- Advice for founders who are tired of bad advice.
There’s no shortage of advice for startup founders on the internet. Most of it is fluffy and vague or simply wrong and dangerous!
There are only two things your firm NEEDS to do – deliver something valuable to people/organizations and make a profit while doing so.
Spending an inordinate amount of time reading every startup related book out there will not make you a better founder. There is more than one way to build a profitable business. Cut through the noise, ignore people who are biased and believe their way of doing something is the only way.
Build relationships with intelligent people. It will serve you well beyond business. Networking need not be a dreary chore which boils down to swapping business cards. Discuss ideas, offer help with no expectation of reward, make friends.
Talk to your customers as much as possible. Your business is dependent on their needs. Listen to them, understand them, learn how to serve them better.
Finally, your time is your most valuable resource. Invest in things which give you more of it. Don’t do things you don’t have to/can outsource relatively cheaply. Automate what you can. Doing everything yourself may seem scrappy, but ultimately the time you spend doing everything adds up. A small inexpensive investment into creating more time for yourself can lead to massive gains down the line.