Starting Up

The resources founders actually use.

Every essay, video, podcast, book and tool behind 1,046 answered founder questions, in one place, each with a note on why it is here.

What founders use most, ranked by how many answers lean on it.

  1. This is the number you need to sanity-check the offer in front of you, from a real Indian seed VC rather than US Carta data. It... Kae Capital Article · 12 min read How to Raise Your Seed Round in India Kae Capital
  2. This is the canonical founder-side explainer of what a board actually is and when you owe someone a seat. It spells out the... Y Combinator Startup Library Article · 15 min read How to Create and Manage a Board Y Combinator (Kirsty Nathoo and Aaron Epstein)
  3. Iskold does the board control math out loud with a worked example: two 40% founders sell 20% to an investor, and the investor... Startup Hacks (2048 Ventures) Article · 12 min read Understanding Startup Board Control Alex Iskold
  4. In Indian deals the real control lever often sits next to the board seat: affirmative rights (reserved matters) in the term... Ediplis Counsels Article · 8 min read Affirmative Rights in a Term Sheet Namratha Krishnan
  5. This is the canonical piece that named the option pool shuffle, and it shows the exact trick with numbers: an $8M pre-money... Venture Hacks Essay · 20 min read The Option Pool Shuffle Nivi and Naval Ravikant
  6. This is the one piece that does both jobs you need. It runs the exact worked backward-repricing case (three angels on no-cap... Value Add VC Article · 10 min read Most Favored Nation (MFN) Clauses in SAFEs: Why They Matter More Than Founders Think Value Add VC
  7. Kruze does startup finance and cap tables for a living, so this is the operator's take rather than a lawyer's summary. It shows... Kruze Consulting Article · 8 min read Most Favored Nation (MFN) SAFEs: What Startup Founders Need to Know Kruze Consulting
  8. EquityList runs cap tables and ESOP admin for Indian startups, so this places MFN inside the instrument choices an Indian... EquityList Article · 12 min read SAFEs vs. Convertible Notes EquityList
  9. This is the term sheet guide written for the Indian cap table, using rupee exits (a ₹40 Cr sale on a ₹100 Cr paper valuation)... Malpani Ventures Article · 15 min read How to Read a Startup Term Sheet Like a Founder Malpani Ventures
  10. This is the founder-side reference that draws the exact line you need: it says outright that not every seed investor takes a... The Holloway Guide to Raising Venture Capital Article · 15 min read Board Seat Holloway (with Alex MacCaw and startup counsel)
  11. A lawyer-written plain-English breakdown of the three rights an investor bundles into one ask, so you can unbundle them at the... Built In Article · 10 min read Founder Cheatsheet: Information, Inspection and Observer Rights in a Venture Financing Becky Mancero
  12. The India-specific piece that names the exact trap in your answer: affirmative rights and reserved matters that let a small... iPleaders (LawSikho) Article · 25 min read Term Sheet Drafting for Indian Startups: Clauses, Compliance and 2025 to 2026 Updates iPleaders editorial team
  13. This is the tool-comparison you actually need before wiring up a broadcast to 40 angels: it draws the clean line between... Visible.vc Article · 12 min read DocSend vs. Visible: A Comparison for Startup Founders Visible.vc editorial team
  14. This is the founder account that proves the single-broadcast approach: serial founder Joe Beninato ran a large angel base off... Silicon Valley Bank Article · 9 min read Managing Relations with Your Angel Investors Silicon Valley Bank (featuring Joe Beninato and James Currier)
  15. This is the actual template you paste under your ask, written by an investor who receives these forwards and decides whether to... Startup Hacks (2048.vc) Article · 6 min read How to write a forwardable introduction email Alex Iskold
  16. This is the post that explains why your investor sometimes goes quiet on an intro ask: their reputation rides on every forward,... AVC (Union Square Ventures) Essay · 4 min read The Double Opt-In Introduction Fred Wilson
  17. This is the piece that reframes your panic. NFX's core line, that radio silence gives investors room to assume the worst, cuts... NFX Article · 12 min read Investor Updates in Tough Times: A Guide for Founders NFX
  18. If your lead going quiet surprised you, this is the guide that stops it happening again. It sets the cadence expectation... Visible.vc Article · 15 min read Investor Updates: The Complete Guide for Founders Visible.vc
  19. A seed VC walks through the exact scenarios you are worried about (a star exec jumping ship, a blown quarter) and gives you the... Founder Collective (HackerNoon) Article · 8 min read How to Break Bad News to Investors Micah Rosenbloom
  20. This is the piece for the judgment call in the question: what actually crosses the line into disclosure. Lemkin's rule is... SaaStr Article · 6 min read How to Handle, and Share, Bad News Jason Lemkin
  21. When a co-founder actually leaves, this India-specific guide is why quiet disclosure is not optional: most Indian SHAs carry... Treelife Article · 15 min read Co-Founder Disputes in Indian Startups: Legal Options, Buyout Mechanics and SHA Treelife
  22. This is the one piece that draws the exact line your answer draws: it tells you to run two versions, a full update for people... Foundersuite Article · 15 min read How To Write High Impact Investor Updates When Raising Venture Capital Nathan Beckord
  23. This is the sharpest piece on the exact move your answer describes: raising from the people already on your cap table. Its core... Enjoy The Work Article · 12 min read How to Raise an Inside Round. And How To Know if You Should. Neil Devani
  24. Lemkin, who has funded and passed on many bridges, tells you bluntly which bucket you fall into: the 0x 'bridge to nowhere'... SaaStr Article · 9 min read The 3 Types of VC Bridge Rounds: 0x, 1x and 10x Jason Lemkin

