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![Make communication
a habit.
Daily calls.
Weekly progress check.
Clear process for each of them
E.g. Daily calls
(only one person talks at a time, 10 mins max, discussions are done in a seperate call):
1) What did i do today
2) What am i going to do tomorrow
3) Problems i face
4) Announcements
5) Ways i found to improve (e.g. myself) [idea by buffer]](https://image.slidesharecdn.com/20120816-cofounders-120816121553-phpapp02/75/Co-Founders-short-lessons-learned-40-2048.jpg)
Uploaded byAndreas Klinger
Co-Founders - short lessons learned
The document provides lessons learned from searching for, considering, and working with co-founders. It emphasizes treating co-founding like a marriage by setting up vesting agreements and clear communication habits. When considering a co-founder, focus on intrinsic motivations and whether visions align. When working together, establish clear leadership and processes to resolve issues. Overall, co-founding requires treating it seriously like a long-term relationship and commitment.
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Co-Founders - short lessons learned
- 1. Co-Founders LessonsLearned @andreasklinger
- 2. Co- Founders #1 searching #2 considering #3joining #4 working (short lessons learned)
- 3. @andreasklinger TL;DR: I do startups… LOOKK.com, die.socialisten.at, seedcamp mentor, leancamp fanboy Slides: http://www.slideshare.net/andreasklinger
- 4. #1 searching @andreasklinger
- 5.
- 6.
- 7.
- 8. If I finda technical co-founder…
- 9. There is no“if” in entrepreneurial grammar. And there is too much stuff to do to wait or just search…
- 10. Startup phases… Discovery Validation Efficiency Scale Acquisition Problem/Solution Company building Product/Market Source: Steve Blank’s Customer Development
- 11. Startup phases… Discovery Validation Efficiency Scale Acquisition Problem/Solution Company building Product/Market “Talking” Land (problem validation, first customers)
- 12. Startup phases… Discovery Validation Efficiency Scale Acquisition Problem/Solution Company building Product/Market “Talking” Land “Public Hacked (problem validation, Prototype Land” first customers) (solution validation, more customers)
- 13. Startup phases… Discovery Validation Efficiency Scale Acquisition Problem/Solution Company building Product/Market “Talking” Land “Public Hacked “Fix that crap” Land (problem validation, Prototype Land” (Becoming a real first customers) (solution validation, product and more customers) company, Fixing legacy, Channel optimization)
- 14. Startup phases… Discovery Validation Efficiency Scale Acquisition Problem/Solution Company building Product/Market “Talking” Land “Public Hacked “Fix that crap” Land “Mystery Land” (problem validation, Prototype Land” (Becoming a real (Fighting Dragons, first customers) (solution validation, product and Saving princesses, more customers) company, etc) Fixing legacy, Channel optimization)
- 15. Startup phases… Discovery Validation Efficiency Scale 5-7 Months 3-5 Months Source: Startup Genome Project
- 16. Startup phases… Discovery Validation Efficiency Scale Enough time to kill your first startup idea. You can do dozens of iterations of your potential problem and solution without ever touching code. Source: Startup Genome Project
- 17. How to killyour first 100 startup ideas… CustDev is the most efficient way visualizing the solution to kill your dreams. without biasing customers Ever. committing customers testing the solution ( www.Keynotopia.com )
- 18. Learn coding. Coding is nota sacred art, it’s a craft.
- 19. Learn coding. Coding is nota sacred art, it’s a craft. Everyone can learn to code on “hacky prototype level”.
- 20.
- 21. Get Traction. There are millionsof reasons for not having traction. But none of them is an excuse.
- 22. Good problems to have: “Igot clients’ money, I need development support” (real) “My hacked-together prototype gets too much traffic, can you help me” (concrete)
- 23. #2 considering @andreasklinger
- 24. Before you join: Write down yourfirst impressions and concerns. Positive and negative. Revise this every two weeks. People don’t change & Your gut is always right.
- 25. Before you join: Have aVERY honest talk about WHY each of you wants to do that startup.
- 26. Keeping the productabstract helps in that talk. Goal: Find real intrinsic motivation
- 27. E.g. Becoming known inthe startup “scene”. Making money. Being known worldwide. Building software people use. Coding in that new language. Being innovative Helping underdogs. Sounds more fun than my agency job. Play the VC/Startup game.
- 28. Why? Intrinsic Motivation affects Valuesand Comfort Zone. Both affect Strategies. People only do what people like to do.
- 29. See finding aco-founder as hiring process. It’s the most expensive job of the company. (equity intense) Still people spend less time on assessing their co-founders than their employees. Why?
- 30. Start Loose… Loose projects… Loose contracts… Loosehopes… Loose (but honest) or no promises…
- 31. #3 joining @andreasklinger
- 32. Co-Founding ~= Marriage 54% ofall marriages end in divorce.
- 33. Co-Founding ~= Marriage 54% ofall marriages end in divorce. Set up vesting.
- 34. Co-Founding ~= Marriage 54% ofall marriages end in divorce. Set up vesting (with 6-12 month cliff).
- 35. Co-Founding ~= Marriage 54% ofall marriages end in divorce. Set up vesting (with 6-12 month cliff). (seriously do it)
- 36. #4 working @andreasklinger
- 37. Clear Leadership “Some startup founderteams have a unified vision. Most have one strong leader.” ~ Devin Hunt
- 38. Clear Leadership “Some startup founderteams have a unified vision. Most have one strong leader.” ~ Devin Hunt Be clear who defines (and changes) the vision. Be clear about who decides in the end, if needed. Don’t confuse common agreement with democracy.
- 39. Make communication a habit. Dailycalls. Weekly progress check. Clear process for each of them
- 40. Make communication a habit. Dailycalls. Weekly progress check. Clear process for each of them E.g. Daily calls (only one person talks at a time, 10 mins max, discussions are done in a seperate call): 1) What did i do today 2) What am i going to do tomorrow 3) Problems i face 4) Announcements 5) Ways i found to improve (e.g. myself) [idea by buffer]
- 41. Co- Founders #1 searching #2 considering #3joining #4 working (short lessons learned)
- 42. recommended presentations by @robfitz on custdev/lean: http://leanca.mp/2012/01/intro-to-lean-startup-with-no-buzzwords-by-robfitz/ http://thestartuptoolkit.com/blog/2012/05/how-to-do-and-what-to-expect-from- early-stage-customer-development-sales/ Pictures by “Where the Wild Things Are” by Warner Bros http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0386117/
- 43. And if they haven’t killed each other they are living happily ever after… @andreasklinger