Last week, a fellow entrepreneur said something to me that really stuck in my mind: “I knew he’d be successful based on his updates.” In this case, we’re both angel investors in another entrepreneur’s venture, and we were talking about all the great progress this company is making. The comment about the updates got me thinking and reminded me of another entrepreneur’s regular updates that I receive, which are unbelievably good. Now, when describing the updates as “good,” it isn’t that the business is doing well—although in both cases here, they are—rather, it’s the style, tone, thoughtfulness, quality, and creativeness of the update. It’s about connecting the reader with anecdotes, stories, and emotion, and providing metrics and data in a way that’s easily consumable and approachable. Yes, there are a number of monthly update templates online, and entrepreneurs should default to those if they don’t have their own.

Regular updates, as well as past board decks and strategy documents, are some of the most informative resources when doing due diligence on a startup, whether you’re a potential investor or a potential mentor. One of my favorite pieces of advice is to ask for these historical documents and use them to look for trends, thoughtfulness, and how an entrepreneur thinks. The goal isn’t to find perfect updates from the last three years; rather, it’s to look for evolution and maturation of thought. It’s to see if the entrepreneur articulates both what has gone well and what hasn’t. Too often, entrepreneurs gloss over the hard times when communicating, but those who do address them often show a greater level of experience and understand that by sharing the challenges, they also share the opportunity for others to help. Past updates and other regular corporate communications are the first place I like to start when understanding an entrepreneur and a startup.

Entrepreneurs should always provide regular updates. The alternative—not doing any updates—is strongly discouraged. Rather, the big idea is that updates are one of the best ways to connect with all constituents, from employees to partners to mentors to investors. For some entrepreneurs, this can be a calling card that helps differentiate them from others in the market.