Big Launches Don't Matter; Ideas Are Vectors

Founders treat startups like projectiles that need launch velocity. Wrong model: success comes from how happy your users are, not how loud your launch was. The famous flops (Segway, Google Wave) had enormous launches. Partnerships disappoint the same way: 'way more work than expected, practically nothing gained.'

PG's closing reframe: a startup idea isn't one thing, it's a vector with two components: what you're going to build, and the unscalable things you'll do to get it going.

In the best case, both components shape the company, and the unscalable early work becomes a permanent advantage baked into your DNA.