From idea to first customers
The idea-stage spine: find a problem, prove it, talk to customers, and land the first ten.
4 steps to get you moving, each with a resource worth your time and more waiting underneath
Think of this as a friendly starting line, not the last word. Each step gives you the gist, then a resource worth your time from founders who've been there. There's always more underneath, more questions and more resources, whenever you feel like digging in.
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1
Finding & shaping ideas
Find a problem worth years of your life.
I want to start a startup but I don't have an idea. Where do I even begin?The gist Stop hunting for a billion-dollar idea and start collecting problems. The best ideas come from noticing things that annoy you or people around you in a domain you actually know. Become the kind of person good ideas happen to: get deep in a fast-changing field, keep a running list of frustrations, and pick the problem you can't stop thinking about.
How to Get Startup Ideas paulgraham.com The definitive essay on where good ideas come from: notice problems you personally have, don't force it. Use it as the lens for judging whether your idea is a real problem or a solution in search of one. -
2
Validating your idea
Get evidence before you write code.
What does 'validating an idea' actually mean?The gist Validation is gathering real-world evidence that a specific group of people has a painful problem AND will change their behaviour (pay, sign up, switch) for your solution, BEFORE you build the whole thing. It's not asking friends if they like it. It's designing cheap tests that could prove you wrong, and running them.
The Mom Test momtestbook.com The single best thing ever written on customer conversations. It teaches you to ask about the customer's life and past behaviour, not your idea, so you can't be lied to. If a founder reads one thing before talking to a single customer, it's this. -
3
Talking to customers & user research
Learn the truth without leading the witness.
How do I talk to customers without them just telling me what I want to hear?The gist Stop pitching and start interrogating their past. Ask about what they actually did last time the problem hit, what it cost them, and what they tried, never 'would you use this?' or 'is this a good idea?', because everyone lies to be nice. Talk about their life, not your idea.
The Mom Test momtestbook.com The single best thing ever written on customer conversations. It teaches you to ask about the customer's life and past behaviour, not your idea, so you can't be lied to. If a founder reads one thing before talking to a single customer, it's this. -
4
Getting your first 10 customers
Do things that don't scale to get to ten.
How do I actually get my first 10 customers when nobody has heard of me?The gist You go get them by hand, one at a time, email people you already know, people your investors/friends know, and strangers in the exact niche you're building for. Do not build funnels or run ads for your first ten; recruit them personally, onboard them yourself, and treat each one like the only customer you have. The manual work is the point: it teaches you what an automated funnel never would.
The Mom Test momtestbook.com The single best thing ever written on customer conversations. It teaches you to ask about the customer's life and past behaviour, not your idea, so you can't be lied to. If a founder reads one thing before talking to a single customer, it's this.
