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Oh, how much Founders are like the Frantics Ed Gruberman. This song captures Ed asking the Master how to perfect Taw Kwon Leap, which turns out to be a perfect analogy for startups and how they use mentors.
A startup and its founder(s) are on a journey to solve problems and have someone pay for the solution. Filled with hope and anxiety, these tech warriors march into the market full of hope and promise. Specialist in one thing or another, they seldom have the broad business and sales skills required to breakthrough. Steep paths, unfinished bridges, and treacherous chasms often delay or derail the journey. Desperate for help and running out of resources, they look for guidance and direction. But not too much.
The first meeting with a lost soul is almost always the same. “I am an expert in my field who understands a problem which can save the right customer time and money.” A presentation follows this conversation. Sometimes you get a demo. You always get one or two “customer” testimonies that support the thesis. Later you find they are close friends or associates acting in good faith to help. Ironically, every time you want to validate these customers, the company says it’s too early, and the product they have is beta, etc. Or something to that effect.
