YES or NO? Decide quickly and in time!

Zdena Macháčková

November 26th, 2024

Reflex Capital → Blog → YES or NO? Decide quickly and in time!

Reflex has opened its next fund R3. It weighs in heavily on the topic of AI, wellness being and other innovative concepts in health, happiness and perception of social issues in today’s world.

There’s one blog that didn’t get a chance to finish writing over the summer and even Halloween is over. Pour yourself a glass of red wine, sit by the fireplace, make yourself comfortable, maybe leave the kids in the hands of AI for a while, relax and read. It’s about nothing less than your mental health and the ability to make timely decisions.

Imagine your child being offered a fluffy Marshmallow. She  or he can eat it right away, or wait and get two (and change her/his life). That was the choice given to children in an iconic psychology experiment in the 1960s. This “patience test” became the basis for understanding self-control and its impact on success in life. Children who were able to resist temptation and wait for the double reward tended to show better outcomes in future life – from academic success to healthy relationships. The ability to delay immediate gratification may be the key to long-term happiness and success. It would be beautiful if it worked that simply. But unfortunately, the new study failed to replicate these results. The “Marshmallow Test” predicted neither success nor health, nor could it predict behavior in adulthood.

The problem today is that we are increasingly oriented towards the present. The world has become faster and simpler in virtually every area, from communication to shopping. People today often don’t have to plan if they want to achieve something. This reduces our ability to be “future-oriented”, which is crucial to resisting temptation.

We see this phenomenon in our founders as well. Startups may be growing at an incredible rate, but sometimes you need to stop for a moment, get clear on your views, identify your weaknesses and be the master of the situation. Many of the founders are piping the product to perfection and failing to set up a good or fast enough and profitable channel to monetize it. Then they wonder if there is no interest and/or sustainable interest or demand for their “product baby”. While the burn rate really burns.

In the hectic world of startups, making the right decisions at the right time is critical to success. Founders often face the dilemma of whether to perfect their product before launch or risk losing momentum to the competition.

The danger of falling in love:

Many founders fall into the trap of over-analyzing and perfecting their product, delaying its launch. This can be a costly mistake, as competitors can seize the opportunity to enter the market and gain a first-mover advantage. Remember that a product that is 80% complete and launched is often better than one that is 95% complete but still in development.

The power of “yes or no”:

Sometimes the best decision is to simply say “yes” or “no” and move forward. Overthinking and indecision can lead to missed opportunities and wasted resources. If you make a clear decision, even if it’s not perfect, you can begin to gather feedback, iterate your product, and gain traction in the marketplace.

Launch early and often:

One effective strategy for startup founders is to launch your product at the right time, say better early than later. This will allow you to get valuable feedback from customers, identify potential problems and make necessary adjustments. By releasing your product gradually, you can minimize the risk of a major launch failure and increase your chances of success.

Embracing uncertainty:

Founding a startup is inherently risky and there will always be uncertainty. Rather than trying to eliminate all risk, founders should embrace uncertainty and learn to make informed decisions and educated guesses, adjusting course as necessary.

Conclusion:

In the competitive world of startups, early decision-making is critical to success. By cutting short the product infatuation phase, saying “yes” or “no” and embracing uncertainty, founders can increase their chances of building a thriving business.

I’ll end with a quote from a favorite Josh Billings who said: “Half the problems of this life can be caused by saying yes too quickly and not saying no soon enough.”

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