The Startup Playbook, 2nd Edition

Conclusion

Even after starting nine companies, I (Rajat) still find the process to be challenging and rewarding. The experience helps me to know what to do, but that doesn't change the fact that each business is very difficult to get to the scaling stage. My latest startup, JumpCloud, is yet another example of this.

I started the company several years ago, and Will is a board member, investor, and advisor to the company. Our friends at Foundry Group, OpenView Venture Partners, and General Atlantic have funded the business, so we have a wonderful team of people and strong backing to make the business work.

And yet, the process has still been difficult. I've had to go through several iterations of vetting our product and go-to-market plan. I've had challenges finding and recruiting the right team, building the product, and figuring out the best ways to reach customers. I've struggled with pricing (and the pricing model), positioning and messaging, and the sales model. Despite doing this before, I still need the tips, hints, and advice from this book for my company.

Lessons

There's no doubt that starting companies is hard. The odds are stacked against you, after all. To rebalance the scales and shift the odds in your favor, the most important thing you can do is surround yourself with people who have done it before—physically or virtually—and learn everything you can from them. That's what The Startup Playbook is all about. It's our way of giving you a step-by-step playbook, ...