Fuckberg - Michael Litt

At SaaS North last week, I listened to Michael Litt from Vidyard talk about some of the problems you go through when growing a startup. One of the biggest is hiring, and knowing when to fire.

He explained that if there are people talking about a problem, but not addressing it directly, it’s the tip of the fuckberg.

He also talked about the four quadrants of a hire. On one axis is cultural fit, and the other is talent. Low performers, but high cultural fit is a coaching and training opportunity. Low cultural fit, and high performers must go.

Great talk from the Vidyard CEO!

The difference between Business Model & Strategy

I've been reading a lot about business models since taking Seth Godin's AltMBA earlier this year. Strategyzer's Business Model Generation book isn't so much of a read, but a process. One thing that I have realized however is that there is some confusion between Business Models and Strategy. HBR has a great video on this.

Watch here: https://hbr.org/video/5072479512001/the-explainer-what-is-a-business-model

Informed Intuition

I've always struggled to define how I make decisions. I've said things like lead with my gut, but back up with data. But that's not right. Using data you can research a story, but when you're making a decision, it's based on your experience and knowledge too. Marissa Mayer does a great job of explaining this in the Masters of Scale podcast. 

What it's called is Informed Intuition. 

https://mastersofscale.com/marissa-mayer-how-to-make-the-star-employees-you-need/

Just Launch It.

I am still afraid of launching. I have fear of rejection, fear of not good enough. But then I had an opportunity to launch a product I couldn't change anything with. It is what it is. So I put it out there, and people liked it! So what I learnt, is fuck it, launch it. If there is a need for it, people will tell you. If not, move on. Listen to your own damn advice: Launch early, launch often. 

Check out LicketyLink on Product Hunt. Send huge files fast.

https://www.producthunt.com/posts/licketylink

Setbacks

"Life is how you handle setbacks."  - Chip Wilson

Three types of Businesses

In any business, there are three types of business. Product, Customers, and Infrastructure. In SaaS it's pretty easy to think about, Your software, your customer support, and what mechanisms you use to provide your customers. 

Originally from Unbundling the Corporation, but updated and read from the book Business Model Generation.

Instinct vs. Ideas

From the Masters of Scale Podcast, I learnt that if you know you have good instincts, then you should trust them 90% of the time. Kill the ideas that you don't think will work. Trust your ideas 25%. 

https://mastersofscale.com/mark-pincus-how-to-kill-your-bad-ideas/