Founder decisions,
decoded.
Long-form essays on the calls that make or break startups — when to hire, when to pivot, when to scale, and how to see the blind spots before they cost you runway.
Firing a Co-Founder: The Hardest Decision in Startups
Firing a co-founder is the most painful decision a CEO makes, but delaying it is fatal. How to navigate the conflict and equity.
The Cost of Technical Debt: When to Rewrite vs. Refactor
Technical debt is leverage, not a sin. Knowing when to pay it down, refactor, or rewrite separates enduring products from legacy codebases.
Choosing Your First Board Member: Red Flags and Green Flags
Your first board member will shape the trajectory of your startup more than any executive hire. How to identify red flags and align structurally.
The "Fail Fast" Fallacy: Are You Quitting the Wrong Things?
Fail fast is good advice for features, but terrible advice for startups. Why misapplying lean startup methods leads to quitting too early.
Premature Scaling: Why 70% of Startups Die From Growing Too Fast
The single biggest killer of venture-backed startups isn't lack of demand or bad founders. It's scaling before the model is proven. Here's how to spot it.
Raising a Down Round: How to Survive and Rebuild Momentum
A down round is not a death sentence. How to reset the cap table, manage the optics with your team, and get back to building.
The Founder Decision Framework: Evaluate Any Startup Decision in 3 Dimensions
Most founder decisions fail one of three tests: demand, supply, or processing capacity. A repeatable framework for the calls that matter.
When to Hire Your First Sales Rep (And 5 Signals You Shouldn't Yet)
Hiring sales too early is one of the most expensive mistakes a founder makes. Here's the exact checklist for knowing if you're ready.
When to Pivot Your Startup (And When You're Just Quitting Too Early)
Pivoting too early kills good ideas. Pivoting too late burns the company. The signals that distinguish a real pivot from emotional fatigue.
7 Founder Blind Spots That Kill Companies (And How to Spot Yours)
The most dangerous decisions feel right in the moment. A breakdown of the seven recurring blind spots that show up in founder post-mortems.