Today we speak with Jareau Wadé - currently the founder of Batch Processing, previously the co-founder of Balanced (acquired by Stripe), head of growth at Tilt Pro (acquired by Airbnb), and Chief Growth Officer at Finix. We spoke with Jareau about the early days of Balanced - how they prioritized, gained trust with initial customers, and competed with companies like Stripe and PayPal. Jareau talks through a bunch of different heuristics and models he uses to evaluate risk (stack it early), tackl...
Feb 22, 2023•1 hr 5 min•Season 5Ep. 83
Today, we'll talk about one very specific method you can use to tackle your hardest, most uncomfortable work. Tacklebox Alternate Nostril Breathing Jr Jr - The Speed of Things
Feb 15, 2023•14 min•Season 5Ep. 82
Today, we'll dig in on three approaches that separate how pros and amateurs build businesses. We'll talk through how pros leverage existing infrastructure, how they use anti-marketing to build trust with strangers, and how they don't leave luck and serendipity to chance - they orchestrate it. We'll do this with help from stories about Frank Sinatra, a comedian in an Uber, and a founder starting a GMAT course for people looking to score 800 (and for those people only). And, Hey Jealousy by the Gi...
Feb 08, 2023•21 min•Season 5Ep. 81
Today, we'll help you get your first customers. We'll do it by learning how to use the trust to risk ratio - a way to identify the big risks that are holding your customer back and shoulder those risks early on to build trust. We talk through risk and trust with Find Your Lobster, Soona, and a finicky water pump. Tacklebox Soona
Feb 01, 2023•19 min•Season 5Ep. 80
Today, we'll talk about pros and amateurs. Pros build businesses that have a shot - amateurs never leave the starting gate. Unfortunately, most amateurs don't know they're approaching their idea the wrong way. We talk through two things entrepreneurs can do to give themselves the best chance to build something that matters. Tacklebox Fiverr Zapier...
Jan 25, 2023•21 min•Season 5Ep. 79
Today, we'll tell the story of an idea a friend of Brian's pursued over the past month. It came about through flashy new tech, but the process shows what's actually valuable. This is a reps episode. A way to vicariously watch someone else test an early idea so that it's easier for you to do the same. Tacklebox (Code HOLIDAY until Sunday 1.22 at midnight for 50% off month one)
Jan 18, 2023•23 min•Season 5Ep. 78
Today, we'll talk through a way to ensure people will share what you're building (ideally before you decide to build it). We'll break down a few baby products that've been shared with Brian dozens of times the past few weeks to understand the incentives and drivers that made those products so shareable. Finally, we'll look at three questions that'll ensure you're on the right track. Tacklebox Byldd Shusher PeePee Teepee Ollie Swaddle...
Jan 11, 2023•21 min•Season 5Ep. 77
Today, we'll talk through a regret minimization framework that'll help you reset for the new year. Then, we'll use the show Alone to show how entrepreneurs need to stack risks early to give themselves the best chance at success. Tacklebox (50% off month one with code "HOLIDAY") Regret Minimization interview w/ Bezos The Pogues - Fairytale of New York Alone...
Jan 04, 2023•18 min•Season 5Ep. 76
Today, we'll revisit another one of the top-listened to episodes of the year. We'll reflect on the three core characteristics our fastest growing startups all share. We'll talk about how to identify these characteristics, test for them, and leave ideas that don't have them. We'll talk through the 4x rule and level jumping. And we'll be back next week with new episodes 🎁🎄 Tacklebox Kunal Shah: Core Human Motivations...
Dec 28, 2022•26 min•Season 5Ep. 75
Today's episode is one of the most shared of the year. We start a business using four questions, hit on problems and opportunities, and meet the cult favorite Penne Vodka Pete. Tacklebox - start your startup right
Dec 21, 2022•24 min•Season 5Ep. 74
Most people's startup approach is haphazard. It's a combination of instincts and reactions and luck or happenstance. People who succeed are far more purposeful. Today, we'll help you take your idea and yourself seriously. We'll build your entrepreneurship handbook - the thing that'll let you make tough decisions at scale. Tacklebox Code "HOLIDAY" for 50% off month one "I'm a Neuroscientist, and these are 5 things I do every day"...
