Imagine this…

You wake up, check TechCrunch, and see the headline:

“[Your Competitor] Raises $100M to Build [Your Product]”

Your stomach drops.
Your team wonders if you should pivot.

Game over, right?

Not even close.

Because another startup was in this exact position—except they didn’t panic.

Instead, they did something counterintuitive…they went smaller.

Here’s what happened:

🔹 The competitor built 100 features trying to serve everyone.
🔹 The startup built 10, but they were exactly what its niche needed.
🔹 The competitor burned through cash, stretching itself too thin.
🔹 The startup hit profitability, serving just one vertical.

Fast forward....
The competitor burned $180M and shut down. 💀
The startup? $50M ARR and growing like crazy. 📈 

If you’re an early-stage founder, you don’t win by doing more.

You win by doing less—but for the right customers.

Here’s how to stay focused and win:

1️⃣ Obsess over your niche

Who needs your product so badly, that they can’t afford to wait?

If you’re struggling to get traction, it’s not because your idea isn’t good—it’s because you haven’t found the right audience.

Your first customers should feel like they desperately need what you’re offering, even if it’s imperfect.

2️⃣ Build only what matters

If your MVP doesn’t feel too small, it’s too big.

The goal isn’t to impress people with a “fully built” product—it’s to get your first 10 customers to use it and love it.

Skip the bells and whistles and focus on solving one painful problem exceptionally well.

3️⃣ Relentlessly focus on how to deliver VALUE as quickly as possible

The faster you can get real users to experience the core value of your product, the better.

Speed isn’t just about launching—it’s about learning and adapting faster than your competitors.

Instead of building more features, ask:

• What’s the fastest way I can solve my customer’s #1 pain point?
• How can I prove my product’s value in days, not months?
• What’s slowing down adoption—and how can I remove that friction immediately?

4️⃣ Own your advantage

Big competitors have money, but they also have bloat. They’re slow.

They build for everyone and end up delighting no one.

You have the advantage of speed, focus, and agility. Use it.

While they waste time debating feature roadmaps, you’re talking directly to customers and iterating in real-time.

5️⃣ Ignore the noise

Founders love to chase shiny objects—new markets, new features, new customer segments.

But every time you expand your focus, you dilute your strength.

If your roadmap has “nice-to-have” features, kill them.

If you’re considering a new customer segment just because it might work, stop.

Be ruthless about your priorities.

6️⃣ Measure what actually matters

Too many founders track vanity metrics: signups, website traffic, even total revenue.

But what really matters?

Retention. Engagement. Profitability.

✍️ Think about your current situation. What’s one thing your startup should stop doing right now? Take one step this week to become ruthlessly focused.