Article · 12 min read

Should You Prioritize Velocity of Shipping or Quality of Product?

David Flinner · Levels (Medium) Free Intermediate

This tackles the exact tension a founder feels every week: ship faster or polish more. The Levels team argues that for an early-stage company velocity wins, because the most valuable thing you can do is learn by shipping experiments quickly. Read it when quality worries are slowing your cadence and you need a clear framework for the trade-off.

  • For early-stage companies, shipping velocity beats product polish
  • Early releases are experiments whose value is the learning
  • Quality bars rise later, once you know what is worth building well
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The question it answers

  1. How often should an early-stage startup ship?

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