Founder Weekly (Issue 565 - December 7 2022)

Founder Weekly - Issue 565

December 07, 2022

Founder Weekly

Welcome to issue 565 of Founder Weekly. Let's get straight to the links this week.

General

Why VC funding is a drug, when building in stealth is a mistake, what to do when you lose conviction, how to approach selling your company, and more.

During economic downturns, is it possible (or even wise) for startup entrepreneurs to deploy growth tactics? Will companies be able to secure funding? Should founders even consider starting a business during a bear market? "100%"; says Greylock general partner Reid Hoffman. However, the specific ways startups approach high-growth strategies during high-risk economic environments is crucial, and it all depends on the leverage points they have over their competition.

ChatGPT is the latest step towards a world of infinite, customizable content, all generated by artificial intelligence. Its advent will impact how we create, consume, and commercialize media.

The battle for the future of the world.

Marketing, Sales and PR

A talk about why sales is a crucial part of any business and how to continue selling successfully through a recession. We get super-specific on building a conservative plan for the near future and cover everything from where to place your best salespeople to restructuring comp plans. The episode is full of great advice about how to shift with this market, improve agility, and perhaps grow an even stronger business with happier customers. 

These eight lessons will set you on the path towards repeatability and standardization as you transition from founder-led sales to a sales-led motion

When it comes to hiring a top marketer, founders may feel hamstrung by inexperience and the economy. But hiring the right CMO is possible, depending on your company's size.

Money and Finance

In this thread Alex Iskold shares 2 strategies, Progressive Caps and Soft Commits, that founders can use to  raise pre-seed / seed rounds using SAFE.

What’s the revenge of capital? It’s the release of all of the pent-up frustration, anger, angst, and anxiety that investors who invested in startup companies and LPs who invested in funds feel about the last few years. Some argue that capital allocation and investment should be a rational, dispassionate process, but that’s not how the the world works; capital is allocated by people with feelings and I think if you ignore that fact, you do so at your own peril.

Startups of the Week

Quolum is the best way to buy SaaS . Contracts + Payments + Renewals. We handle it all and save 30% in the process.

Get access to luxurious amenities at the best hotels and resorts near you for a local “daycation” or on your next trip. 

Tips, Tools and Services

Picking a co-founder(s) is the second most important decision after deciding to start a startup. Who do you start is almost as equally important as why do you start. Be thoughtful about who you partner with! Here is all you need to know about co-founders.

David Nunez, an early hire at Stripe and Uber, shares his step-by-step playbook for establishing good internal documentation habits at your startup. He unpacks his tested tactics for creating a culture of documentation, setting the quality bar and keeping things organized.

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