Real Founder Lessons
The best startup advice from experienced founders...one real-world lesson at a time.
Creativity loves constraint
(at minute 19:11)
Founder Lesson
I don't know where I first heard this notion, but on a monthly basis I think about the counterintuitive concept that creativity loves constraint.
On a personal level I'm a moderate procrastinator for most things. Over the years I've found that forcing myself to get 50% of the work done in a tight . . .
Product-market fit isn’t rational
(at minute 15:43)
Founder Lesson
There isn't a topic that interests me more than product-market fit. In the 2007 - 2010 timeframe I went from a lifestyle business (where I could fool myself that it was high-growth) to a high-growth startup (where you didn't have to wonder if it had product-market fit) and that transition completely changed the way . . .
Good ideas have to look terrible
(at minute 11:35)
Founder Lesson
Someone from a large company was asking me recently how I evaluated new startup ideas. They asked in a way that made me think of Shark Tank. I suspect that he expected me to say something like "I look for a strong technology patent" or "there has to be a big vision for a big market."
How I think . . .
Iterate your first product with a small group ideal users
(at minute 2:24)
Founder Lesson
What I like to believe about startups is that two passionate founders who love a problem have a unique insight in a space and work on that problem until something clicks.
But lately I’ve been thinking about an alternative path.
What if founders just try to solve a problem without a big mission from the . . .
The first three phases of marketing
(at minute 39:55)
Founder Lesson
One of the things that has most surprised me about launching Switchyards Downtown Club is the skills that new founders are requesting. My guess before launching was that new founders would want developers first and then designers right after that. Idea-stage founders are certainly looking for those skills, but much to my . . .
Fall in love with the problem (not your proposed solution)
(at minute 56:39)
Founder Lesson
Most first-time founders (and even lots of experienced founders) begin to think about any startup in terms of a product/solution. Like Peter Rojas, the founder being interviewed in this podcast, I find myself constantly giving the advice to think of all new ideas in terms of the main problem that customers have. This advice . . .
At the very beginning focus on a niche, passionate group of potential customers
(at minute 25:04)
Founder Lesson
Founders who focus on their own passion projects are often told that their ideas are too niche & small. While this is sometimes the case, it’s important to remember...
Lots more people are coming online and spending more money online, so all online markets are growing over time.
Many successful . . .
