Real Founder Lessons

The best startup advice from experienced founders...one real-world lesson at a time.

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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 . . .

Posted in: all business model validation counterintuitive things customer discovery delusion execution focus lean startup micromanagement mvp my favorites niche products pivot podcast process product product market fit psychological friction resiliency sidenote solving a problem unique playbook value proposition

Permission to say "it's not working"

(at minute 0:22)

Founder Lesson
I've been a casual advisor to a well-known B2C brand/founder in Atlanta for a few years now. When I met him in 2014 I was super impressed by his love of the problem and his ability to walk through walls. And I wasn't the only one...he's been able to raise capital from some great investors across the country.

. . .

Posted in: all business model validation counterintuitive things first principles focus focus groups mvp niche products pivot process product market fit psychological friction resiliency solving a problem traction unique playbook video ycombinator

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 . . .

Posted in: 33voices all bootstrapping business model validation counterintuitive things delusion engagement execution focus founders mvp my favorites persistency pivot podcast process product product market fit psychological friction purpose resiliency sidenote solving a problem traction unique playbook ycombinator

Share your idea with lots of people

(at minute 15:43)

Founder Lesson
A few weeks ago a first-time founder emailed me to meet-up. One of my favorite things is meeting new founders, so I'm always excited to get emails like that. However my enthusiasm quickly declined when I read this at the end of his email...

"Please see the attached mutual NDA and let me know if you have . . .

Posted in: all business model validation counterintuitive things customer discovery execution first principles focus focus groups founders how i built this hustle mvp pattern matching podcast process product market fit solving a problem unique playbook

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 . . .

Posted in: all business model validation counterintuitive things customer discovery delusion engagement execution first principles mvp niche products pattern matching persistency pivot podcast process product psychological friction purpose resiliency sidenote solving a problem unique playbook vision

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 . . .

Posted in: a16z all business model validation counterintuitive things customer discovery engagement first principles focus hustle micromanagement mvp niche products podcast process product product market fit sidenote solving a problem unique playbook

Make customer value prop one simple thing

(at minute 22:51)

Founder Lesson
Over the past week I've had two meetings with founders where I gave the same advice...

You need to identify and pin point the one magical thing that your startup will do for consumers.

This is common advice given to founders, but why?

A few thoughts...

1) Doing one thing great is . . .

Posted in: all business model validation counterintuitive things customer discovery execution first principles focus jason calacanis lean startup mvp niche products podcast process product product market fit solving a problem this week in startups unique playbook value proposition

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