232: Why Founder Mode Works
Jason Shen's MIT Sloan Management Review article explains why founder-led companies outperform: domain expertise, earned legitimacy, and stakeholder forgiveness create unique strategic advantages.
startups
231: The Early-Stage Crucible
Early-stage founders face a trifecta of challenges: no product-market fit, team conflict, and personal doubt. Jason Shen maps the patterns he sees in his coaching practice.
228: Building 10x Better
Building something 10x better sounds impossible for a tiny startup. Jason Shen explains how narrowing down — like Bezos selling only books for four years — makes the seemingly impossible achievable.
215: "You Have to Be a Little Delusional"
A talk on startup pivoting from Medium Day 2024: why founders need productive delusion, and how the Double Loop Pivot framework helps struggling startups find their next direction.
Startups As Chemical Reactions
Originally written in 2014, updated with a new example in 2021 (Homejoy →
Robinhood)
I'm sometimes envious of people
Two Feelings You Need Before Starting a Startup
First published in 2013, republished in 2020 with minor tweaks
I was talking to some folks about applying to Y
How to Become More Adaptable
Republishing my piece from TechCrunch
![Solve for the Harder Problem [Interview with Bilal Mahmood]](https://storage.ghost.io/c/ee/b5/eeb51aed-5fc9-48e8-80b2-2499ce01cf7d/content/images/size/w400/wordpress/2020/01/bilal-mahmood-woods-1.jpg)
Solve for the Harder Problem [Interview with Bilal Mahmood]
ClearBrain CEO Bilal Mahmood shares 7 lessons on building a new analytics category, including why solving the harder technical problem creates a more defensible startup.
Three Days with MaGIC
Inspired by Silicon Valley, many cities and nations around the world are trying
to build startup and technology hubs – to
The Minimum Viable Transaction
In 2009, an entrepreneur named Eric Ries coined at term that would move the
field of product development forward. The
Eleven Compelling Startup Pitch Archetypes
Over the past few weeks, I’ve helped a handful of startups work on their YC
applications and interviews. I