I’ve played a role in the development of a few startups now. We’re up to 31 through BGV and I’ve seen about 20 others at very close quarters. After a while you start to gain some pattern recognition — most situations that come up I’ve seen a variant of before. It’s never quite the same but I can usually think of an example or somebody that it would be useful for a founder to talk to so they can get an insight about what they’re thinking about or doing.
I thought some of that might be worth sharing so, in the spirit of New Years’ Resolutions, each week (on Thursdays) I’ll try to blog about something that’s tricky about starting a social venture. I’ll try to keep it specific and while I’ll base my thoughts on real experience, I’ll anonymise the startups and people concerned. I’ll try not to say “do this or do that” because every situation is different and you’ll need to think it through for yourself.
If there’s something you’d like me to cover but you don’t want to ask publicly, just drop me an email — I’m pretty easy to find. I promise to keep any information confidential.