Startup Therapy

In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan discuss how founders can survive a failed Startup. For some founders, when they experience failure, they immediately think that it’s the end, that it’s a complete failure. But one thing's for sure though – we will all get over it. Failure has always been a part of the process and it will teach us valuable lessons along the way. And it also gives us the most important ammunition: a chance to start again.  Sign up for the Startups Newsletterhttps://www.startups.com/newsletterResources: Startup Therapy Podcast  https://www.startups.com/begin Join our Network of Top Founders  Check in with us on LinkedIn | Wil Schroter | Ryan Rutan What to Listen For 00:00 Intro 00:28 What happens to the founder after a startup fails? 03:00 No one cares your startup failed 05:05 Everyone is going through the same thing 06:06 And then what? 09:53 You won’t even remember it 13:22 You can just try again 14:56 Losses are momentary 16:59 Your failures can be anecdotes to teach people

In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan discuss the problem of comparing yourself with other founders. Sometimes, we look at the success of others and immediately think we’re falling behind. We always compare ourselves to others without even realizing that we all had a different head start and were influenced by varied outside factors. Remember, success is a process, and we go through it in different phases. Sign up for the Startups Newsletterhttps://www.startups.com/newsletterResources: Startup Therapy Podcast  https://www.startups.com/begin Join our Network of Top Founders  Check in with us on LinkedIn | Wil Schroter | Ryan Rutan What to Listen For 00:00 Intro 00:20 How to level up 02:51 Stop comparing yourself with other founders 05:43 The milestones doesn’t end 08:24 We all grow differently 11:20 It might look similar – but it’s totally different 12:47 Sometimes the right decision is not the right direction 14:31 Comparison kills progress 17:30 Even the most successful people still fails 21:04

In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan discuss if startup CEOs can really be considered as CEOs. The CEO title bears a lot of responsibility – it’s a nice title to have alongside your name but the question is, are you qualified to have it? It’s easy to get the title, in fact, anyone can become one but do you have the right qualifications and enough experience to be called a CEO?Sign up for the Startups Newsletterhttps://www.startups.com/newsletterResources: Startup Therapy Podcast  https://www.startups.com/begin Join our Network of Top Founders  Check in with us on LinkedIn | Wil Schroter | Ryan Rutan What to Listen For 00:00 Intro 02:16 Just because you have the title, it doesn’t mean you’re qualified 06:12 CEOs need to manage people 09:01 CEOs have experience 13:27 Start-up CEOs can’t be corporate CEOs and vice versa 18:42 There are different types of growth 20:27 Your focus will change when you reach 80 people inflection point 23:34 The CEO job can get dreadful 25:38 The problem with hiring ov

In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan discuss how founders should not feel like they are running out of time – because they’re not. Most young entrepreneurs feel that they should rush things just because others seem to be doing well in life already and they’re feeling left behind. Everyone has their own timeframes and maybe this year is just not your year, and that’s okay, because you still have a lot of time left in your career. Sign up for the Startups Newsletterhttps://www.startups.com/newsletterResources: Startup Therapy Podcast  https://www.startups.com/begin Join our Network of Top Founders  Check in with us on LinkedIn | Wil Schroter | Ryan Rutan What to Listen For 00:00 Intro 01:07 You have so much time in your career 03:12 Be reasonable about given timeframes 05:01 Look at the long view 07:26 The most powerful companies were built over decades 09:01 Don’t allow external opinions to tell you where you should be now 10:48 What you can actually accomplish 12:44 This might not be your decad

In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan discuss the importance for founders to identify problems early on and why they should do something about it. Survival is the strategy in Startups so founders should be aware of the early signs of problems  so that they can find solutions to last longer in this game. Sign up for the Startups Newsletterhttps://www.startups.com/newsletterResources: Startup Therapy Podcast  https://www.startups.com/begin Join our Network of Top Founders  Check in with us on LinkedIn | Wil Schroter | Ryan Rutan What to Listen For 00:00 Intro 01:24 Living to fight another day 02:41 Lying with the full intention of making it true 04:29 Survival is the strategy 08:36 Founders should realize the situation first 12:44 Changes can make stay in the game longer 14:39 Down round 19:27 Invest in the reality of a business 22:06 Double up on your winners, and cut pay on your losers 24:24 Doing nothing is death

