmakers of 2019 And there were only 12 women on that list. So congratulations.

**Aileen Lee** (2:33)
Thank you. Let's hope that in 2020 and 2021, there'll be more women on the list, more people of color.

**Lilliana Vazquez** (2:38)
I could not agree more. That's definitely, definitely a goal for 2020 But I want to know, what do you think has been the one trait that has really pushed you to this level of success?

**Aileen Lee** (2:52)
Cass, it's really hard to boil down to one. I mean, you mentioned that I am first generation. I was born in the United States and my parents were both born in China in different places. And I had the fortune of growing up with some of my grandparents who immigrated here through really tough times and just with no resources and no education. And so I think I've grown up feeling quite privileged and knowing that my life is much easier than my ancestors' lives. Maybe that has given me a certain amount of fortitude and gratitude that makes me just feel generally happy and appreciative of everything that I have and wanted to do something with the opportunities that I've been given.

**Lilliana Vazquez** (3:30)
I love that. I think when you hear gratitude, no, I think it's an incredible thing. Especially when you see how hard and how hungry your parents were and your grandparents were. Where did you see gratitude really come into play as you found your success?

**Aileen Lee** (3:45)
I feel grateful all the time. And I think it makes me hopefully a generally happy person. It also maybe gives me a certain amount of empathy for others. When I was asking one of my colleagues about my traits, my colleague Jemira mentioned something about empathy. We work with a lot of founders who have an idea and have a dream, but haven't figured everything out. They're just getting started and they need money to get started. And so you really have to see the potential in what it could become and know that it's not yet fully baked, and that people change and grow over time. I certainly have grown and changed a lot over time. Me at 25 is very different than me at almost 50 in terms of my skill set and what I've learned and how I behave. Definitely, we're more professional.