Venture capitalists (“VCs”) are well-known for quickly getting to the point of an issue and encourage entrepreneurs to be “crisp” when they talk about their company’s plans for growth.

Common VC expressions reflect their action-oriented, time-is-precious mindset. They “drill down” into a business plan, “scrub the numbers” for errors in financial statements, and seek to understand the “secret sauce” or proprietary elements of a company’s business model.

If you are asked a question you don’t understand, don’t pretend. It’s better to ask prospective investors what they want to know rather than guess.