15) Talk

Behind-the-scenes building Vambrace AI, a company on a mission to figure out its mission. Please pardon the stream-of-consciousness style. Subscribe to follow along or visit the site here:

(typos are to make sure you’re paying attention)

Introductory Remarks

Dear Vambracers —

In last week’s post, Money Talks, I explored the importance of following market interest, as demonstrated through willingness-to-pay, when crafting a solution to some problem. I think I’ve been too caught up in my theoretical VC mind over the past few months and haven’t sufficiently immersed myself in the world and the lived experience of the people around me. This, coupled with increasing AI agency and ability, compelled me to chase ghosts—which I had a lot of fun doing! Which is also what makes it so scary.

Talking

In today’s post, I want to explore the seemingly obvious concept of literally just talking to people (which half-continues on the general “talking” theme of last week). I’m naturally predisposed to a cerebral and theoretical and cognitive existence, and I think that’s a huge danger on the early-stage entrepreneurial path—because nothing is going to happen in my mind—I have to put things out into the world, and actually interact with people, and listen to their lived experience, and observe their frustrations. And then, you take this data and let that drive a product / solution for those people—and then discern value through their willingness to pay you for that product / solution.

Today, some reflections on why talking to people is so important and why it’s so difficult—especially in this day and age.

Musical Rooting: Talk — Bob Moses

What I’m feeling, as told through music:

Music generally does a better job of describing how I’m feeling than I can—and I think this song accurately captures the frustration associated with failing to literally just talk to people. There’s something so uncomfortable about putting yourself out there—which is something I must overcome. Okay, maybe I’ll take specific song lyrics and then use that to structure the following sections [spoiler alert: that’s what I did].

“But everything will only stay the same”

This is the hardest realization for me: literally no progress is made exclusively in my mind. Nothing. Nada. Zip. I can’t think myself into a new reality. I can’t think my way into product-market fit. And I certainly can’t think myself into a deeper understanding of customers. That’s really such a difficult paradigm shift, I think [see I always say “I think”—and that illustrates the problem!], because a lot of my worth in the past has been associated with my ability to think. But there’s a fine line between good-thinking, over-thinking, and intellectualizing. And I don’t do a good job of walking that line.

So I think of course I’m in my head too much—but we’re all in our heads too much. The real danger lies with mistaking thought for progress. Because that calculus starts to bleed into the construction of daily life, whereby the marginal value of each thought-minute is perceived to be greater than the marginal value of each interaction-minute. So then thought-minutes accumulate and can even maybe reduce the perceived value of each interaction-minute—and then you’re just trapped in your mind. And that’s a spiral that inexorably leads to stagnation and frustration and being markedly product-market unfit.

“We won’t talk about all the things we need to most”

This reminds me of a David Foster Wallace quote (paraphrasing): “the most obvious truths are the most difficult to talk about.” I think the same is true within a business context (because really everything is just a different lens to view fundamental dynamics of human behavior).

Really it’s probably very difficult for me to actually enthusiastically seek the feedback and perspective that I most need, because it might not align with the neat version of the world I’ve constructed in my mind. And so I’m seeking comfort and just trying to make myself feel good instead of actually trying to identify challenges people face and working with them to create a solution for those problems.

Because I want to be perceived as customer-obsessed, but am I really customer-obsessed?? Or am I just obsessed with being perceived as being customer-obsessed?? And that’s the deep, dark question that made my soul whimper as I typed it. Although ironically I guess at a certain point obsession with perceived behavior converges with legitimate obsession if the obsession with perceived behavior drives action (i.e., fake it til you make it).

“You’re so concerned with making it fit”

And then this relates to the previous point, because then it’s easy to go out into the world with a strong appetite for confirmation and validation. And so if you let yourself preconceived and/or desired model of the world be the outcome that you pursue in interacting with people—then you’ll fool yourself into thinking a market exists when really it doesn’t.

And then, perhaps more pernicious, whenever there’s so much time and energy put into creating some type of solution or even trying to build a product, then I think there’s interpretation-risk around wanting to understand what people say to you in a way that aligns with the capabilities of your product or service. Because the purpose perverts itself into proving that you’re doing something worthwhile and exceptional, when really it might not directly address the actual needs of the customer.

The last thing I’ll mention here is that there is a semi-odd and semi-paradoxical vibe associated with building something and like, almost wanting socially to fit in with your target market and competitive-set, when at the same time the nature of innovation kind of requires some independent and contrarian thought—and so you want to be welcomed but also sort of different. I don’t really know what I’m trying to say here but I think it’s an interesting aspect of entrepreneurship and like social and behavioral dynamics. Maybe?

“Who’s to say what’s wrong or right for me”

The most important thing is that the customer is always right—and so there is a fascinating tension around understanding their challenges and frustrations and hearing their difficulties and ideas for what they might want. But then synthesizing that information and adding your own editorial touch becomes a challenge—especially if you’re entering the industry as an outsider. Reid Hoffmann I think talks about this in a book of his around the importance of observing behavior and not necessarily relying on words to let customers drive product development decisions.

So I suppose what I’m really trying to hone in on here is the ambiguity and creative tension around the spoken desires and ideas and input of the people you aim to serve and your own beliefs around the most sophisticated solution for their problem. And I guess that’s also why the more significant the problem you’re addressing the easier it is to figure this stuff out as you go. So find a big problem really is the most important thing—and that’s definitely something I struggle with.

Looking Forward

The topic du month has involved rewiring some of my psycho-social-spiritual circuitry to create a me that is more conducive to identifying real problems that are worth solving. As AI has made building easier, it’s become more tempting and feasible to just dive straight into solutions that solve “semi-problems” but that’s taken me down the path of product-market apathy—and that’s the real startup killer.

So in general I’m trying put the horse back in front of the cart, and looking around more at the street signs, and gearing up to talk to as many people on the path—and then use their willingness to literally give me money as the only real sign that I should continue on said path. From there, it’s my responsibility to keep greasing up the wheels of the cart and properly watering the horse and putting on my farrier hat and getting things moving as smoothly as possible.

But before I load things up and get moving, I need to take in my surroundings and listen to what’s around me. A difficult thing to do for someone that: (1) likes to go fast and, (2) tends to mistake motion for progress. But, alas, these are the difficult realities that we must face on the road to enlightenment (and product-market fit).

Have a wonderful week! Go talk to some people!

Sincerely,

Luke