[lisper]

It's important to understand WHY this is so: if you're an investor you are in a position of power over a founder. It is not possible in such a situation to make a romantic overture that is not tainted by the possibility that you are looking for a quid-pro-quo even if in fact you are not.

[tptacek]

In addition to quid pro quo, making romantic overtures in professional settings sets up a barrier for women that doesn't exist for men. Men can go to coffee with a potential investor and know walking in the door that they're there to get a hearing about their business. But every woman that walks through that door has to fight off the concern that the meeting isn't about their company, but instead about their own personal availability.

Even if 90% of the time that concern is unfounded, the mental effort you spend dealing with that exerts drag and hurts your performance. One of the things investors are grading you on is confidence!