In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan discuss how being a parent made them better founders, and vice versa. There are things that we won’t understand until we experience them ourselves, and in a Startup, there are similar things that we can compare when it comes to leading and being a parent. Once you start teaching your kids good values you can apply those to your company, because as they say, “being a founder is like being a parent, you always stay involved.”Sign up for the Startups Newsletterhttps://www.startups.com/newsletterResources: Startup Therapy Podcast  https://www.startups.com/begin Join our Network of Top Founders  Check in with us on LinkedIn | Wil Schroter | Ryan Rutan What to Listen For 00:00 Intro 00:23 Does being a parent make you a better founder? 04:50 Teaching your kids to question everything  10:18 Leading with humility 11:36 The answers can change when we ask questions 14:03 Start with what makes you happy 20:08 Just because you have talent, you don’t have to do it 24:27 G

In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan discuss one of the most common problems with new businesses - they are afraid to do the wrong thing. In Startup you can’t always be right and have a smooth sailing path in the beginning, you will always have to be wrong and do the wrong things first before knowing what is right. Normalizing a culture of admitting and allowing mistakes will help companies know how they can perform better in the future.Sign up for the Startups Newsletterhttps://www.startups.com/newsletterResources: Startup Therapy Podcast  https://www.startups.com/begin Join our Network of Top Founders  Check in with us on LinkedIn | Wil Schroter | Ryan Rutan What to Listen For 00:00 Intro 02:01 Don’t get hung up on a business idea 06:03 It’s alright to admit that you have no idea 07:49 Getting wrong advice from the wrong people 09:02 Push yourself harder to become wrong 11:23 You have to be wrong first to know what right actually looks like 12:29 Stop hiring the wrong people 16:00 People can

In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan discuss why managers and founders need to pay more attention to small details. Sometimes companies have employees who suddenly start performing poorly. What could be the reason? Whenever there are small problems, there must be a root cause of why it’s happening, so it’s up to the founders to identify what’s causing it. Sign up for the Startups Newsletterhttps://www.startups.com/newsletterResources: Startup Therapy Podcast  https://www.startups.com/begin Join our Network of Top Founders  Check in with us on LinkedIn | Wil Schroter | Ryan Rutan What to Listen For 00:00 Intro 03:13 Sometimes there is a bigger problem behind any small issue 04:27 When things look off, it’s because it’s off 07:29 People don’t make excuses when they’re on their game 10:11 Pay attention to the details 18:36 Everyone is not going to be a top performer 19:19 The organization will slowly regress to its slowest mover 23:25 Ask the question, “what do you want to get done?” 25:28 Opening

In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan discuss some of the advice that they would tell their younger founder selves. If you could go back in time, what would you tell your past self? Now that you’re wiser and more experienced, there are many things that you wished you would’ve done differently, but those mistakes and lessons that you had along the way is what also made you become the person you are today. Sign up for the Startups Newsletterhttps://www.startups.com/newsletterResources: Startup Therapy Podcast  https://www.startups.com/begin Join our Network of Top Founders  Check in with us on LinkedIn | Wil Schroter | Ryan Rutan What to Listen For 00:00 Intro 01:39 Don’t feel rushed and have more patience 05:07 You can do a lot of transformative things in just a few years 07:02 It’s okay to fail 07:58 Cultivating relationships 10:14 Find people who wants you to become a better person 12:00 The “give & get” in relationships 14:10 How relationships ends is how you get remembered 15:56 Just be k

In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan discuss the importance of accountability in a company. A founder should be able to know how to instill accountability in their employees. The two main components to get accountability are ownership and consequences - having these things can make a huge difference in a company’s overall success.Sign up for the Startups Newsletterhttps://www.startups.com/newsletterResources: Startup Therapy Podcast  https://www.startups.com/begin Join our Network of Top Founders  Check in with us on LinkedIn | Wil Schroter | Ryan Rutan What to Listen For 00:00 Intro 00:09 Nobody else wants to be accountable 02:01 Founders always have the higher stakes 04:36 The challenge founders face is to get everyone accountable 06:53 Consequences affect accountability 09:31 Not being accountable does not mean safety 11:25 What happens to a company with no accountability 14:45 Two components to get accountability 18:18 Owning the outcome  19:46 Effects of reward and recognition 23:28 Visibi