Show the next 24

Playbooks

A goal, and the route through it a step at a time.

Find an idea worth pursuing Spot problems worth solving and find the one that actually fits you. 4 steps Validate before you build Get real evidence people want it before you write a line of code. 4 steps Understand your customers Talk to real users, define who you're for, and read the market clearly. 4 steps From idea to first customers The idea-stage spine: find a problem, prove it, talk to customers, and land the first ten. 4 steps Build an MVP without code Ship a first version with no-code tools before you hire anyone. 4 steps Build and launch your first product Turn a validated idea into something real people can use. 6 steps Find and work with developers Hire, brief, and work with builders without getting burned. 4 steps Name and brand your startup Name it, design an identity, and say what it does in a line. 3 steps Build a landing page that converts A page that loads fast, earns trust, and turns visitors into signups. 4 steps Get your first customers The scrappy, unscalable work of going from zero to your first paying users. 5 steps Sell it yourself, founder-led Reach out, run the conversation, and close before you have a sales team. 4 steps Grow with content and SEO Compound reach with content, search, and a founder audience. 3 steps Grow with paid ads Spend that returns: the channels, metrics, and loops behind it. 4 steps Price and package your product Charge for value, package it right, and check the numbers work. 3 steps Bootstrap instead of raising Fund growth from revenue, and keep control of your company. 4 steps Raise your first round Understand the game before you pitch: whether to raise, from whom, and on what terms. 5 steps Find a co-founder, split equity Find the right partner and split equity without regret. 3 steps Set up the company right Incorporate, split equity, protect your IP, and make your first hires. 4 steps Survive founder life Mindset, burnout, the leap, and the parts nobody warns you about. 5 steps Build in India The India-specific playbook: schemes, government, enterprise, and the local market. 5 steps

The questions founders start with

I want to start a startup but I don't have an idea. Where do I even begin? 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 ... Beginner 19 resources → What does 'validating an idea' actually mean? Validation is gathering real-world evidence that a specific group of people has a painful problem AND will change their behaviour (pay, sign up, sw... Beginner 20 resources → Do I actually need a co-founder, or can I go solo? You don't strictly need one, but the data says teams outlast solos: complementary skills, shared load, and someone to argue you out of bad calls al... Beginner 3 resources → What actually counts as an MVP, and what's the smallest one I can get away with? An MVP is the least you can build (or fake) to test your single riskiest assumption, not a shrunken version of your dream product. Ask 'what's the ... Beginner 20 resources → How do I talk to customers without them just telling me what I want to hear? 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 trie... Beginner 23 resources → How do I actually get my first 10 customers when nobody has heard of me? 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 ... Beginner 19 resources → How do I decide how much to charge for my product? Stop guessing and stop pricing off your costs, price off the value the customer gets and their willingness to pay. Talk to customers about pricing,... Beginner 3 resources → Should I raise venture capital or bootstrap my startup? Raise VC only if your business needs a big pile of cash to reach escape velocity before someone else does, and if a 10x-in-a-few-years outcome is g... Beginner 3 resources →

Questions for your situation

The Aspiring Founder The Idea-Stage Founder The Builder The Launcher The Grower The Student Founder The Indie Hacker The Technical Solo Founder The Non-Technical Founder The Domain Expert The Women Founder The Anywhere Founder The Corporate Switcher The Repeat Founder
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