Insights
What we’ve learned building companies.
Lessons from the businesses we’ve built with founders, and the ones that taught us the most.
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Why going all-in too soon might kill your startup ideaThere’s one thing that will kill your startup dream, guaranteed. And yet, it’s surprisingly easy to avoid. Going “all-in” too soon will almost certainly kill your startup. If you want to stop that from happening, avoid these 9 scenarios: … Quitting your day job before you’re confident you have a repeatable way to win customers. Drawing salaries before you’ve validated at least one income stream.Read the post →
An unusually powerful approach to validating startup ideasOne of our portfolio companies is solving a very specific problem in the accounting space. To help them, we’ve teamed up with a business in Australia/UK that takes a BRILLIANT approach to startup validation. For starters, these guys say that cold calling doesn’t work… …especially with well-known companies. Such businesses are inundated with inbound messages from startups, all claiming to solve XYZ.Read the post →
Startup cofounder wantedLinkedIn, can you help me find someone amazing to start a company with? 🙌 I’m proud (not humbled?!) to report that we just began work with our 17th and 18th founders here at DQventures. That’s a portfolio of 18 brilliant professionals, who are starting (or already started) their own venture, WITHOUT first giving up their day job. Founder #17 is SR.Read the post →
The most important quality of potential startup founders?As a lifelong entrepreneur myself, and an investor in ~100 others, I’ve learned that, of all the factors that make a good entrepreneur, one thing stands above all others. It’s not about talent, intellect or ability. 👇 It’s about being comfortable living by your own rules.Read the post →
How surfing LinkedIn has been good for our business3 reasons why spending more time on LinkedIn is a good investment (for me at least), and some stats to prove it. (If any of my friends wonder why I post on LinkedIn and share pics like this one, here’s why…) I just counted, and 6 of the last 12 founders we started ventures with came from our social media activity. 50% – that’s pretty awesome. We’ve spawned 18 ventures so far.Read the post →
How our venture failed, and why it’s still a winFailures can be just as productive as successes. Here’s a business that didn’t work out, and why it’s still a win. As mentioned yesterday, I’ve just returned from a holiday in Scotland. While I was in Edinburgh, I had lunch with someone who’s become a very close friend… despite us never meeting. Anoop worked at Ford in Australia.Read the post →
How to build trust and customer loyaltyThere are, when you think about it, two contrasting approaches to business. There is the ‘tourist restaurant’ approach, where you try to make as much money as possible from people in a single visit. And then there is the ‘local pub’ approach, where you make less money from people on each visit, but where you will profit more over time by encouraging them to come back.Read the post →
How do I know if venture capital is right for my business?I spoke to an Asia-based VC from Sequoia Capital, who described their job as 99% saying no, and 1% begging founders to let them invest. ↓↓↓ Example: they spoke to a fantastic founder in a neighbouring country and instantly knew they wanted the deal. They got on a plane THAT EVENING, flew down with a term sheet, and got a signature. The irony is, most founders think they’re slow. This is the reality of venture.Read the post →
Who enjoys the most freedom, entrepreneurs or employees?Run your own business => never switch off. FALSE. Work for a salary => your free time is your own. FALSE. ↓↓↓ We’re all tempted by the idea of working for ourselves… calling the shots. But we convince ourselves the price is too high. Our income would never be fully secure. We’d never truly switch off. And yet, I’m just back from a holiday where… The only people taking calls were those who work for someone else.Read the post →
How to use the Dunning Kruger Effect to de-risk your startup journeyHave you heard of the Dunning-Kruger effect? If not and you’ve founded, are thinking about founding, or are an investor in a startup, you should know the symptoms. “The Dunning-Kruger effect occurs when a person’s lack of knowledge and skill in a certain area causes them to overestimate their own competence.Read the post →
Want to start your own business but don’t know how? Read thisDo you know anyone like this? 👇 I hate my job / boss / life. I’d love to start my own company, but it feels like such a big risk. Instead I’ll grit my teeth and keep doing the day job, knowing that one day I can retire and start living the life I want. The problem is, most people don’t want a career like that.Read the post →
Two surprising ways that funded startups are failing in 2024Among the startups in my investment portfolio are two kinds of zombie companies. I think it’s another bubble about to burst. Do you recognise them? The Cashed-Up Zombie These are companies that raised a big round, let’s say, in 2021. Since then, they’ve spent millions of dollars trying to find product-market fit. None of it worked. Meanwhile, the fundraising environment took a turn for the worse.Read the post →