In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan discuss what makes a good manager. What does it take to become a good manager? Is it a manager that consistently hits the targets and can keep up with the demands of the business? It is someone who showcases good leadership skills and the right mindset? The truth is, one becomes a good manager when they can push the entire team to transform themselves and become exponentially better at what they do. Sign up for the Startups Newsletterhttps://www.startups.com/newsletterResources: Startup Therapy Podcast  https://www.startups.com/begin Join our Network of Top Founders  Check in with us on LinkedIn | Wil Schroter | Ryan Rutan What to Listen For 00:00 Intro 00:41 Most of us hadn’t led a team of managers 03:14 Are you a babysitter 07:03 This is what a good manager does 12:39 Growth versus stability 16:14 Managers should push teammates to transform themselves 19:34 Patience and tolerance 23:33 We want somebody that can make the team 10X better 29:10 How are you ma

In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan discuss why health is an important asset for founders. Sacrifices are often necessary for every business - less time with family, skipping meals, not taking breaks, constantly working overtime and not getting paid enough, etc. In the early stage of the business, these types of sacrifices are ‘deemed’ essential and expected. Years later, stress and anxiety will eat you up and you’ll probably be dealing with a failing body. Yes, sacrifices are necessary but not in exchange for your health.Sign up for the Startups Newsletterhttps://www.startups.com/newsletterResources: Startup Therapy Podcast  https://www.startups.com/begin Join our Network of Top Founders  Check in with us on LinkedIn | Wil Schroter | Ryan Rutan What to Listen For 00:00 Intro 00:16 When do we stop destroying ourselves for our Startup? 07:52 Wearing yourself out without measurable return 16:40 When we feel like we have to make these sacrifices 22:45 Top performers take their health seriously

In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan talk about the never ending anxiety we all have. One of the things that makes every founder feel on the edge most of the time is getting anxious over everything, this sense of urgency to get one thing done after another right away. What we don’t realize is instead of rushing through things, sometimes it can be beneficial to our mental health if we just let things take its course. And if we shift our focus on solving the problem and not get anxious about it.  Sign up for the Startups Newsletterhttps://www.startups.com/newsletterResources: Startup Therapy Podcast  https://www.startups.com/begin Join our Network of Top Founders  Check in with us on LinkedIn | Wil Schroter | Ryan Rutan What to Listen For 00:00 Intro 00:20 When does anxiety go away? 07:25 It started with a lot of anxiety, created more, and then just stayed 19:19 Fleeting moments without feeling anxious 24:54 Instead of saying, “I feel anxious about this problem…” 29:52 Sometimes, you don’t need t

In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan talk about when founders actually get paid? In the Startups community, many founders expect immediate returns and instant success. This is because a lot of founders have shown potential and managed to grow their business exponentially in such a short period of time. New founders expect the same outcome to happen to them. The truth is, outside of the community, it takes several years, decades even, to reach significant growth in returns. Not everyone can get rich overnight.   Sign up for the Startups Newsletterhttps://www.startups.com/newsletterResources: Startup Therapy Podcast  https://www.startups.com/begin Join our Network of Top Founders  Check in with us on LinkedIn | Wil Schroter | Ryan Rutan What to Listen For 00:00 Intro 00:09 When do founders actually get paid? 05:28 The expectation of a linear path 12:53 Startups.com just celebrated its 10th year anniversary 13:49 We expect success in 18 months 18:45 Why do founders get paid last?

In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan talk about overthinking. When you start to focus your attention on something that has not happened yet and it starts to affect your performance, decision-making, and growth, you end up getting anxious. And this growing anxiety will hinder what you are truly capable of achieving. So, stop worrying about the things that didn’t happen and start planning based on what’s happening now. Sign up for the Startups Newsletterhttps://www.startups.com/newsletterResources: Startup Therapy Podcast  https://www.startups.com/begin Join our Network of Top Founders  Check in with us on LinkedIn | Wil Schroter | Ryan Rutan What to Listen For 00:00 Intro 00:41 We spend so much time thinking about what might go wrong 04:41 Investors do care for us in some ways 08:26 One failure won’t destroy you for life 14:45 Customers only care about what you’re doing 17:00 Focus on product quality instead of the competition 21:45 Anxiety in the workplace 

