9 Common Mistakes Early-Stage Founders Make and How to Avoid Them (with Examples)

You’ve probably heard 90% of startups fail. While the statistic can be daunting, that number doesn’t give you the full picture of why this happens.

We’re here to show you that startups fail for a wide number of reasons—many of which can be avoided, if you know how to spot and correct them.

It's important to recognize that several external factors, such as economic downturns, regulatory changes, geopolitical events, and shifts in consumer behavior, can also play a significant role in the challenges startups face.

These elements are often beyond the control of founders. However, our focus will be on the aspects that founders can influence and manage effectively.

In this post, we go through 9 critical mistakes commonly made by early-stage founders, complete with actionable steps to avoid them. And for good measure, we throw in examples of companies that were either able to succeed or fail at avoiding these costly mistakes.

By learning from others' successes and missteps, you too can get your startup on the path to the successful 10% that make it.

1. Falling in Love with the Idea, Not the Problem

Many founders become emotionally attached to their idea, and what happens is they end up neglecting some important must-dos in the early stages of startup life: validating how valuable your solution really is, and adjusting according to what your customers need.

Remember, you're not solving your own problems (though ideally you have a deep understanding of them, and maybe experienced them yourself); but you're essentially solving the problems of your target audience.

You won’t have a business if you only focus building on what you want, not what your target customers need.

How to avoid this mistake

• Talk to potential customers, gather feedback, and iterate based on their responses.
• Conduct thorough market research to understand your target audience's needs and pain points.
• Go out in the field and actually experience your customers journey and pains yourself.
• While doing all of the above keep in mind The Mom Test: How to Talk to Customers and Learn If Your Business is a Good Idea when Everyone is Lying to You

Example in action

Food delivery services like DoorDash and Grubhub thrived because they addressed a genuine problem: the need for convenient meal delivery.

DoorDash interviewed restaurant owners, placed orders to try the customer experience, setup a simple landing page, onboarded a first trial restaurant (a local Thai), and also made the first deliveries themselves.

Simply having a "cool" food app concept that people will just see online wouldn't suffice. Nobody cares or knows about your startup in the early stages unless you provide real value and make the relevant people aware of it.

2. Building the Wrong Team

Building a successful startup is a team sport. Surrounding yourself with talented individuals who complement your skills is one of the most important pillars to your growth.

Don’t hire for the sake of hiring and having a “big team.”

A bigger team doesn’t automatically mean more and better output, because it will also take away some of your time. You need to manage them, review their work and more.

Think about the tasks you want to be taken care of, the shortfalls your team may have and if it really needs an extra person in the team.

If that’s the case then hire slow—make sure they are the right fit—and then fire fast—if they happen not to be a fit or don’t perform.

The first employees are often a make or break for your company.

How to avoid this mistake

• Identify shortcomings in your current team—founders need to admit them!—as well as time consuming tasks that can be handled by new team members.
• Build a diverse team with complementary skills and expertise relevant for your business.
• Prioritize competence, cultural fit, and a shared vision when hiring.
• Make sure your first hires have a high intrinsic motivation and can work independently!
• Delegate tasks effectively, empowering your team members to contribute their best.

Example in action

Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, the co-founders of Apple, embodied the power of complementary skills. Their partnership fueled the company's innovative spirit.

Jobs summarized it in the following quote: “Great things in business are never done by one person, they’re done by a team of people.” So make sure to hire an awesome team to build an awesome company.

3. Rushing to Build-Build-Build Instead of Validating

We know it’s easy to succumb to the pressure of building a product and launching it to market. After all, you’re probably worried that someone’s going to beat you to it, or that people won’t pay attention to your solution if you can’t show it to them.

However, rushing into the product development process without doing proper validation can lead to wasted resources and, worse, an irrelevant product.

Quoting Steve jobs again: “You’ve got to start with the customer experience and work back toward the technology—not the other way around.”

You can validate all sorts of ways if you get resourceful. This points back to the first item on this list: fall in love with the problem, and even with some limitations, you’ll be able to create a scrappy solution that works.

