Customer Pains Aren't Problems: Why Early Adopters Matter More
Customer pains aren't abstract problems — they're lived experiences. Find early adopters already seeking solutions instead of marketing to everyone.
Blog
212 articles on innovation, lean startup, and entrepreneurship
Lean Startup Machine: 21 Tips I Learned the Hard Way
Practical tips from a Lean Startup Machine weekend — from customer discovery interviews to why cash in hand beats bullshit on a slide.
Build Measure Learn vs Learn Measure Build: Run the Loop in Reverse
The Build Measure Learn loop is backwards. Start with Learn: identify a learning goal, specify the data you need, then pick the simplest method to get it.
Minimum Viable Experience: Why User Experience Is Not a Feature
"It's only an MVP" is no excuse for bad UX. Learn why product teams must build a minimum viable experience, not just a minimum viable product.
Visionary Entrepreneur vs. Lean Startup: Why They're Not Incompatible
Think lean startup kills big vision? It doesn't. Learn why visionary entrepreneurs thrive with early testing and a willingness to pivot.
Startup Pivot Anti-Patterns: A Taxonomy of How Not to Pivot
Not every startup pivot is valid. Learn the common anti-patterns — from blind pivots to buzzword pivots — that undermine lean startup principles.
Minimum Viable Founding Team: Why It Matters More Than Your MVP
Startups almost always pivot, so co-founders committed to your idea will bail. Build a founding team committed to you as a person instead.
Why You Shouldn't Pivot on Startup Mentor Advice Alone
Startup mentor advice is a hypothesis, not a directive. Validate with real customers before pivoting — five conversations can change everything.
Innovation Culture Dies When You "Shoot" People for Mistakes
Blame culture kills innovation culture. Learn why war metaphors backfire and how treating your company like a car — not a battlefield — builds agility.
3 Ways to Fail at Customer Development (And How to Avoid Them)
Leading the witness, skipping notes, and trusting hypotheticals — the three customer development mistakes that kill startups before they start.
3 Best Usability Testing Tools for Mockups and Wireframes
The best usability testing tools for wireframes aren't software. Here are three low-fidelity tools that keep feedback focused on what matters.
Customer Personas for Customer Development: A Practical Guide
Customer personas structure hypothesis-driven customer development. Learn the four key elements and which one matters most to validate.