Startups
Early-stage companies and the specific, often unglamorous challenges of building one. Most of what actually determines survival looks nothing like the story eventually told about it.
Why most early metrics measure the wrong thing
Signups and downloads feel like progress and often say very little about whether a product is actually solving anyone’s problem yet.
The invoice nobody remembered to send
Cash flow problems at small companies often trace back to something this mundane: an invoice that simply never got sent on time, or at all.
Talking to users before you have anything to show them
Founders often wait for a prototype before talking to potential users. Some of the most useful conversations happen earlier, with nothing to show at all.
Product-market fit is a moving target, not a finish line
Founders talk about product-market fit as a milestone to cross once. In practice, it behaves more like a condition that has to be maintained, not achieved.
Hiring the first ten employees changes the company forever
The first ten hires set norms that persist long after those specific people have moved on, whether or not founders are deliberate about shaping them.
The co-founder breakup nobody saw coming
Co-founder splits often look sudden from the outside. Nearly all of them were visible, in hindsight, for months before anyone acted on the warning signs.
Splitting equity fairly is harder than it sounds on paper
An equal equity split feels like the fair, conflict-avoiding choice at the start. It can quietly become a source of resentment once contributions diverge.