How to avoid this mistake

• Follow the Lean Startup methodology: "Build-Measure-Learn"
• For validation: Build things that don’t scale!
• Validate first interest by creating a simple landing page that is good enough, but not perfect and see if anyone theoretically converts.
• Test your assumptions early and iterate based on feedback.
• Validate your solution through low-fidelity prototypes and minimum viable products (MVPs).
• Don't be afraid to adjust/pivot if your initial solution doesn't resonate with your target audience.

Example in action

Airbnb tested their concept by listing Brian Chesky's apartment on an existing platform, Craigslist, before building their own website.

This allowed them to keep costs low, test it very fast with an existing solution, and validate if anyone would ever book a strangers apartment online. Based on that feedback, they could now create their own website.

4. Lack of Focus and Clarity

Trying to be everything to everyone is a recipe for disaster, especially so for new businesses. Building a product for everyone is a product for no one.

Early-stage startups need to be laser-focused on a specific problem and target market. Getting back to point one and three, make sure to really understand who you are building for and what problem you are solving by building it.

Otherwise, you’ll be trying to appeal to every single segment out there, and you will end up sabotaging your chances of building a product that one initial small market might really love.

How to avoid this mistake

• Define your niche and ideal customer persona clearly (see points 1 & 3).
• Tailor your product, messaging, and marketing efforts to that specific audience.
• Avoid feature creep and stick to your core value proposition.

Example in action

Linear, a software development tool, identified its initial ideal customer as being “a 2-5-person startup using GitHub and Google Authenticator at a founder-driven product company,” so they could hyper-focus on the most essential features for this market before branching out.

Over the last 5 years they have raised a total of over $50M and are now catering teams much larger than their initial two to five.

The point is: start very focused, make those users love your product and then tackle another segment later, instead of trying to please everyone from the start.

5. Underestimating the Importance of Financial Discipline

Take it from us, running out of money before achieving a product-solution or product-market fit is a pretty common startup killer. Founders often underestimate the costs involved in running a business and don’t set the right goals to make sure they become profitable.

Without a solid grasp on cash flow management, budgeting, and financial forecasting, startups can quickly find themselves running out of funds, unable to sustain operations or pursue growth opportunities.

This lack of financial oversight can also deter potential investors, who prioritize transparency and prudent financial management in their investment decisions.

Especially in recent years after some of the giant hyper growth startups were not able to turn profitable, investors are taking a much closer look on the path to profitability.

How to avoid this mistake

• Start “scrappy” and try to be as resourceful as possible along the way.
• Create a realistic financial plan with clear projections and compare it regularly with the actuals.
• Get guidance from financial experts and mentors.
• Maintain a real-time understanding of your startup's cash flow and establish some financial control.

Example in action

Blue Apron is an American meal kit delivery service startup, which generated nearly $800 million in revenue in 2016 and went public (IPO’d) in 2017 for $10 a share, valuing the company at around $1.89 billion.

But in their first month and a half of trading, shares in the company were down nearly 50% and after some rough years, they eventually got acquired by Wonder Group for $103 million in 2023 .

Why are we using this example? There are many reasons why the IPO did not go as planned, but one major cause was because this massive company failed to manage its finances efficiently and turn profitable, leading to operational challenges and ultimately, the buyout by Wonder Group.

No matter how large your startup is, turning it into a profitable company will always be determining factor for success.

6. Obsessing Over, But Not Learning From, Your Competition

No market is an island. Understanding your competitors, their strengths and weaknesses, is crucial for developing a differentiated strategy.

But don’t take it too far. While ignoring your competition entirely isn’t the way to go, being overly fixated on their every move can be equally crippling. It can lead to reactive decision-making, stifled innovation, and a diluted version of your own unique offering.

Almost no startup will go out of business because of their competitors, it is always the startups own fault.

Observe your competitors, learn from their mistakes and successes and implement some of these learnings. But ultimately keep the focus on your company and on making your customers love your solution.

How to avoid this mistake

• Adopt a balanced approach: actively monitor their strategies and learn from their successes and failures
• Identify their weaknesses and exploit opportunities they've missed
• Focus your energy on differentiating yourself, leveraging your unique strengths and value proposition to attract your target audience

Example in action

Tesla didn't just compete with traditional car manufacturers; they disrupted the entire industry by focusing on electric vehicles and autonomous driving, creating a new market altogether.

