It’s really easy to get swept up in the mystique of the startup.
It becomes easier still when you forget that no matter what success you have achieved, you are only “two guys in a basement” away from being displaced.
With that in mind, here is a checklist that should help keep you grounded when the reality distortion field threatens to sweep you away. Who knows, it might just prevent a mistake or two before it’s even made.
Starting A Business Is Fun and Easy!
What can you reasonably produce in one month?
Because In all likelihood this should be version 0 of your product.
What is the most difficult question you have ever been asked about your idea?
Because this is the question that will likely determine whether you get funding or not.
How many people do you really need on your team?
Take that number you thought of, divide it by itself and add three. If you can’t put something together with that, consider reducing your scope.
How are you going to get users?
- Unacceptable answer - “Viral!”
- Marginally acceptable answer - “Word of mouth”
- Most acceptable answer - Any group of sentences that shows that you understand how your target demographic actually operates.
What’s your six month revenue projection?
Unless you have a rich Uncle, some good luck, or a blockbuster idea you will be sitting on a whole pile of nothing for a while. You may want to think about how you are going to feed yourself. Finding a way to turn a revenue before “critical mass” is likely prudent.
Can you explain your product in one sentence?
People need to understand what you are going to give them. If you can’t understand your own value proposition well enough to explain in succinctly, the odds of anyone else being able to do it approaches nil.
Do you need that neat new feature that will set the project back two months but will, “totally beat [insert nearest competitor]”?
No.
At the end of the day, do you design your product?
Not unless one of your talents is reading the minds of your users. You build the frame, they fill in the gaps.
How many people can you absolutely count on using your product?
How many people are on your team again?
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