It's Supposed to Be Hard. You're Changing the World.

If you were forwarded this newsletter, and you'd like to receive it in the future, subscribe here.

It's Supposed to Be Hard. You're Changing the World.

Nov 29, 2020 04:00 pm

“It’s the Finals. It’s hard. It’s supposed to be hard.” After Game 2 of the NBA Finals said them to Steph Curry as they walked through the tunnel to the locker room after a loss.

What’s true for basketball is also true for startups - at least in this case.

With all the news of unicorns and IPOs and acquisitions driven by the broader market, teams can fall into a trap to think building a startup into a success is easier for others.

But I can tell you more than 12 years into my career as a venture capitalist, it’s hard. It’s always hard. Even for the ones that make it look easy from the outside.

We’ve had the privilege to partner with some iconic companies. Let me pull back the curtain: all of them have had their tough days. Missing a quarter. Failing to close a key hire. Receiving a rejection, or 20 nos, from potential financing partners. Struggling to re-energize after a derailed acquisition process. Fearing the rise of a competitor. Cutting costs to reduce burn and buy time to get the product right. Rebuilding trust after arguments amongst founders. Managing the psyche of a team throughout the rollercoaster of everyday startup life.

Today, every company wrestles with one significant additional complexity: managing a remote team. How do you engage people over Zoom? Maintain the culture? Keep connected? Manage burnout? Those are the questions I hear in every board meeting. They’re real, meaningful, and challenging.

It’s a startup. The company’s goal is to change the world, quite literally, by building a product, evolving user behavior, and sometimes creating a category.

It’s hard. It’s meant to be hard. You’re changing the world.


Read in browser »
share on Twitter Like It's Supposed to Be Hard. You're Changing the World. on Facebook


 

Recent Articles:

How a Merger of Salesforce and Slack Would Change the SaaS Landscape
The Supercharger Boosting Startupland Fundraising and Exits
From Hyper Growth to Hyperscale: What I Learned Managing Small and Massive Teams
More Activity Means More Business. Don't Overthink It.
How Developer Marketing Parallels Consumer Marketing
Copyright © 2020 *|Tomasz Tunguz|*, All rights reserved.
You signed up to receive Ex Post Facto blog posts by submitting your email on tomtunguz.com

Our mailing address is:
Redpoint Ventures
3000 Sand Hill Rd
Menlo Park, CA 94025

Add us to your address book


Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.
 

Older messages

The Supercharger Boosting Startupland Fundraising and Exits

Friday, November 20, 2020

If you were forwarded this newsletter, and you'd like to receive it in the future, subscribe here. The Supercharger Boosting Startupland Fundraising and Exits Nov 19, 2020 04:00 pm Despite the

From Hyper Growth to Hyperscale: What I Learned Managing Small and Massive Teams

Wednesday, November 18, 2020

If you were forwarded this newsletter, and you'd like to receive it in the future, subscribe here. From Hyper Growth to Hyperscale: What I Learned Managing Small and Massive Teams Nov 16, 2020 04:

More Activity Means More Business. Don't Overthink It.

Monday, November 16, 2020

If you were forwarded this newsletter, and you'd like to receive it in the future, subscribe here. More Activity Means More Business. Don't Overthink It. Nov 15, 2020 04:00 pm “More activity

Voodoo, Obsidian & Zettlekasten - A Modern Way of Taking Notes

Friday, November 13, 2020

If you were forwarded this newsletter, and you'd like to receive it in the future, subscribe here. Voodoo, Obsidian & Zettlekasten - A Modern Way of Taking Notes Nov 12, 2020 04:00 pm For many

How Developer Marketing Parallels Consumer Marketing

Monday, November 9, 2020

If you were forwarded this newsletter, and you'd like to receive it in the future, subscribe here. How Developer Marketing Parallels Consumer Marketing Nov 08, 2020 04:00 pm On the surface, B2B and

You Might Also Like

Alpine Pod & a Playful Fight 🏔️

Tuesday, January 7, 2025

Not a regular tanning bed͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌

Our guide to sale multiples 👉

Tuesday, January 7, 2025

Feeling that M&A energy going into 2025... ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏

What to Watch in 2025

Tuesday, January 7, 2025

The companies, markets, tokens, and themes that will define the year ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏

Growth Newsletter #231

Tuesday, January 7, 2025

10 Ways to Hook People (with examples) ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏

A guide to AI prototyping for product managers

Tuesday, January 7, 2025

How to turn your idea into a working prototype in minutes ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏

💝 How to uncover opportunities hiding in plain sight...

Tuesday, January 7, 2025

The best opportunities are already around you—start uncovering them now. Hi Friend , The first week of 2025 has come and gone. How are your plans for the year shaping up? It's easy to look for

The new European tech unicorns from 2024

Tuesday, January 7, 2025

+ the sovereign wealth funds which invested most in European tech; UK tech predictions View in browser Sponsored by Salesforce Good morning there, 2024 was an up-and-down year for UK tech. The

📂 2024 recap + what's coming in 2025

Monday, January 6, 2025

​ ​ ​ ​ Happy New Year! I wanted to give you an update that recaps the last year, tells you what you can expect from me this year, and reminds you of some sweet resources I have for you. Also, I

heads up: this is on Thursday

Monday, January 6, 2025

a deep dive into the state of venture. plus, all your questions answered during a live Q&A. Hi there, This Thursday, CB Insights' senior lead analyst Benjamin Lawrence is breaking down the

Back to Text: How AI Might Reverse Web Design

Monday, January 6, 2025

Tomasz Tunguz Venture Capitalist If you were forwarded this newsletter, and you'd like to receive it in the future, subscribe here.​ ​Back to Text: How AI Might Reverse Web Design​ AI saved me from