Great advice on writing and the durability formula for startups

Great advice on writing and the durability formula for startups

Writing is a craft that takes time and practice to master. Tim Urban, the founder of Wait But Why, shares his experience of writing 300 blog posts between the ages of 23 and 29 before finding his voice, tone, and style. It's important to experiment with different approaches, rewrite parts, and start over if necessary. The key is to keep fiddling until it clicks.

One valuable piece of advice from Urban is to read a lot. Reading is like fertilizer for your writing skills. By exposing yourself to different styles and perspectives, you can learn from other writers and find inspiration for your own work. Urban suggests starting somewhere in the middle between imitating another writer's style and being completely unique. As you mature as a writer, you can gradually develop your own style and voice.

When seeking feedback on your writing, it's crucial to choose the right person to provide it. The ideal feedback giver should believe in you, root for you, and understand that what they're reading is not your maximum potential but rather your experimentation and growth. Constructive feedback from someone who meets these criteria can help you improve and find your voice.

While writing quality is important, Urban emphasizes that the ideas behind the writing hold more significance. Having great ideas with pretty good writing is preferable to the other way around. Focus on developing unique and valuable insights that resonate with your audience.

Moving on to the durability formula for startups, it's essential to design for durability from day one. The formula consists of five factors: network effects, economies of scale, brand, embedding, and intellectual property (IP). These factors contribute to the long-term value and success of a startup.

Network effects occur when the value of a product or service increases for every user as the network grows. To harness the power of network effects, it is recommended to create a multi-player game or marketplace rather than a single-player game. By bringing together supply-side and demand-side users who produce complementary value for each other, you can create a strong network effect.

Brand identity plays a crucial role in capturing the value in the long term. As humans, we are tribal and emotional, and we tend to identify ourselves with brands. Developing a well-established brand identity can create psychological switching costs for users, making it less likely for them to leave your product or service for a lesser-known brand.

Embedding is another factor that contributes to durability. By integrating your product or software into a customer's operations, you make it harder for them to replace you with a competitor. Consider whether your product allows for simultaneous use with other competing products and if it can be considered a "database of record." These aspects can enhance embedding and increase the durability of your startup.

To position your startup for long-term durability, it's crucial to focus on these factors from the beginning. Founders who achieve significant success spend more time at the start, creating products and business mechanisms that align with the durability factors and drive increasing returns at scale.

In conclusion, writing and building a startup both require time, effort, and careful consideration. By following Tim Urban's advice on writing and understanding the durability formula for startups, you can increase your chances of success. Remember to keep experimenting, seek feedback from the right people, focus on the ideas behind your writing, and position your startup for long-term durability.