No I don’t think we’re in a bubble. Yes I think we’re living in good times.
I believe every startup should dream big, be tenacious, iterate always, and change the world. But whether in plenty or in want, RIGHT NOW every startup on planet earth should take their entire core team to the mirror and ask themselves these questions:
Business Model
- Is our burn rate sustainable?
- Rinse and repeat — is our burn rate sustainable?
- How much money do we really need to solve this problem?
- When exactly do we believe we will achieve customer revenue and profitability?
- If the world falls apart tomorrow, what is the probability our valuation is ahead of itself?
- What would it look like if our next round was a down round?
- If we all had to cut our salaries by 50%, how many people would leave?
Team
- How passionate and intense is our entire team about our core thesis?
- Would our team commit to five years of doing nothing but working on this startup together?
- How have we sacrificed as a team to get here? What else may we have to sacrifice?
- Are we proud of what we’re working on? Does it change the world for the better?
- Why exactly are we here? What drives each of us?
- What mistakes have we made? Find 10 more. What have we learned from these?
- Where does each of us need to be better? How are we better as a team than apart?
- How did our funding round change us? How has not getting enough funding change us?
- Are we leading the company well? Where can we do better?
Product
- How original is our core value proposition?
- What are the strengths in our product? Cut down to top 3.
- What are the flaws in our product? Find 5 more.
- Are we impartially looking at the data about our product?
- What are the current Top KPIs we look at each day? Does entire team know these daily?
- What did we launch too slowly? What did we launch too quickly?
- How often do people say our product won’t succeed? How do we respond to this?
- Is our product risky enough?
Customers
- What do our top customers honestly think about us?
- How would we describe what our ideal customer looks like? Is this realistic?
- Do I find myself using the product because I want to or because it’s my job?
- How much time do we actually spend with our customers?
- How do we listen to our customers? Do they freely share their feedback? How can we enable this better?
Competition
- How hard is it for someone to copy our idea?
- What do our competitors do really well?
- What can we learn from our competition?
Hiring
- Do we have a list of people waiting to work at our startup? Why or why not?
- Who in the past have we hired that is not a fit? How did we handle this situation?
- How many people do we interview before we hire someone?
- When was last time we hired someone who was not looking for a job?
- Is the culture we are fostering an attractive one to the outside?
Hustle
- How strong is our customer/hiring/investor network?
- When was the last time we met with a new investor?
- How often do we listen to advice from other older/wiser mentors?
- How often do people say we won’t succeed? How do we respond to this?
- Are we doing a lot with a little? Even if we raised a large round?
Don’t let the busyness of building your business permanently descend your plane from 30K feet. Be honest with yourself and each other and great fruit will bear itself on the tree.
Recipients of this post are not to construe it as investment, legal, or tax advice, and it is not intended to provide the basis for any evaluation of an investment in any fund. Prospective investors should consult with their own legal, investment, tax, accounting, and other advisors to determine the potential benefits, burdens, and risks associated with making an investment in any fund.
