Book · ~330 pages

The Lean Startup

Eric Ries · theleanstartup.com Paid Beginner

The origin text for the modern MVP and validated-learning vocabulary every founder now uses. Read it for the mental model that a startup is a series of experiments, not a single bet.

  • Progress = validated learning, not features shipped.
  • Run the Build-Measure-Learn loop as fast as you can.
  • An MVP is a learning tool, not a cheap product.
Open on theleanstartup.com ↗

It answers 27 questions

  1. What does 'validating an idea' actually mean?
  2. What actually counts as an MVP, and what's the smallest one I can get away with?
  3. When is my product 'ready' to launch?
  4. What business model should I choose for my startup?
  5. How often should an early-stage startup ship?
  6. Isn't doing things that don't scale a waste of time, shouldn't I automate from day one?
  7. How do I make money from a free product or freemium model?
  8. Should I build an MVP at all, or can I validate without one?
  9. Should I validate an idea before I can code, or learn to build first?
  10. What's the difference between a customer saying they'll pay and actually pulling out a card, and how do I test the real one early?
  11. I'm non-technical and can't afford a developer. Can I ship a real MVP with no-code tools, or will that trap me later?
  12. I keep tweaking the landing page instead of launching. How do I tell polishing from procrastinating?

And 15 more across the hub.

Read with it

  1. The permission slip to recruit users by hand, do things manually, and deliver 'insanely great' experiences to your first few... paulgraham.com Essay · ~15 min read Do Things That Don't Scale Paul Graham
  2. The single best thing ever written on customer conversations. It teaches you to ask about the customer's life and past... momtestbook.com Book · ~130 pages The Mom Test Rob Fitzpatrick
  3. Turns the vague feeling of product-market fit into a number you can move. Ask users how they would feel if they could no longer... First Round Review Article · ~20 min read How Superhuman Built an Engine to Find Product/Market Fit Rahul Vohra
  4. Video · ~13 min How to Plan an MVP Michael Seibel (YC)
  5. The essay that put 'product-market fit' into the startup vocabulary. Read it for the gut-level description of what PMF feels... pmarchive.com Essay · ~15 min read The Only Thing That Matters Marc Andreessen
  6. Video · ~25 min How to Talk to Users Eric Migicovsky
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