A bonus short episode for a snowy Friday. A story that might light a bit of a fire under your ass for 2022. Great to listen to over lunch. And don't worry, we'll get back to our tactical episodes next Wednesday 💪🐐😈. Tacklebox Membership
Startups work best when they're anchored around a secret. A great secret has three characteristics, and Brian goes through those, as well as examples of a few secrets that can anchor a business, in this week's pod. Tacklebox Membership Pod Promo Our Brain Typically Overlooks This Brilliant Problem Solving Strategy...
The last episode of 2021 is Brian's favorite - sell the position. It's rare that a piece of advice truly changes your life. This advice did. Tacklebox Membership (40% off for life with code "BuildIn2022")
How to Not Waste Your Life. This was the most listened to episode of 2022, so we're running it back with a special intro. It's the lesson we all need to hear going into the New Year 💪. Tacklebox Membership (40% off w/ code "BuildIn2022") Spirited Away
We lay out a framework for finding and evaluating problems and dig into a problem worth solving: single-use plastic from takeout food orders. If you're working on this - reach out. Tacklebox Membership Number Munchers
We're all lugging around metaphorical backpacks. These backpacks are filled with tasks, shoulds, and IOUs. The problem isn't that they exist, it's how easily other people are able to lob things in and how hard it is for us to get them out. This episode talks about how to create a bouncer - to ensure that the only things taking up your consciousness are things you've chosen, things that will help you move towards your goals. Tacklebox Membership Text Expander...
If lots of people think your startup idea makes no sense, it's got a much higher likelihood of succeeding. Counterintuitive ideas will buy you time to build, test, and flesh out your product before competitors catch on. Today, we talk through how to come up with and grow counterintuitive ideas while looking at a bonkers business Brian can't get enough of. Tacklebox Membership (Cyber Monday Code "BuildThings" Core Walking List of Mental Models...
Today we talk through three things entrepreneurs can do over Thanksgiving break - and the next six weeks - to differentiate themselves in 2022. Stories about the fireplace delusion, rainfall in Bermuda, and how to tell sexual partners you've got chlamydia will help us out. The Fireplace Delusion Rain in Bermuda Tacklebox Method...
If you were building an MBA in entrepreneurship from scratch, how would you do it? We built out a framework to design your own program - and just about any other program you'd like - on today's pod. Tacklebox Method
Today we'll talk about a guy in the Adirondacks who sells wood for $10 when everyone else around him sells it for $5. He sells 10x more wood than all his competitors and it's all due to being able to answer one question really well. We'll dig into that question and how you can leverage it to build your business on this week's Idea to Startup. Tacklebox Method Elephant water skiing on the Hudson River The Effective Executive...
The apartment I live in was on the market for a year without a bid, then sold in a bidding war for well above ask in a week. What the heck happened? Today's episode breaks down why people took action (and a framework to create it). Tacklebox Method Sell The Position (🐐 episode)...
People keep telling us they're stuck. The next three pods are stories that'll get your juices flowing. It'll be impossible to be stuck after them. Today's is about Selling The Position - it's probably the most helpful single concept we've ever discussed on the pod. Seth Godin - The Wrong Bus Tacklebox Method...
Lots of people come into our orbit because they'd like to get their startup to a point where they can quit their full-time job and transition over. Here's what you need to do before you quit - and what'll happen to you and your idea once you do. If you're looking for a kick in the ass, this might be it. Tacklebox Method The Artists Way...
We leverage Yu-kai Chou's Octalysis Framework to think through motivating customers. We test it out using a startup idea that's come across Brian's desk recently: a network of Airstream trailers, dropped on people's property, that digital nomads can subscribe to. How would we motivate these people to take action? What can we test? The framework leads the way as we kickstart the business. Tacklebox Method Yu-Kai Chou (Twitter) Yu-Kai Chou (Blog) Actionable Gamification...
In part two of our Mailbag series, Brian answers listener questions on how to run lean, inexpensive, fast tests on an idea that seemingly has big up front costs (we launch tests for the pasta startup), how niche is too niche, and a framework to deal with stress as a founder. As always, thank you for the questions, and if you'd like to submit a question, email it to [email protected] Notes: Tacklebox Method The roles available at Oar include: VP, Engineering: https://jobs.jobvite.com/newco/jo...
Brian answers emails from listeners on a startup ethos, examples of great marketing - leveraging behavioral economics to remove friction and The Rent Is Too Damn High guy, nootropics (sort of), and the best inputs for the best outputs. We also start a travel company for couples. Tacklebox Method All the books I mentioned Podcasts How I Built This The Dave Chang Show No Stupid Questions Indie Hackers...
Lots of entrepreneurs spend their time trying to figure out if their startup idea is "good." They wonder if they can raise funding and build a team. But so much of our idea evaluation ignores the most fundamental building block of a startup - the magic moment that will spur organic growth. There is no funding or team or business without that initial magic, so maybe the best route is to reverse engineer a business from that moment? On today's episode, we talk through a startup where people gather...
