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When to throw in the towel?
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Ricardo J. Méndez
October 12, 2019
Business
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28
When to throw in the towel?
A presentation on when it might be time to give up on your startup.
Ricardo J. Méndez
October 12, 2019
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Transcript
When to throw in the towel? Ricardo J. Méndez
[email protected]
@argesric October 12, 2019
• Technical Director @ Samsung NEXT • Venture investments on
software innovation, early stage • Recovering entrepreneur • Software engineer • Privacy and open source advocate Who am I?
Speaking, not a speech. What are we talking about?
When to throw in the towel? What are we talking
about?
Failure states and how to spot them. What are we
talking about?
Failure is defined by what you want to achieve. What
are we talking about?
Know what you want to achieve. Keep going
for as long as it is achievable. What are we talking about?
When to throw in the towel? Failure states
If it’s not running out of money, it’s not a
startup. Failure states
“A startup is an organization formed to search for a
repeatable and scalable business model.” Failure states — Steve Blank
• When the market invalidates your premises. • When you
missed your window. • When the timing is wrong. • When you are the wrong person for the job. • When you end up running the wrong kind of business. • When you have commitment issues. • When you are a zombie. When to stop searching?
Not on this list: investors passing. Failure states
When your premises are invalidated. Failure states
When you missed your window. Failure states
When the timing is wrong. Failure states
When you are the wrong person for the job. Failure
states
When you end up running the wrong kind of business.
Failure states
When you have commitment issues. Failure states
When you are a zombie. Failure states
When to throw in the towel? Anything I missed? Ricardo
J. Méndez
[email protected]
@argesric