Venture capitalists often complain about founders who suck for not sending monthly update emails.
I think a lot of people talk about this like it's a leading rather than a lagging measure. And that's largely because VCs are getting the ensemble average of returns vs time-series average.
Many founders are fighting for their lives and only have one horse in the race. If this doesn't work, their dream goes up in flames.
Not sending updates could be a characteristic lack of discipline and integrity, or it could be because of bigger fires.
Many VCs sit back and wait for emails. They're not mucking in. Their only investment is reputation and other people's money. The startup is a line item on a spreadsheet. If they don't get the emails, few apply Hanlon's razor to think in this order:
1. Something's up. How can I help?
2. Nothing's up. How can I help?
3. Things are great. How can I help?