Are you finding your startup's hidden lottery tickets? What are the opportunities hiding in plain sight that will drastically amplify your output? We talk through Bumble, vertical farms, poker, and derivatives trading, and set up prompts for you to identify hidden lottery tickets that'll catalyze your startup. The Tacklebox Method Found a ska version of I Want It That Way - looking for something better...
We are BACK. We talk through how to approach a startup idea in a space you aren't in expert in, how to build momentum and make decisions fast, and the problem mindset. We also talk through how everyone was wrong about Robert Frost's The Road Not Taken and what that means for Brian's vertical farm startup. The Tacklebox Method - link to discount for ITS listeners Founder Venn Diagram - free, in Foundations -> Founder Venn Diagram The Growth Mindset Tom Eisenmann interview - Why Startups Fail...
Jeff Sheldon is the founder of Ugmonk, a company I have an enormous amount of admiration for. It's a thoughtful, purposeful, highly effective business that creates and curates beautifully designed products. Jeff has run and grown the business slowly and sustainably (without funding), building an incredibly engaged customer base. This strong customer affinity allows him to launch products through crowdfunding campaigns without a massive marketing budget. We talk through how he built Ugmonk, how h...
The past 15 months kicked our butts. We all picked up some terrible habits, and we get a pass for it. But now it's time to dig ourselves out of the hole. This episode goes through three questions that'll help you refocus, tactics to find your North Star, and a framework to reset your inputs. There's never been a better time to build a startup, and if you haven't got an idea or are deciding between a few - this is the place to start. Spirited Away Tacklebox...
Inertia is the tendency to not change. Everyone is on a path driven by inertia, which leads just about everyone to always repeat the same things. Which is a problem if you're starting a startup, since you need people to do something different (buy your thing). In this episode we talk through inertia and how to build startups that leverage it vs. fight it, with cameos from Javier the Hot Air Balloon Guy, Erin Andrews, and Donald Trump. SPONSOR: Bluprint + their Indiegogo campaign - the only coffe...
Today we've got Tom Eisenmann on the pod. He's an entrepreneurship teacher at HBS and the author of the white-hot startup book "Why Startups Fail." We had a blast talking through all the mistakes startups make and the best ways to avoid them. We also talk through how to validate when you've got big up front costs, when domain experts are important (and when they're not), and how to start the gig-economy version of the private chef. Why Startups Fail Tacklebox Cohort 28 (Apply) Validate Your Star...
There’s one decision that early stage founders make that can drastically tip the tables in their favor. This is a tactical episode, helping you push through the critical question of what customer segment to target first. We delve into a framework to help you identify and evaluate customer segments as your startup evolves. Tacklebox Cohort 28 starts June 2 - apply by May 15 Tacklebox Self-Serve no cohort, grow at your own pace...
This week's ITS Classic covers whether your startup idea is any good. We talk through a failed startup Brian ran called Find Your Lobster, present a framework to ensure you choose the startup idea that best matches your skillset, and how to stay away from the dreaded Whisper Idea. Byldd is a venture studio that’s democratizing software entrepreneurship. Tacklebox Accelerator Cohort 28 starts June 2, applications are due May 15th....
I recently asked a good investor friend of mine what he thought the most underrated but important skill for entrepreneurs in 2021 was. He responded quickly - storytelling. The amount of compelling copy a startup needs to write in 2021 is astounding - from ads to emails to socials to pitch decks - and the base rate has gotten extremely high. A startup can only be as successful as it's messaging, and that all starts with a founder's ability to tell the story of their customer and their product. To...
We revisit an episode from the early days of the podcast on an operating system for founders. Not everything I say here has stuck, and not everything I do I recommend. But the bones of this podcast are rock solid. Being thoughtful about how you work and what you work on is the key for building a startup in the margins. And, everyone has more margins now. If you're one of the people who isn't going to have to commute again, this is your chance. Build an internal operating system so you maximize y...
Predicting a startup will fail is like betting every number on the roulette wheel except that green double zero and then puffing out your chest when one of your numbers hits. It's just not impressive to predict that something going up against overwhelming odds won't beat those odds. And yet.... Sometimes people build startups like horses asses. And in that case, they need to be called out. This podcast originally aired the day Quibi launched back in April of 2020 and gave the company 18 months t...
We're told the curious entrepreneurs are the most successful. But we're also told we need to be experts for our startups to work. How do you balance being curious and learning with being seen as an expert? Today, we explore curiosity through one of the best founders to ever go through Tacklebox, and through another founder just getting started building something in the Space...space. Tacklebox Accelerator (next program June 2) Tacklebox Self-Paced Accelerator (next program whenever you'd like) T...
You get startup advice constantly. Your ears probably perk up when it comes from an entrepreneur that's been successful. But what should you listen to? What's still relevant? How can you evaluate if the tactics an entrepreneur suggests are right for you? Today we talk through survivorship bias, how to take advice, how to check base rates, and how to decide on the right strategies for your startup. Plus, librarians, salespeople, and adultery. Tacklebox (Cohort starts March 31) Tacklebox Self-Serv...