In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan talk about people losing their jobs. We’ve been talking about it and now it’s happening. People are losing their jobs fast and they are left with little to no option in these trying times. As a founder, what can you do to help? Are you supposed to do something somehow? People are losing their safety of a steady stream of income and the last thing they want to bring with them when they leave is uncertainty and heavy competition. If you still have the means, make it so that the transition is made easier for them. Sign up for the Startups Newsletterhttps://www.startups.com/newsletterResources: Startup Therapy Podcast  https://www.startups.com/begin Join our Network of Top Founders  Check in with us on LinkedIn | Wil Schroter | Ryan Rutan What to Listen For 00:00 Intro 00:29 It’s a hard time for employees  03:58 Our ego is attached to this sense of ownership 09:14 People always remember what they felt during a transaction 13:19 How to properly handle demoting/le

In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan talk about putting a freeze on your resources when returns take a downturn. When is it necessary to let go of some employees? When is it an urgent matter to get more funding? Can you possibly get more funding when the Startup isn’t hitting the target? Well, you can definitely weather the storm when you understand that a downturn is tough but it’s a good phase to start cleaning up unnecessary ties and expenditures.   Sign up for the Startups Newsletterhttps://www.startups.com/newsletterResources: Startup Therapy Podcast  https://www.startups.com/begin Join our Network of Top Founders  Check in with us on LinkedIn | Wil Schroter | Ryan Rutan What to Listen For 00:00 Intro 00:24 Startup market crash 06:47 The reason investing got so crazy 14:59 We raise money to get to milestone 17:35 When you start seeing lay-offs 20:33 We have to switch to defense 

In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan talk about where founders should put their focus on. Growth or profit? Can you focus on both? The true measure of a founding team is the success of every bet made and the ability to bounce back from the negative consequences of these bets. You can focus on returns and not see much growth or grow exponentially and invest in hiring more people. Either way, it’s always about achieving your ultimate goal.   Sign up for the Startups Newsletterhttps://www.startups.com/newsletterResources: Startup Therapy Podcast  https://www.startups.com/begin Join our Network of Top Founders  Check in with us on LinkedIn | Wil Schroter | Ryan Rutan What to Listen For 00:00 Intro 00:09 Why profit should always be the motive 05:54 You can’t simply mimic successful Startups 12:39 Give yourself enough time to learn everything about the business 21:15 Growth can also be very distracting 26:12 They all look like great when they’re just ideas

In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan talk about the cost of raising a capital. Yes, additional funding is a good sign of progress, it’s a sign that the company has potential to grow because people invested money in it. Yes, it is a milestone most founders want to achieve. The downside, however, is that you are no longer alone when making decisions. You are no longer the owner. You become another ‘employee’. Sign up for the Startups Newsletterhttps://www.startups.com/newsletterResources: Startup Therapy Podcast  https://www.startups.com/begin Join our Network of Top Founders  Check in with us on LinkedIn | Wil Schroter | Ryan Rutan What to Listen For 00:00 Intro 00:53 Challenging the common narrative of raising funds 03:32 What are you giving up when you raise funding? 08:57 When the founder doesn’t feel comfortable 13:02 Investors will defend their money first above anything else 17:10 It’s not our company anymore 23:09 The only positive side of raising capital

In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan talk about what it’s like for a Startup to stall. We are all so used to the idea that we need to keep creating a momentum for our business to reach goals, to hit target numbers, and possibly please our investors. Yet, many, if not all, Startups stall, growth slows down and revenue is almost non-existent. It’s normal and you gotta learn how to navigate out of these phases to achieve sustainable growth.Sign up for the Startups Newsletterhttps://www.startups.com/newsletterResources: Startup Therapy Podcast  https://www.startups.com/begin Join our Network of Top Founders  Check in with us on LinkedIn | Wil Schroter | Ryan Rutan What to Listen For 00:00 Intro 00:34 How should we handle a stall? 06:02 We naturally stall for a bit 11:59 Investors just love new stats 18:00 Live by the hype, die by the hype 27:58 Companies that were founded as second acts 31:21 How do investors think about the ebbs and flows? 33:50 Once investors see real growth, their opinions chang