You’ve done the thinking. You have a thesis. The model might work. So the urge to build kicks in. But this is the moment founders lose objectivity — when sunk cost, identity, and optimism start distorting signals. Without clear failure criteria, MVPs expand, evidence gets reinterpreted, and money burns while confidence stays high. The real risk isn’t quitting too early. It’s continuing too long.
Early traction answers one question well: does anyone care? It answers a much harder one very poorly: does this work as a business? This piece examines why teams defer unit economics, how early momentum masks structural risk, and why waiting to confront viability is one of the most expensive mistakes a startup can make.
Early customer conversations can be useful — but they’re often mistaken for validation. When anecdotes replace evidence, teams move faster with more confidence, not less risk. This post explains why that’s dangerous, how it quietly distorts early product decisions, and what “validation” actually has to do at this stage.
Early-stage teams often mistake motion for clarity. When a product thesis isn’t defensible, every downstream decision becomes noisier, slower, and more expensive than it needs to be.
