We need to talk
Better than a thousand days of diligent study is one day with a great teacher.
– Japanese Proverb
During the last couple of months I’ve participated in about 30 mentoring sessions. I was part of Ajujaht program with Achoo and attended a couple of events in Garage48 hub; this resulted in fruitful discussions with the likes of Jon Bradford and Andy Lopata. At the other side of the table I mentored Startup Wise Guys teams and have been insistingly offering my 2 cents to kid brother’s startup project and HoseWear.
And a piece of knowledge sunk in during this period. Which is that if there is such as thing as “the most important thing for early stage startups” it is not capital, office space, rockstar team or pitching contests.
The most important thing for startups is feedback.
The best source of feedback is customers, but at the earliest stages a startup team is often not too sure about what they do, and who for. Second best feedback sources are people that know technology, business, the process of customer development and/or other people. Mentors and advisors, that is.
Feedback is important for the same that you glance at a mirror before heading out for an important meeting or date. Because you’re _in_ your clothes you don’t see that this striped shirt (or hoodie, for this demographic) doesn’t go with those jeans. They just don’t match. Similarly, if you’re a team living and breathing your startup idea, you don’t recognise all the things that could be improved with your proposition, business model, technology, team, etc.
So, what should (new) incubators focus on
It’s become a popular meme to criticise the growing number incubator and accelerator programs that are popping up around the world. In my view more is better because natural selection quickly weeds out the best accelerators, as well as the best teams within each accelerator. I would just encourage placing focus on access to mentors and advisors, not on grants, foosball tables in the office and such. If startup teams have access to a pool of top mentors and advisors, results will come.
Ajujaht, Garage48, Start Smart and others that have given startups in the region access to great people so far – kudos for doing what you’re doing.
Estonian Ministry of Economic Affairs amd Communications, that I hear is busy summoning an accelerator backed by the Estonian government, I hope you’re listening.