The most important task for founders in the first months of a #Startup? Doing things that are time-consuming, don't scale, and make others shake their heads ('I would hire someone for that').
One of my favorite startup essays is by Paul Graham: 'Do things that don't scale'.
Graham, co-founder of Y Combinator, recommends in his text that founders, especially in the beginning, should dedicate themselves to tasks that initially seem minor and unglamorous. Tasks that mainly mean a lot of work for the founders.
But: 'It's not enough just to do something extraordinary initially. You have to make an extraordinary effort initially.'
I remember how we were laughed at with mymuesli: For example, because we spent many days at Christmas markets, trade fairs, marathons, or other events... or because we mixed countless mueslis ourselves.
But it's precisely these things that make the difference.
No: I'm not advocating here for a crazy work ethos in the sense of: 'If you don't work weekends, you can't be successful'.
Instead, many think that startups can be scaled with formulas under perfect laboratory conditions: 'If we spend three euros here, then we earn five. We just have to press start... Departure.' And founders would have to do nothing but find the right people and automate processes. They should not get their hands dirty: 'Well, my opportunity costs are really too high for that'...
However, the experiences and learnings of these many small things are incredibly valuable. Graham: 'The feedback you get from engaging directly with your earliest users will be the best you ever get'.
And only if you truly understand your processes, operations, and customers, can your startup grow healthily.
Therefore, don't be too proud for user acquisition, promo booths, or customer support. Instead: Do things that don't scale!