Dec 14, 2022•21 min•Season 5Ep. 73
Today, we'll help you build a system to be different. The well-traveled paths don't get you anywhere interesting and common inputs won't give you uncommon output. But, acting different is difficult. There's external and internal pressure and biases, so we need a system. We talk through the Venn Diagram Method and the cataloging and reflection needed to make decisions that'll help you reach your potential. Tacklebox - turn your idea into a startup (code HOLIDAY for 50% off month 1) Tacklebox Rhyt...
Dec 07, 2022•22 min•Season 5Ep. 72
Today, we'll run a 7-minute test on a startup idea I had over Thanksgiving. It's tackling a massive topic - email - but breaking it down into a manageable first customer and use case. You probably had a startup idea over the break, too, and you should use this framework to test it. The secret to startups is that there is no secret - you're more likely to have a successful business if you try out lots of ideas. This pod will help you do that. Tacklebox (50% off month one with code HOLIDAY)...
Nov 30, 2022•23 min•Season 5Ep. 71
Today we'll dig in on productizing your customer's first step. This is the best path to building a product that generates revenue immediately so that you've got some runway and flexibility to build. We'll walk through a few examples, including a Family Operating System that came in at 3am last Thanksgiving from a listener. Tacklebox (Code "Holiday" for 50% off your first month)
Nov 23, 2022•21 min•Season 5Ep. 70
Today, we'll outline two frameworks that'll help you find a meaningful differentiator. We use a bunch of examples to go through Inversion and the Before and After pic method, including a baseball academy, Krispy Kreme, and Nutrisystem. The goal is a product your customers will happily, willingly overpay for. Tacklebox Start your Startup in an Hour a Day program list...
Nov 16, 2022•18 min•Season 5Ep. 69
Most entrepreneurs spend the majority of their time doing things that, even if they work, won't make a meaningful difference. Our default state is reactive, iterative work. To be a successful founder, you need to do things with the potential for asymmetric upside. Today, we talk about how to identify and incorporate tasks each day that - if they work - will fundamentally change your business. Today, we teach you how to think big. Tacklebox Tacklebox Podcast Emails The Tweet...
Nov 09, 2022•21 min•Season 5Ep. 68
If you can't get traction, you likely need a wedge. Today, we talk through how to find one. We leverage a few frameworks we use at Tacklebox - the Bleeding Neck Problem, Productizing the First Step, and the 100 Character Landing Page. The goal is to solve an immediate, painful problem that'll build trust and allow you to pitch your bigger, North Star vision. Wedges get you started. Life is 100x harder without a wedge. Tacklebox Sign up for the Notion framework...
Nov 02, 2022•20 min•Season 5Ep. 67
Today is the last in our three-part series on how to start a startup in an hour a day. Brian talks through an idea he's working on on the side - VR for chronic pain - and sets up and executes a two-week, hour a day sprint. We dig in on the three pillars of the system - The Big Question, Tactics, and Structure, how to use friction and leverage, and how to organize your startup life around being curious. If you're interested in a notion doc that'll help you organize the hour-a-day system, sign up ...
Oct 26, 2022•28 min•Season 5Ep. 66
In the second episode of the series, we'll talk through the type of founder you are - Storyteller, Builder, or Manager. We'll then help you build out a two-week sprint cadence to test and grow your idea dependent on which type of founder you are. We get a little help from Brian's grandma and an offsite event startup for businesses trying to get their remote employees to feel some camaraderie. Tacklebox Rhythm Signup...
Oct 19, 2022•23 min•Season 5Ep. 65
Today is the first of a three part series on setting up an operating rhythm for building a startup while you've got a full-time job. We lay out a system to help you make serious progress in an hour a day. We focus on reflection - specifically, your lifestyle debt - in an attempt to free up an hour of your time for the startup work. A startup won't be sustainable if it's layered on top of everything you're doing now. So today, we find you a free hour. Tacklebox - Startup Rhythm Signup The Rhythm ...
