founder's mentality
insights, articles, musings and resources to help founders and builders cultivate a healthy mindset and get unstuck
sari and
founder's mentality
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.
uncomfortably honest
“I can’t see a way through”, said the boy.
“Can you see your next step?"
“Yes”
“Just take that”, said the horse.
- The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse @charliemackesy
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
Sari • Founder Opportunity Assessment
docs.google.comgreat questionnaire from David Sherry
The most transformative companies rarely emerge from someone else's problem statement. They come from founders who see opportunities that others miss, often in areas that lack established categories.
Facebook didn't fulfill a request for "improved college social networking." It emerged from Mark Zuckerberg's specific intuition about how Harvard... See more
Facebook didn't fulfill a request for "improved college social networking." It emerged from Mark Zuckerberg's specific intuition about how Harvard... See more
Tina He • The Art of Understanding What's Going On
How to Prioritize Your Time : YC Startup Library | Y Combinator
ycombinator.com