On building of All Trades
Collapse the talent stack every chance you get .
As I reflect on the teams I’ve led and hundreds of start-ups I’ve worked with, there is a consistent unfair competitive advantage i’ve witnessed when the talent stack was collapsed - when the lead designer was also the product leader, when the front-end engineer was also a designer, when the designer... See more
As I reflect on the teams I’ve led and hundreds of start-ups I’ve worked with, there is a consistent unfair competitive advantage i’ve witnessed when the talent stack was collapsed - when the lead designer was also the product leader, when the front-end engineer was also a designer, when the designer... See more
scott belsky • Tweet
Hiring generalists collapses the talent stack, thereby improving decision making and synthesis of information, and giving companies to act quickly when time and resources are limited.
Creators who last focus on the process, on the joy of creation, and on the impact they make along the way. Success is not measured solely by financial metrics or external validation, it’s measured by the lives they touch, the problems they solve, and the legacy they leave behind.
Be Prepared to Lose Everything.
Burnout cultures exhaust us through the week and force us to recharge during our time off. Healthy cultures provide daily space to refuel. - Adam Grant
"Hi, would you rather work with a company that's owned by some private equity schmuck, or a company where some of the prosperity you helped me generate gets reinvested in you and your community?" It's a competitive advantage to do the right thing. So I feel like that we're going to have a new wave of founders who take that seriously, who are going... See more
Reflections on a movement | Eric Ries (creator of the Lean Startup methodology)
“Why didn’t they simply do the perfect thing on the first attempt?”
The short answer is: that’s not how this works. Things are not linear or clean. We can only asymptote towards perfection through trial and error.
The short answer is: that’s not how this works. Things are not linear or clean. We can only asymptote towards perfection through trial and error.
Packy McCormick • The Experimentation Layer
Instead of doing broad but thin market research (e.g., customer surveys), focus on one person (or a small group) and go as deep as you can, learning everything about how your product fits into their broader lives. Or become your customer—spend a day, a month, or even a few years in the role you're trying to sell to before attempting to build a... See more
Casey Rosengren • The Power of Designing for a Single User
A company is built on details, not frameworks. It is all the little things, the small touches of craft and culture, that determines that long-term success of an organization. A solo founder will be able to build a small product that is a manifestation of their taste. And, if it turns out that the opportunity is huge, they should probably hire... See more
The One-person Billion-dollar Company
Learning is complicated.
While we’re doing it, it’s easy to imagine that those around us are completely sure of themselves, moving forward in a well-lit space.
In fact, if you visit a growing company, a useful school or anywhere that growth is happening, you’ll quickly see that everyone is stumbling forward in the shadows.
That’s part of the deal.
While we’re doing it, it’s easy to imagine that those around us are completely sure of themselves, moving forward in a well-lit space.
In fact, if you visit a growing company, a useful school or anywhere that growth is happening, you’ll quickly see that everyone is stumbling forward in the shadows.
That’s part of the deal.