Idea to Startup

Updated: 16 Jul 2025 • 246 episodes
idea-to-startup.simplecast.com

A podcast for people working on startup ideas. We have 15-minute tactical episodes and occasional interviews with people who did the early things exceptionally well. We've helped launch hundreds of startups worth hundreds of millions of dollars, and these are the building blocks. "This is, without a doubt, the best podcast for people trying to build startups out there." "If you aren't listening to this podcast and you're considering building a business (or you're already building one), what are you doing?" "Must listen for first-time entrepreneurs - excellent storyteller."

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One of the most-listened and shared episodes of 2024 - an episode that multiple people reached out months later to say "this single episode helped me launch my business." So, that's cool. It's on standing out in a crowded market, and it's on mice. Specifically, the guy who got rid of ours.  There are four lessons, a fr

24 min
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09 Jul 2025 • EN

Stop Beating Yourself Up

Today, we'll help you stop beating yourself up so that you have the space to take the creative, strategic risks your startup needs to be successful. We'll go through the Eight Eccentricities of Startups - stuff you beat yourself up over but shouldn't - and three practices to help you navigate them. We also talk about b

23 min
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Today, we've got a classic, much-listened to episode on getting your first 1,000 customers. We contrast the approaches of two pizza companies - Push for Pizza and Slice - and see how each company's early growth approach led to their bigger strategy. You also get a much less polished Brian on the mic. My grunge era. Enj

20 min
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Most founders don't know what their differentiator is. That's a problem. Today, we walk through two paths to help you find a differentiator strong enough to anchor a business. We also help you root out bad differentiators - the ones that'll just waste your time. There's also a story about a Rabbi's wisdom, a founder ma

23 min
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Vacuums are uncomfortable, but they're actually far less risky than the alternative. A No Whisper Ideas post on how to think about, approach, and create vacuums. Brought to you by Tacklebox.  

7 min
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Today, we're digging into the mailbag to answer some common questions. We hit on how to actually commit to a startup idea when you aren't confident it'll work (featuring the Discipline + Strategy Levers), the most frequent advice I give (feat. Monkeys and Pedestals and Sell the Position), and a question on the startup

28 min
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