Function, not form
Startups are built on value, not vanity
"We went from zero to $10M ARR in six months!" The founder beamed. VCs nodded. No one asked about the three years of pivots before day zero.
The same story plays out every quarter. VCs chase new patterns to spot "alpha." Today it's programming olympiad winners. Tomorrow it's second-time founders from specific companies. Decks overflow with these signals. Technical founders downplay their insights to highlight a coding competition from years ago, matching whatever's in vogue.
Revenue matters. But, how you get there defines what you build. Those perfect growth curves often mask fragile foundations. The customers you rushed to acquire might pay today, but their usage tells a different story. When your metrics serve investors instead of users, you optimize for the wrong audience.
Look for the signals you can't manufacture: Your product becoming part of your customers' daily workflow. Teams expanding usage because it solves real pain, not because your sales deck promised ROI. Engineers building on your API without your sales team knowing.
True growth compounds from value, not validation. Build for that.
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