#89 — How to 10x Your Chance at Startup Success

Below the Line

Podcast Notes Key Takeaways To 10x your chances at startup success: Fix a problem that you yourself haveMake a list of 15-20 problems in your life Then rank them by most painful Then try to build a product that solves one of them“Build a company around a problem that you yourself have” – James Beshara  Why build a company around a problem you have?You’ll have a familiarity with the problem which will help you design a solutionYou’ll have knowledge of existing solutions and what they lackYou’ll know about the spaceYoull know about your target market and customersWhen building a company, launch earlier rather than later. By launching early, you’ll get feedback from customers sooner and will be able to make adjustments to improve the product.Once you get your company going, the next step is recruiting an amazing teamWhen looking for your first hires, you need to find people who are as passionate about solving that problem as you areAs a founder or executive, 25% of what you’re thinking about should be the current state of the company while 75% should be focused 90 days out and beyondThe managers in the company should be thinking 50% present and 50% futureThe employees in the company should be thinking 75% present and 25% future

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James opens the show giving the #1 piece of advice he would give to founders to multiply their chances of startup success 10 fold. He then takes answers voicemail questions about how founders should decide how to to delegate their time and the strategy founders could take in the early stages of their companies. He closes the show by expounding on why he moved away from Silicon Valley to Los Angeles, despite the large network effect that exists for founders in the Bay area.

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  About your host, James: James Beshara is a founder, investor, advisor, author, podcaster, and encourager based in Los Angeles, California. James has created startups for the last 12 years, selling one (Tilt, acquired by Airbnb), and invested in a few multi-billion dollar startups to date. He has spoken at places such as Y-Combinator, Harvard Business School, Stanford University, TechCrunch Disrupt, and has been featured in outlets like the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, Fortune Magazine, and Time Magazine. He’s been featured in Forbes, Time, and Inc Magazine’s “30 Under 30” lists and advises startups all around the world. All of this is his “above the line” version of his background. Hear the other 90% of the story in the intro episode of Below The Line.  “Below the Line with James Beshara" is brought to you by Another Podcast Network.