A brief summation of the advice from this First Round Review article with Dr. Emily Anhalt.

🏁 Before you start building:

• [ ] Pinpoint your fears about taking the founder leap (financial instability, judgment from others, creating a rift between a friend-turned-cofounder, etc.). Getting specific will make it easier to address the particular hangup.
• [ ] Clarify your why. A startup is too hard to sustain on a vague dream. Be clear on what’s driving you to take this path, so that when things get tough (and they will), you have a compelling reason to keep going.
• [ ] Build financial resilience with savings or alternative income streams. Financial runway creates the mental space to make clear decisions versus panicky Hail Marys.
• [ ] Get on the same page with your co-founder before you’re in the thick of it. Try pre-marital counseling for co-founders to align early on tough questions.
• [ ] Take the emotional fitness self-assessment. Think of it like a pre-founder physical for your mental health. Which of the 7 traits of emotional fitness (self-awareness, empathy, curiosity, mindfulness, playfulness, resilience and communication) are strengths that you can leverage? Which are your growth areas?
• [ ] Practice rejection therapy. Every day, ask for something you probably won’t get. Build up emotional calluses to hearing the word no, because as a founder, you’re going to hear it a lot.
• [ ] Focus on micro-wins. Too many founders wait until they feel completely ready — a moment that never comes. Confidence comes from action. Try building an MVP in a weekend or asking industry experts to give you feedback on your idea.

⛰️ When you’re in the thick of it:

• [ ] Join a founder group. Create a space where you can be vulnerable with people who truly understand the journey.
• [ ] Identify your burnout warning signals and share them with co-founders and trusted allies so they can keep you honest.
• [ ] Keep a hype doc. Collect positive feedback you’ve received over the years and return to it when you feel imposter syndrome and self-doubt creep in.
• [ ] Start a “team-esteem” channel in Slack. Create a central location where anyone on the team can add positive feedback from customers or kudos for each other.
• [ ] Celebrate your wins in a tangible way with your team. Don’t let milestones (even small ones) pass by unacknowledged.
• [ ] Invest in a simple meditation practice to teach yourself the art of returning to the present moment.
• [ ] Maintain your hobbies outside of work to remind yourself that you are more than just the company.
• [ ] Build your circles of trust. Different relationships will serve different needs (like a therapist for processing personal fears, mentors for strategic guidance and friends outside of tech for perspective). Each relationship serves a purpose and together they create a complete support system.