Startup Advice

Simply put, an ICP must be a single market segment :a group of people for whom the value of solving a problem is roughly the same, and who can be reached in roughly the same way. “People who use Excel” is not a market segment, because it says nothing about either the value of their problem or how to reach them. “Marketers who use Excel to build... See more

It is no coincidence that these three skills – managing the pace of change, elevating the next generation of leaders, and enabling the entire company to hit its goals – often make the difference between a functional leader topping out as an SVP and a cross-functional leader accelerating their trajectory as part of the C-Suite.

Don’t confuse people rooting for you with market signal

On some level, all founders suffer from “happy ears”—the chronic confirmation bias pervading conversations with customers, partners, team members, and investors. We tend to have irrational levels of confidence anyway, but that gets compounded when we mistake support for market signal. Most... See more

Build a cross-company network of change agents.

You need to start by building out a layer of high-performers within your own team. Before you go broad, adapt and iterate on the culture you want to build among that group. Then, just as they are ready to move up in their career ladders, facilitate cross-functional moves into key roles for them. This... See more

Executive performance coach Julie Gurner on the power of better questions:

“The questions you ask yourself will largely determine the answers you get.

• “Why am I not successful?” You’ll get answers that berate you.


• “How can I succeed here?” You’ll get answers that push you.