Successful Startup (Part 8)
But there is one thing we have to do, when we want to get to the top. We have to stand up and start climbing. Climbing with the mindset of really going to the top. What does this mean for a software company?
First it means we will not rush. Never. It is a long trip, not a sprint. It is like building the highest building on Earth. You start with a bedrock. The toughest and most stable. What is the bedrock of a software startup? The founders. And their mindset. And their vision. Their shared vision. And their shared mindset. Then you assemble the team of craftsmen. They don't have to be the best individuals to constitute the best team. A team is not the members. It is what is in among them. Among us, actually. How we talk together, how we work together, how we share the load among ourselves, how we communicate and share the knowledge, how we support each other.
Once we have the bedrock and the team, we can start building. Step by step, moving up. And here we touch probably the most important aspect. At least the one I have had most difficulties communicating and implementing. So please pay attention and listen carefully: anything you build, any single brick you lay, do it absolutely the best way you can. Be proud of what you've done. It has to be precisely aligned, polished and rock steady. Because when you will be high above ground, your life, our life, our existence, will rely on those bricks laid at the very bottom. They cannot fail. They cannot be misaligned. Never. Erecting the top, we will not have time to go down and fix things at the bottom.
In the construction never use wood, glue, PUR foam, chewing gum and other substitutes for stone, steel and titanium. Software engineers and architects know what I mean. Every piece of software, every object, every layer of logic has to be made of stone, steel and titanium. The same applies to the design phase. Spend most of your time on conceptual and logical design. Align three times then lay down the brick once. Not the opposite way. And do not excuse yourself, saying it was impossible to design properly before the implementation. It was. You just did not pay enough attention and precision, hoping it would work. Professionals never hope. They don't have to. They know.
The PUR foam approach is the disaster of the 21st century. It is the essence of mediocrity. It is cheap and fast and brings excellent ROI to investors. But it will never let you build a top product. Have you seen any traces of a PUR foam in the iPhone? Or in anything Apple does?
We want our product fast. On the market now. Or next week. So hurry.
Don't!
We want the PRODUCT. Not a PROTOTYPE build of foam, glue and chewing gum. It will be expensive. Some investors buy this approach and some don't. What has always bothered me, what those high-ROI-seeking investors do with their money after they cash their investments? Usually they buy the highest quality, most expensive, masterpieces of art and craft. They love how smoothly and silently their cars accelerate and they love the taste of the $500 a bottle wines. But when you offer them the choice of building their own product with titanium or foam, most often they select foam. Because foam gives higher ROI. Contradiction? How often I see it! The problem can always be reduced to the #1. What is your priority? Make money fast or climb to the top? The latter is always harder. But it produces priceless returns, no money can buy. The beauty is, the returns are all along the way. Even if you don't reach the top, you enjoy the road. And you are proud of what you've done.
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