From: myfirstmillionpod
When starting a company from scratch, the approach to developing company culture can vary significantly among founders. While some prioritize establishing a cultural foundation early on, others focus on core business functions first, allowing culture to evolve organically [00:00:01].
Contrasting Approaches to Culture
Aspirational and Formal Culture
One approach involves dedicating significant resources to culture building even before a product is launched or revenue is generated [00:01:11]. This can include:
- Recruiting high-level people [00:00:09].
- Conducting multiple off-sites for remote teams to build bonds [00:01:25].
- Developing detailed mission statements and values [00:01:33].
- Aiming to foster a culture that is transparent and collaborative [00:01:36].
- Even hiring professional photographers for company updates before launch [00:01:46].
However, some view this as prioritizing “all the parts of a startup except for the important parts,” especially when there’s no revenue or launched product [00:01:54]. Hiring a CEO coach for culture building when a company only has two people is considered a “horrible idea” and a “bad sign” [00:04:20].
Bootleg and Organic Culture
An alternative perspective advocates for a more “bootleg” and informal approach to company building, where culture is built “as you go” [00:02:42]. Priorities typically revolve around:
- Product-market fit: Discovering if people want the product or service [00:11:08].
- Customer acquisition: Establishing a repeatable way to get customers [00:11:20].
In this model, aspects like formal company culture, hiring, corporate structure, naming, branding, and packaging design “all come after” the core tasks of product and customer acquisition are addressed [00:11:50]. This approach often means actively avoiding premature focus on these non-core elements [00:12:12]. Examples include:
- Not having cups in the office, encouraging employees to use their hands or a hose for water [00:02:18].
- Informal team gatherings, like cooking for employees at home and asking them to bring chips [00:02:55].
The rationale is that focusing on “embarrassing hard stuff” like getting a product to market is crucial, as superficial activities can make it feel like progress is being made when the company is merely “moving sideways” [00:13:16].
Bullying Values: Enforcing Culture Through Action
Some founders adopt a style described as “bullying values” rather than just stating them [00:16:10]. This means actively discouraging behaviors that go against core values and rewarding those that align.
- Shipping quickly: An example from a past startup involved a co-founder who would call developers “localhost” if they spent more than a day building a project without shipping it for external access [00:15:44]. The culture was that if you don’t build and get things to customers, you’ll be “ridiculed” [00:16:19].
- Focus on users: When a startup team didn’t know their daily active user count, a large “zero” was written on the wall behind them, visible until they could report the actual number [00:19:18]. This compelled them to prioritize user metrics [00:19:55].
- Single responsibility: Peter Thiel, as CEO of PayPal, enforced a culture where each employee had “one big thing to care about.” If an employee tried to discuss topics outside their assigned responsibility, Thiel would reportedly leave the room, signifying that anything not the “one thing” was not important [00:20:05].
This direct and often confrontational method ensures that core values are not just theoretical but are deeply ingrained in daily operations and team behavior [00:20:48]. It reflects a philosophy that prioritizing action and core business metrics should precede formal cultural initiatives [00:02:09].
Key Takeaways for Company Building
- Prioritize ruthlessly: Focus on answering two critical questions first: “Do people want this?” and “Where will I get customers repeatedly?” [00:11:08].
- Actively avoid distractions: Don’t spend time on non-essential tasks like elaborate corporate structures or branding until the core product-market fit and customer acquisition are established [00:12:04].
- Embrace iteration and rapid execution: Ship quickly, even if it’s a “crappy version,” to get feedback and iterate [00:13:50].
- Seek out “winners”: Design environments or opportunities that naturally attract energetic, optimistic, and action-oriented people, even if it’s through non-traditional means like grant programs or community building [00:24:12]. This relates to leveraging skills and personal development for business success by surrounding yourself with doers [00:26:47].
- Content as emotion, not just information: When communicating, especially in a startup context, focus on triggering emotional responses to build connection and support [00:37:57].
While there are “many play styles” to succeed, a common thread for building successful businesses from scratch is a brutal focus on core value creation and rapid execution, with culture often emerging from these foundational activities [00:03:19].