The most important part of a startup story

The Most Important Part of a Startup Story

One of the most important parts of a startup story is the answer to the question: Why now? As Ashley Mayer says, it is the connective tissue that helps you understand how the world has changed to make a problem solvable and your startup's solution possible. Are you clear on the "why now" for your startup? Check out the entire thought-provoking thread here. 

How the Powerful Clean Up Their Digital Past

Our digital footprints are changing so much about the world we live in, how we behave, and how others perceive us. I am fascinated by reports like this about how those who have power and money can hire reputation laundering firms to clean up their digital pasts. I'm curious to see how this type of behavior changes the social, economic, and political landscape in the future. 

How To Dodge Repetitive Work With Automation Tools

This is a great piece written by an engineer who has a life-long work obsession with avoiding repetitive drudgery. It's a good reminder that we can automate so much of our work. What would you focus on first if you made it your mission to automate everything you could about your regular work tasks?

Quick Guide to Inclusive Web Design

Inclusive web design makes sure to take the perspective of diverse user groups while designing a product. I appreciate that it goes beyond demographics and considers situational or temporary factors that may also play into a user's product experience. Here are eight principles to consider when using inclusive web design. 

Growing a UX Writing Practice

At many companies, there is usually a dedicated content creator or product manager who writes user-facing text in the product. But Lattice decided to create shared ownership of UX copy among all engineers, PMs, and designers. Here's how they manage the process by growing a UX writing culture and utilizing a style guide. 

Heuristics That Almost Always Work

I got a lot of enjoyment out of reading this article, which starts with humorous descriptions of a handful of heuristics. The main point is that reliable heuristics eventually make us lazy thinkers who are more confident of future outcomes than we should be. Do you agree?

You Become What You Write About

I'm amazed by the significant role Frequency Bias plays in our everyday lives. We've all experienced it—when something you've recently learned or been thinking about begins to appear more frequently in your environment. This applies to writing, too. The more you write about something, the more you start to notice those topics appear all around you. Build a conscious writing practice, and let the magic follow.

How To Build a Product-Led Growth Strategy

Over the past decade, go-to-market strategies have shifted from sales-led to product-led. For many companies, product is now the growth engine. Still, you need a layered strategy for acquisition, retention, and market expansion. This guide covers everything from creating a PLG strategy playbook to buildinig cross-functional alignment at a PLG company. Make sure to bookmark this one. 

The First-Time Founder's Guide To Managing People

Andreas Klinger has managed several small and midsized engineering teams. One of his big takeaways is that almost all first-time founders burn out their first employees as they learn to manage groups of people. To help founders avoid that fate, he wrote down a list of helpful principles you can follow early on as you build an initial team. This is worth reading more than once.