Startup Therapy

Latest Episodes:

The Lies We Tell Ourselves About Retirement as Founders Feb 28, 2022

Show notes

In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan talk about the real definition of retirement. Is it going on a vacation one after another in your 60s? Is it pursuing your love for woodwork and making a living out of it? Or perhaps starting another business using your retirement funds? Whatever it may be, what matters the most is you get to do what you love doing but this time with less stress, less pressure, and time isn’t measured.

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Resources:

Startup Therapy Podcast
https://www.startups.com/begin
Join our Network of Top Founders
Send an email to therapy@startups.com
Check in with us on LinkedIn | Wil Schroter | Ryan Rutan

What to Listen For

00:00 Intro
00:35 Things you plan to do upon retirement
09:00 When you don't have something, having it is extra special
17:34 The only reason it becomes special is because you can't do it
23:38 "Responsibility is defined differently in retirement." - Donna
26:14 "I don't think we want to fully retire." Andreas
30:09 "You're never going to retire." Justin
30:50 "Removing that 'need' makes a difference." - Richard
33:09 "Independence to eliminate energy, time, and attention in the majority of things you want to do." - Jack
35:44 "Retirement should allow for a bit more free schedule." - Lindsey
39:57 "There is no real retirement." - Lou
43:00 "Do a little more of what you're doing with less pressure." - Kathryn

The Problem with Local Advice Feb 21, 2022

Show notes

In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan talk about finding the right advisor. It’s natural for anyone to seek advice from people who we think know more than we do but it doesn’t necessarily mean that what they know is beneficial for founders. Well-meaning people will readily share their knowledge and expertise, and we can all learn from it. Sometimes, it isn’t enough to resolve the issues at hand. Don’t limit your Startup’s potential within your local circle.

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Resources:

Startup Therapy Podcast
https://www.startups.com/begin
Join our Network of Top Founders
Send an email to therapy@startups.com
Check in with us on LinkedIn | Wil Schroter | Ryan Rutan

What to Listen For

00:00 Intro
00:53 Who told you exactly?
09:13 Competitive investors vs. local investors
14:00 Basics in qualifying a local investor
19:02 The hometown hero founder
23:53 What do you expect from a piece of advice?
27:07 Super successful but totally irrelevant advisor
32:12 Go outside of your local circle

Why Do I Feel Like Time is Running Out? Feb 14, 2022

Show notes

In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan talk about the real value of urgency. Yes, getting things done right away is good. Managing your time well and completing your tasks ahead of time and knowing the strategies to keep up with competition will help stir the business in the right direction are definitely commendable practices. But, when all of your efforts are countering your real goals and are only causing you anxiety and stress, maybe you should reconsider which priorities are urgent and which ones are pretending to be.

Sign up for the Startups Newsletter

https://www.startups.com/newsletter

Resources:

Startup Therapy Podcast
https://www.startups.com/begin
Join our Network of Top Founders
Send an email to therapy@startups.com
Check in with us on LinkedIn | Wil Schroter | Ryan Rutan

What to Listen For

00:00 Intro
02:20 How real is urgency in the Startups world?
05:33 Why false narrative around time becomes a problem
13:48 We always feel our peak performance is unreachable
18:52 If it’s urgent, play out the worst case scenario
21:10 Decisions made with “we have to do this based on that”
25:48 If we don’t success now, there's no opportunity to succeed in the future
29:34 Build the business you want to do all day
31:20 Building wealth isn’t constrained to one time capsule

The Value of Many Tiny Financial Wins Feb 07, 2022

Show notes

In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan talk about aiming for multiple tiny financial successes. This mentality that all your daily sacrifices, struggles, and losses will eventually lead to getting rich, sometimes, is a wishful thinking. Why not work on achieving small but steady financial wins, instead of staying broke for years in the hopes of getting rich all at once?

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What to Listen For

00:00 Intro
00:13 Can you go super liquid every year?
05:29 Digging a hole versus Building ladder concept
11:23 How VC’s actually work
15:54 The “Get rich all at once.” mentality
23:39 Instead of stacking debt, stack on wealth
27:24 What is your base hit approach?

