🤦🏻 Fail Fast, Learn Faster: 5 #Startup Lessons We Wish We Knew Sooner
We took this photo a year ago, and it reminded me of how far we’ve come. When we started Spover, we had big dreams but much to learn. One "metric" we’ve come to pride ourselves on is how often our past selves look a little foolish to our current selves — it’s the best proof that we’re learning, growing, and moving fast.
Here are a few key moments that stand out:
🙈 𝗔𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗮 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝗹𝘃𝗲𝗱 𝗮 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗹𝘆 𝗽𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗳𝘂𝗹 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗺.
We were so eager to close deals early on that we’d pitch without fully understanding the customer’s pain points. We did not know how to listen. Now, we focus on solving real problems first.
🙈 𝗗𝗲𝗺𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗲𝘅𝗰𝗲𝗽𝘁 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱.
In one early meeting, we got caught up in showcasing all the cool tech we built but missed the one feature that solved the prospect’s problem. Lesson learned: always lead with value, not features.
🙈 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗺 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗼𝘀 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗿𝘆 𝘂𝘀.
We thought warm intros and referrals would be enough to grow the business. It wasn’t. Cold calls became our best source of honest feedback and product direction. We learned that growth takes grit, not just connections.
🙈 𝗛𝗼𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗶𝗿𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗼𝗼 𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴.
We kept a low-performing, bad-attitude engineer for too long, hoping things would change. They didn’t. The time lost taught us that cultural fit and accountability are as important as talent. And when you know, you know.
🙈 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘇𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗲𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗰𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗿 𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲.
In our eagerness to build, we often lost sight of what truly mattered to our users. We've learned to always start with the problem, not the solution.
These weren’t our proudest moments, but they were necessary. What’s a lesson your past self taught you?
Comment below! 💡
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#MetricsMonday #Spover #StartupLessons #GrowthMindset #startuplife #Sales #SalesLeadership #LeadGeneration #ColdCalling #OutboundSales #SalesMetrics #SalesProspecting #RevenueOperations #RevOps #SalesOperations #SDR #SDRLife #SalesDevelopment #entrepreneur Henry Peng Tianyu Shao
