founder's mentality
insights, articles, musings and resources to help founders and builders cultivate a healthy mindset and get unstuck
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founder's mentality
So but how do we build software that can be anything without falling into the Zombocom trap? I believe that Bezos interview shows us exactly how.
- You start from a systems-level insight ( the internet is growing rapidly )
- Then work backwards to a first best customer who has a burning need ( can’t find book ) that is related to your superpower (
Gordon Brander • The Zombocom Problem
Great founders don’t capture TAM.
Great founders create TAM
One of the biggest reasons it gets harder to do new things as you get older is that new things are generally undignified at first (indeed, this is an excellent heuristic for discovering them) and the older you get, the more dignified you're expected to be.
Paul Grahamtwitter.comNo one is thinking about you as much as you're thinking about you, and the same goes for your work. I spend zero time thinking about MY FAVORITE ARTISTS in the world unless something new of theirs comes out. And even then, I'll enjoy the hell out of it and continue on my day's agenda of worrying about shit like my own newsletter.
This is liberating!... See more
This is liberating!... See more
Absolutely excellent piece.
Throughout history, new technologies have opened new fields of expression and expanded what's possible. Every time a new technology came in, at least half were left behind loving the old craft or worrying about the future. Those who embrace the discomfort, understand how the tool can be wielded will continue to create novel ideas and change culture, With the printing press, those who mastered textual literacy created profound societal impact. In those early days, this literacy was an essential differentiator.
Just as the printing press democratized knowledge creation, AI is commoditizing access to intelligence and with it redefining technical execution. This is now widely accepted. AI can generate endless ‘perfect’ outputs, and its reasoning capabilities will only expand. Design’s tools will change but design’s essence remains distinctly human: creation guided by feeling & relationships rather than pure logic, and the judgment to know what’s worth creating.
Design literacy—combining curiosity, studied curation, personal conviction, and craft—will become as vital as verbal literacy.
This way of seeing and thinking becomes a new differentiator. It’s a new type of intelligence and design that will separate those who thrive from those who fade into the noise. I see this type of design everywhere in my work with founders, engineers, salespeople, and investors—they are all designers in their own right. It is innate—it just needs to be unlocked.
The best founders already understand this. In a world where anyone can build, they know what to build, who it’s for, and why it must exist.
Best marketing strategy ever! Steve Jobs Think different / Crazy ones speech (with real subtitles)
Steve Jobsyoutube.com
Lesson #1: Great Products Expand Markets Taylor Swift moved to Nashville at 13 and went door-to-door to record labels. They all turned her down. Labels saw country music on the decline with young listeners, and didn't see a market for a teen country artist.
Rex Woodbury • Tweet
The Twenty Minute VC (20VC): Venture Capital | Startup Funding | The Pitch: 20VC: Box's Aaron Levie on Why Founders Cannot Hedge Their Bets, The 2 Categories of Wrong Decision and How To Avoid Them & The Biggest Dangers of Being Over-Funded as a Startup
Harry Stebbingsthetwentyminutevc.libsyn.com
