22 Sips of Advice Juiced from a Decade of Startups

I attended a Friends of Switchyards presentation given by Michael Tavani (he is one of the co-founders of the space). I really wanted to hear this presentation because I am fascinated with the real story of people who put everything they’ve got into big ideas. I can’t think of a better example of this than Tavani and Dave Payne who purchased an entire building with the purpose of enabling startups to hatch even bigger ideas.

While the evening’s event flyer promised “43 Things You Should Know”, which would have been compelling enough, Tavani stepped through 124 nuggets of wisdom. Some of these bits he acquired just days earlier, and others over the course of his 10 years of startup experience. All of this got me thinking about my own 10 years working on startups which for me has aligned with this general theme…

In startups, things change quickly and there is always more to learn. If you are not learning each day, you are probably under-utilizing your potential. If you are not humbled by the process, you’re operating with your ego.

In my effort to process 124 pieces of information from the presentation, I took note of the points that were either brand new to me or great reminders of past wisdom. The points I captured fall into six categories that tend to occur sequentially and amplify the Founder’s potential.

Founder → Brand → Design → Focus → Execution → Traction

A startup Founder can amplify their potential and likely achieve Traction by creating a Brand that embodies great Design, stays Focused on the problem, and is Executed diligently.

Founder

Every startup, starts here. Usually, as an idea that seems crystal clear at the time. Ultimately, it could be a completely different idea once traction is achieved — this is perfectly OK. The Founder has the responsibility of bringing the idea to life in a way that can be tested methodically and resourcefully.

1. Superpower: find your thing that gives you an unfair advantage
2. Delusion: it’s almost a requirement to see what others don’t
3. Nuance: your idea done your way is still hard for others to copy
4. Believers: associate with people who champion you, avoid skeptics

Brand

Have you ever hugged your Macbook Pro? Ok, maybe that’s just me. The point is that I got happiness from a product that is reliable and makes my life easier. Great companies like Apple intentionally build qualities like this into their products, people, and values. In return, I am very loyal to their brand.

1. Everything: your walk, talk, do, don’t, attitude, voice…
2. Delight: surprise people in ways that will make them smile
3. Multiplier: your great product multiplied with brand is like a megaphone
4. Pride: the day when a customer wears your logo like a badge of honor

Design

You’re reading this on Medium.com — you probably have an idea how design makes everything better. Great design is simple, user-friendly, and uses white space to create small pause for our brains to process information. Bad design is everywhere — it is non-intuitive, hard to use, gets in the way, etc. If you’ve ever pushed a door that was actually a pull, you’ve experienced bad design. Bad design can make you feel like an idiot. That’s not very nice!

1. Beauty: make something beautiful, it will make money
2. Useful: people use products that they think are useful, not you
3. Strategic: design is a strategic weapon that separates you from mediocre

Focus

I am a to-do list kind of person. Sometimes though, I create too many lists and have no idea where to focus. This paralysis of productivity is just as bad as not having a list at all. Those who understand focus understand that time is precious and that now, this moment, should be occupied by something that will increase the likelihood of reaching your biggest aspirations and beyond.

1. Urgency: unfortunately our time on the planet is limited, don’t waste it
2. Singular: stay on point, stay on point, stay on point
3. Measure: track everything, know what you need to move the needle today
4. Fewer: learn to say “No”, in both polite and candid ways
5. Important: do important things first, everything seems urgent (see #1)
6. Matter: your people & family matter most, everything else does not

Execution

I love people who do what they say they are going to do. Other qualities shared by these people: humble, honest, relentless, learners, listeners, successful. Getting things done is an art and a science that can take time to master because being busy isn’t the same thing as executing well. People who execute well are like a good GPS route that’s recalculated in real-time because they can see roadblocks ahead.

1. Playbook: plan to win by knowing ahead where you will be tackled hard
2. Launch: don’t be afraid to put it all out there, be open to feedback
3. Doing: have a plan though don’t over-plan, learn by doing today
4. Momentum: as you do it, the next step will “magically” appear before you
5. Flow: when you’re on the right track, momentum comes easy

Traction

This is when it gets exciting and you start to realize you’re on to something. While this is not the destination, this is a good time to celebrate your wins and keep moving. In some ways things will get easier and in other ways, it will feel like zero all over again. Focus and Execution are the mainstay for startups who reach Traction.

Success is hard to define because it can mean different things to different people. To me, it’s a measure of turning your passion into something others can love with you. It’s being a good human who solves big problems and makes life a little easier for everyone. It’s maximizing your gifts while you are able to share them. It’s connecting and helping people in ways that they will remember your impact. It is legacy, reputation, and impact.

The past decade of startups has helped me grow and I am excited about the potential of the next ten, done better, by everything that I continue to learn.