What mistake do you regret the most as a startup founder?

Question

I'm still a year into this and want to avoid any potential pitfalls.Any foresight from more seasoned founders would be highly appreciated.

JohnFen · Accepted Answer

Wanting to avoid potential pitfalls is worthy -- but also realize that you won't avoid them all no matter what you do, so learning how to recover from them is also important.For me, there's only one mistake (out of thousands) that I really regret: I had a company fail following a great success because I didn't start efforts to develop the next product early enough. This meant that when I did, the project became a "bet the company" sort of deal and I lost that bet.

fred_beep · Answer

Trying to do everything myself rather than delegating or spending the time on the wrong things... Time management is crucial

cryptography · Answer

One big regret I have is not prioritizing work-life balance sooner. I was so focused on growing the startup that I burned out and didn&rsquo;t spend enough time with family and friends. It&rsquo;s crucial to find that balance early on&mdash;it&rsquo;s good for both your health and the company&rsquo;s long-term success.

kmos17 · Answer

Selecting co founders or key employees only based on what I thought they could contribute in terms of skills or expertise while ignoring red flags about their character flaws.

What mistake do you regret the most as a startup founder?

I'm still a year into this and want to avoid any potential pitfalls.
Any foresight from more seasoned founders would be highly appreciated.

Trying to do everything myself rather than delegating or spending the time on the wrong things... Time management is crucial

One big regret I have is not prioritizing work-life balance sooner. I was so focused on growing the startup that I burned out and didn’t spend enough time with family and friends. It’s crucial to find that balance early on—it’s good for both your health and the company’s long-term success.

Selecting co founders or key employees only based on what I thought they could contribute in terms of skills or expertise while ignoring red flags about their character flaws.