The Only Thing That Matters
by Marc Andreessen · read the original
Andreessen's argument that market beats team and product, and that a startup's life divides cleanly into before product/market fit and after. The only thing that matters is getting to PMF, and you should do whatever is required.
- 1
Team, Product, Market
Startups run on three inputs: team, product, market. They are separable, and a brilliant product says nothing about whether a market exists for it.
- 2
Market Matters Most
A great market pulls product out of the startup and forgives a mediocre team. A bad market defeats a great product and a great team.
- 3
Rachleff's Law
When team, product, and market collide, market wins every time. Your choice of market is the highest-stakes decision you make.
- 4
Product/Market Fit, Defined
PMF is a good market plus a product that satisfies it. Everything about running a startup depends on which side of that line you're on.
- 5
You Can Always Feel It
PMF is visceral and obvious in both directions. If you have to argue that you have it, you don't have it.
- 6
The Only Thing That Matters
Before PMF, there is exactly one goal. Everything, including your product, your team, and your dignity, is negotiable in service of reaching it.
- 7
Why Winners Misread Their Own Success
Success stories misattribute the win to team and culture. The real cause was PMF, so filter all borrowed advice by which phase it came from.