They strategically disrupted the automotive industry by initially targeting the high-end market with their premium electric vehicles, before expanding into the mass market to compete directly with established brands.

This approach allowed Tesla to build a strong brand identity and technological edge, setting the stage for broader market penetration.

By focusing on innovation and sustainability, Tesla differentiated itself and reshaped consumer expectations, compelling traditional manufacturers to adapt to the evolving landscape.

7. Neglecting Marketing and Customer Acquisition

In today's crowded platforms, simply having a superior product is insufficient to succeed; a robust strategy for reaching and engaging your target audience is equally crucial. You need to convince your customer to choose you over the competition.

This is where many startups stumble, underestimating the power of strategic marketing and customer acquisition efforts.

It's essential to not only develop a product that stands out but also to craft compelling narratives that resonate with potential customers, highlighting what sets your offering apart.

This does not necessarily require huge budgets, but rather thorough planning, creativity and consistency in your execution.

If you’ve been following some of the other tips in this post, then you’d have talked and worked with enough users to know what exactly those differentiating factors might be.

How to avoid this mistake

• Create a comprehensive marketing strategy that aligns with your budget and target audience.
• Use various marketing channels, including social media, content marketing, and paid advertising.
• Prioritize customer acquisition strategies that are measurable and scalable.
• Get creative, try guerrilla marketing, and capture your audience attention with something new.

Example in action

Dollar Shave Club is a US startup that delivers razors and other personal grooming products direct to customers by mail. Their entry into the razor market exemplifies the impact of innovative marketing.

Their initial campaign wasn't just memorable for its humor and originality; it effectively communicated a value proposition that challenged the status quo of razor purchasing.

By coupling this with a direct-to-consumer subscription model, they captivated a vast audience and showcased the critical impact of innovative marketing on customer acquisition and setting apart a brand in a crowded industry.

8. Failing to Adapt and Be Flexible

The one thing that’s certain in startup life? Things change—constantly. What seems like a solid plan today might need adjustments tomorrow. The biggest mistake is clinging rigidly to your initial plan even when the market is telling you it’s time to shift.

Your initial plan is a hypothesis, not a prophecy. Remember: flexibility is not a sign of weakness but a mark of strategic intelligence.

How to avoid this mistake

• Be open to feedback and willing to iterate your product and strategy based on solid data, customer feedback, and market trends.
• Embrace a culture of experimentation, allow failure and encourage continuous learning.
• Be prepared to pivot your product, target audience, or even core business model if the data indicates a better path forward.

Example in action

One of the formerly leading phone manufacturers, BlackBerry, clung to their physical keyboard design despite the rising popularity of touchscreen smartphones. This allowed companies like Apple and Samsung to dominate the industry, leaving BlackBerry empty-handed.

9. Giving Up Too Soon

Startup life isn’t for the faint of heart. It's filled with challenges, setbacks, and moments of doubt. However, the most successful founders are those who persevere through hardship and learn from their failures.

How to avoid this mistake

• Build resilience and develop a "hustle" mentality.
• Surround yourself with a supportive circle of mentors, advisors, and fellow founders.
• Acknowledge and celebrate each milestone and small victory to sustain motivation.
• Embrace failures as learning opportunities, refine your strategy accordingly, and never give up on your vision.

Example in action

Facing early hurdles like bandwidth limitations and copyright issues, YouTube persevered with innovative solutions, strategic partnerships, and user-centricity, ultimately becoming the video-sharing giant it is today.

This narrative echoes the journey of virtually every successful startup, underscoring that while the path may be really tough, the ultimate reward is immeasurable.

In fact, be prepared for a startup journey looking something like this:

Your Turn: How Will You Avoid These Common Startup Pitfalls?

You’ve signed up for the life of startup building—and trust us when we say it’s a life of constant change, challenges, and compromise. But if you remain rooted in your vision, stay humble and roll with the punches, you’ll be able to course-correct if you make any of the above mistakes then stand a chance to turn your company into the next success story.