Oct 12, 2022•19 min•Season 5Ep. 64
Today we'll talk about the biggest gap in most entrepreneurs skillsets - writing compelling copy. We'll go through the Four Keys to Writing which idiot-proof writing compelling copy that'll convert customers from landing pages, ads, and cold emails. Implement this stuff and you'll give your startup a much better chance at success. Tacklebox How to Write Copy course signup (50% off)...
Oct 05, 2022•21 min•Season 5Ep. 63
Today we'll talk about community. What a good community looks like, the mistakes people make around communities, and how to test an idea for a community fast. We'll test out a community for lonely dads, dive into an example about a freelancer community, and check in on a couple of Monks walking through Central Park at night. Tacklebox Freelance Founders David Spinks on Community...
Sep 28, 2022•22 min•Season 5Ep. 62
Today's episode discusses the Concierge MVP, an indispensable tactic early stage entrepreneurs can use to get the feedback of a full product without the money and time required to build one. We go through the 4-step method that'll get you data from customers you can use to raise funding, hire, or recognize the opportunity actually isn't worth your time. Tacklebox More Concierge MVP Examples...
Sep 21, 2022•25 min•Season 5Ep. 61
Today we'll help you find and choose the right startup idea. We'll use a couple of frameworks to help you evaluate startup ideas you've got and find startup ideas other people miss. We talk through the Hard Startup Myth and The Hassle Premium, two mental models that'll make sure your next idea has legs. We'll also evaluate Tinder for Jobs and learn a lesson from the great Frank Prisinzano. Byldd Tacklebox Frank's Crispy Egg video + instagram Personal MBA...
Sep 14, 2022•20 min•Season 5Ep. 60
Awesome chat with Angela Lee (37 Angels, Columbia Business School) about angel investing. We talk through what angels are looking for, who should try to raise from them, what'll happen if they do, and what the other options are. Then, we spend the last 15 minutes starting a $100mm Taco company. Angela walks through the process goals and financial milestones she'd want to hit in a fascinating startup exercise. Angela Lee 37 Angels Should you Bootstrap or Raise VC? Tacklebox...
Sep 07, 2022•40 min•Season 5Ep. 59
If you understand how the world works, you can let it do some serious heavy lifting for your business. If you ignore how it works, your business is as good as dead. Today we talk through three universal truths - forces that you can put behind your business to dramatically accelerate it. We'll use three examples - the best marketing campaign Brian's ever seen, the most magical product, and the mind-blowing growth of pickleball. Maria Maria 🎶 Tacklebox 🎣...
Aug 31, 2022•19 min•Season 5Ep. 58
We spend a bunch of time on business fundamentals. These are important, obviously, but they're only relevant if you can build enough trust with customers to convince them to give you a chance in the first place. Today we'll talk about why people hand their keys over to random strangers on the street in New York City, how a person selling cures for baldness converts 80% of the people he speaks with, and how you can build a strategy to cultivate trust with your customers, too. Tacklebox...
Aug 24, 2022•18 min•Season 5Ep. 57
Today, we'll start a business in 20(ish) minutes. We'll talk through the idea, figure out assumptions, run a test, and make a decision. We leverage a three step process to figure out if the idea is worth our time: Whisper Ideas vs. Rooftop Ideas, Rivers and Dams, and a Hypothesis Test. Tacklebox
Aug 17, 2022•28 min•Season 5Ep. 56
I meet far too many unhappy entrepreneurs. The whole point of this thing is to build a business that makes you happy. It needs to work, but it also can't make you miserable. Lots of entrepreneurs set themselves on a bad path from day one by ignoring critical early decisions. We talk through them today. And if you're not happy building what you're building, it's not too late. Tacklebox
Aug 10, 2022•16 min•Season 5Ep. 55
Today we'll help you sink your teeth into value. We'll help you understand what people will actually pay for, talk through a framework to ensure you're creating enough value to anchor a business, and look at examples of a few startups doing this well and poorly. There's also a magician. Make $1,000 Today Tacklebox...
Aug 03, 2022•21 min•Season 5Ep. 54
