Start Rough, Learn Fast

A few days ago I pulled out one of my generic pieces of advice because a Founder wasn’t moving at startup speed. The advice:

“If something is worth doing, it’s worth doing poorly first.”

I’ve found it’s very common that many first time Founders are paralyzed by the fear that they’ll get negative feedback about their product/idea and as a result they strive for a flawless launch. But the Startup journey doesn’t work that way.

Almost nothing worth achieving comes out perfect on the first try. Solving difficult problems requires iteration which means that feedback isn’t failure — it’s just the starting point. The sooner a Founder accepts that their initial launch might be rough (or even downright bad) the sooner they can take their critical first step.

I asked the Founder about other things in life that they had mastered. I asked about the journey from beginner to master and it was clear that their early attempts were shaky at best. I pointed out that this is how growth happens. Practice isn’t just repetition. It’s a cycle of failing, learning, and tweaking. Every stumble teaches you something, even if it’s just what not to do next time.

The trap is waiting for the “right moment” or the perfect plan. Spoiler: That moment doesn’t exist. Starting poorly beats not starting at all, every time. Waiting for perfection is the fastest way to guarantee failure because it keeps you and your team stuck in a fantasy land instead of iterating in the game.

My advice: Seek market feedback over perfection, get addicted to learning and stop being afraid of failure!