We ALL Fake It Until We Make It Jan 31, 2022

Show notes

In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan talk about faking success. What? Is that even possible? NO, you can’t fake real success. But, YES, in the early stages of your Startup you can run it in a way wherein your success mindset is bent on believing you can make it until you’re finally there - succeeding and thriving.

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What to Listen For

00:00 Intro
00:21 At the early stage, what about our Startup is real?
02:46 The fake office story
13:04 Don’t compare what you do with mature companies
17:19 Take pride and genuine interest in doing every job
21:53 This obsession with an organizational chart
28:15 Credibility has been changed into authenticity

Founder Consequences Jan 24, 2022

Show notes

In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan talk about consequences. When you started, your words didn’t weigh as much as they do now. Back then, your reach was just a few people. Now that you’ve become a founder, every single word, phrase, and statement you utter has consequences. When you speak, make sure you’re ready for the pros and cons, and eventually, how it will affect your Startup.

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What to Listen For

00:00 Intro
00:20 Every single word we say has consequences
08:12 Your personal thoughts are not for public consumption
16:06 Also, your personal life matters
22:45 And now, the consequences are amplified
26:39 The different rooms where you freely express your thoughts
32:10 Your frustration pisses off, frustrates, distracts everyone else
35:50 Find a room where you can talk about things you don’t want to talk about openly

My Unhealthy Relationship with Work Jan 17, 2022

Show notes

In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan talk about unhealthy relationships. Nope, this isn’t about love. This is about developing unhealthy relationships with family, friends, and anyone within your social circle because your toxic work life is making everything else toxic. And this is about why you can feel a little guilty for taking some time off but do it anyway.

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What to Listen For

00:00 Intro
00:26 This very unhealthy relationship with work
09:21 You create this pressure that you gotta do better every time
15:31 Is a little bit of guilt a worthy trade for a better life?
25:07 No one actually cares if you spend too much time in the office
34:14 What drives you to overwork?
41:54 We all are dealing with unhealthy relationships

The Goal is NOT to be a Startup Jan 10, 2022

Show notes

In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan talk about why a business shouldn’t stay a Startup. Sure, Startups get more opportunities to grow and funding offers to expand. But you can’t stay in this phase forever. Grow your business into a company that can run on its own, have a monthly recurring revenue that pays its monthly bills, and produce products that customers want to buy. That’s when you graduate from being a Startup to being a real company!

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What to Listen For

00:00 Intro
00:14 We can’t always be a “Startup”
05:40 The goal is to become a real money-making company
09:20 Why do we want to maintain the Startup facade?
16:57 You should graduate from being a freshman
22:12 It’s not the funding that we should be celebrating

Does Competition Really Matter? Dec 27, 2021

Show notes

How many times has your competition kept you up at night? A new feature here, seed funding there, maybe you’ve even lost a customer or two – but how much of a threat are they, really? In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan share examples of competitor flops, why you should be thankful if your niche has competitors, and why you need to stop being so distracted by what other businesses are doing & focus on making your current customers even happier to work with you,

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What to Listen For

00:00 - How much of a threat is competition, really?
05:31 - Fear causes us to assume the worst, but the worst almost never happens
16:12 - The Fountain & Zenefits examples & why competitor’s time and investment never guarantees competitor success
21:54 - Competition is actually a great sign to start a healthy business & improving upon what exists already is the easiest way to succeed
26:24 - Stop being distracted by competitors & focus on serving your customers

We Can't Fight at Work and at Home Dec 20, 2021

Show notes

In today’s Startup Therapy Podcast, Wil and Ryan talk about dealing with issues at work and at home. As said many times, don’t bring your work problems home the same way you can’t let your personal issues affect your work performance. You can’t deal with issues from both ends because it's unhealthy. Find an outlet where you can express your worries and make sure you get some level of support from your family. It’s the only way not to exhaust yourself.

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Resources:

What to Listen For