> Do you want to build a profitable business or do you want to theorize how to build one?
I was part of a startup with an inexperienced angel who insisted on bringing in a CEO. The CEO made a good pitch to me that we would adopt the lean startup model, so I went along with it.
Anyway the moment he started, the book went out the door. We didn’t have time to discuss things like strategy and market positioning and hypotheses (though he used the word at every opportunity) but we had plenty of time to have risk assessment meetings and road maps and CRM system integrations (zero customers mind you), monthly 3 hour board meetings and weekly 2 hour “senior executive meetings”. The board and executive was larger than our headcount. I had brought an experienced team into the business with me and they were just flown into the ground with this inanity. (It turns out that despite what I’d been told, CEO had only ever been in corporate settings and had basically no experience with starting a business).
Anyway the outcome was as expected. I’ve been in startups my whole professional life and this was easily the worst experience of career.
The moral of this story is that building a business is hard and none of the books are going to tell you how to do it. So I agree with the parent comment. Pick a couple of books, read them, and get going. If things don’t work out, read a couple more.
But for God’s sake, keep your eye on the prize - have a clear vision, execute an early version of it, find some customers, iterate.
I was part of a startup with an inexperienced angel who insisted on bringing in a CEO. The CEO made a good pitch to me that we would adopt the lean startup model, so I went along with it.
Anyway the moment he started, the book went out the door. We didn’t have time to discuss things like strategy and market positioning and hypotheses (though he used the word at every opportunity) but we had plenty of time to have risk assessment meetings and road maps and CRM system integrations (zero customers mind you), monthly 3 hour board meetings and weekly 2 hour “senior executive meetings”. The board and executive was larger than our headcount. I had brought an experienced team into the business with me and they were just flown into the ground with this inanity. (It turns out that despite what I’d been told, CEO had only ever been in corporate settings and had basically no experience with starting a business).
Anyway the outcome was as expected. I’ve been in startups my whole professional life and this was easily the worst experience of career.
The moral of this story is that building a business is hard and none of the books are going to tell you how to do it. So I agree with the parent comment. Pick a couple of books, read them, and get going. If things don’t work out, read a couple more.
But for God’s sake, keep your eye on the prize - have a clear vision, execute an early version of it, find some customers, iterate.