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At a glance
WHAT IT’S REALLY ABOUT
Setbacks Are the Startup Game: Learn to Take Punches
- Seibel and Caldwell argue that setbacks are a constant, recurring part of being a founder, like a boxer taking punches, rather than one-off events that happen to unlucky people.
- They walk through common sources of setbacks including fundraising rejections, YC rejections, co-founder conflict, disappointing big deals, flopped launches and legal threats.
- They say movies and survivorship bias distort expectations, since founders see only public wins and imagine a moment when the credits roll, when in reality success takes years and setbacks continue.
- They stress that founders cannot control whether setbacks happen but fully control their reactions, and that this skill can be practiced and improved.
- They recommend doing an inventory or worst-case analysis after a setback, and note that a founder's calm reaction sets the example for co-founders and employees.
IDEAS WORTH REMEMBERING
5 ideasSetbacks are the sport itself, not an exception.
Seibel compares startups to boxing: you can't become good enough to never take a punch, and even founders of very successful companies keep facing setbacks, so recognizing the pattern is a skill in itself.
Rejection can still be turned into an advantage.
Seibel says the best founders who don't get into YC treat it as not a one-shot game, take the feedback, make progress and apply again, while the worst act as if the game is off.
Public information about fundraising is skewed.
Caldwell notes that nobody announces a failed Series A but everyone announces a success, which makes founders feel that everyone else is raising easily and that only they are struggling.
Strong co-founder relationships help absorb inevitable friction.
Seibel says co-founder disputes can shake you more than investor issues because it's your home, and that a real friendship gives a fighting chance, while Caldwell says every co-founder relationship will be tested.
There is no magical deal or movie ending.
Both describe founders thinking one deal or YC acceptance means the credits roll, but Seibel's Microsoft ad deal cost months and over $100,000, and Caldwell says you still have to run the startup after winning.
WORDS WORTH SAVING
5 quotesIt's like saying that you wanna be a boxer, but, like, after you get really good at boxing, you'll never have to take a punch again. It's like, no, the sport, peop- that's the sport.
— Michael Seibel
You can't control whether or not you're gonna have setbacks. You can't. You have to, like, let it wash over you, but you can completely control your reaction.
— Dalton Caldwell
If people see you taking punches well, they'll learn how to take punches well, and one day you're gonna have a large organization and you're not gonna be there to cover everyone, and they will have learned from you.
— Michael Seibel
Sometimes you get the deal, and the credits don't roll. You're like, "Oh, now what?"
— Dalton Caldwell
A startup is the exact opposite of that. It's, like, a whole bunch of nobody gives a shit for a really long time, and then some point 10 years from now, everyone really cares.
— Michael Seibel
High quality AI-generated summary created from speaker-labeled transcript.
