Last summer I got feedback from 30-40 of the brightest minds in tech. Here is how I did it. π€―
AndrΓ© J
33 replies
Asking for help is a superpower βI've never found anybody that didn't want to help me if I asked them for help. I have never found anyone who said no, or hung up the phone. I just ask. Most people never pick up the phone and call. And that is what separates the people who do things, versus the people who just dream about them. You have to act.β - Steve Jobs
Last summer in July of 2023. I reached out to 30-40 people from all around the world to help me get feedback on my investment pitch deck and product-positioning of my startup. I talked to VPs at Instagram. Design directors at Google. Microsoft. Palantir. Stripe. Coinbase. Evernote. Facebook. You name it. The result? Over 30 days my pitch deck went from early draft. to responses like: "Wow this is the best pitch-deck I have ever seen", from higher-up people who have seen it all.
- ποΈ One month of feedback. Start by mapping out candidates, Go for variety and put it in a spreadsheet, also map out their potential expertise which you can intersect with your questions. You want to be structured when you talk to a lot of people. GO for prominent companies. Google, Coinbase, Apple, Microsoft, Stripe, etc. But also go for up-and-coming famous startups.
- π€ But why? The reason you want to talk to higher-ups at these companies is that they are very good and pushing some agenda, pitching product direction, or new initiative. So they will be perfectly positioned to help you steer your initiative. The art of getting feedback is to not listen to everything, but cherry-pick the stuff that repeats, makes the most sense and stuff that's is just obvious no-brainers. And be open to getting feedback from unusual suspects, people a bit different from yourself. The people I predicted would have the biggest impact on me, turned out to be alright, but the top 3% people that influenced me the most came from people that surprised me. I guess we all have predefined biases that needs a reality check sometimes πΈ A good sample list is key here I think. Can't have the 20% without the 80% etc.
- βοΈ Then reach out DM (linkedin) with 3 things you want feedback on, adjust what these are based on who you talk to and what you need help with (your product). VP of product, VP of business, VP of marketing, CTO, VP of design, tailor your question to role, experience, but also add a "non-square-peg" to the rooster of questions, odd-ball questions can sometimes break open really interesting insights and pathways in your conversation, also it's a "mindvirus". Just be sure to frame the question as a bit out of the norm so that the advisor doesn't get annoyed or if he/she doesn't really have the insight can at least do best effort)
- π
Reaching out to people you are a bit afraid to reach out to. Maybe not Elon Musk or Bill Gates straight away. But somewhere in between your peers and one level below Musk is fine. Provided you have the leverage to do so. Anyone off the street won't intersect with the people you need to get feedback from. Leverage comes in many shapes and forms it also usually involves timing, so you want to reach out at the most relevant time in your journey, usually right after some big milestone has been achieved and your about to embark on the next one but you want some compass tuning. Like: You just launched a product that resonates with the times, or you just raised money, you're on a mission to change the world, and you actually might pull it off π. Or you have a great team or a very impressive pitch deck of an interesting non-generic idea. Or you're just an interesting weird non-conform outlier that people could find interesting. Guilty π
- ποΈ You are not an island. The most productive people in this world are often very self-sufficient. Which is an oxymoron because the knee-jerk reaction is always to do it your self, so reaching out is hard for the very same people that change the world. So you need to short-circuit your brain. Drop all common sense. Make the call. You will 10x your self if you can have both these mindsets in your head at the same time. Self-sufficient and a magnet for getting external help.
- Here are some examples of how to structure outreach DM's.
1. Describe what your product does in one sentence.
2. Make 3 questions (discussion points) related to your product that intersect with the advisor's area of expertise.
3. Include what your core challenge is for your product today. And how the advisor might be able to give you advice so you can unlock the next level.
4. Include the last big milestone you accomplished.
5. Include what your next big milestone is.
The more structured you are the better the success rate you will have booking amazing people to give you feedback.
Use Calendly so they can pick a time that fits for them. Go for 30-minute slots on Google Meet or Zoom. Be generous with time-range. As great people are everywhere from LA to Japan to Australia. Sometimes you will have to do calls 6AM or 2AM. Adjust your schedule not theirs.
Book 3 calls per day for 30 days. And you will end up with around 30-40 calls. Because usually VPs or important people have to change/cancel bookings. It's a part of the game. This will be fun, and the best part is, you can go about your daily schedule in between calls, and execute on all that great feedback and help your getting. Tailored nuggets like this are often very fresh, without execution it just blows away with the wind.
Now. Go forth and start booking amazing people to help you πͺ. Be structured. Use google sheets for all the mapping required and use GPT to tailor the outreach DM's to each candidate, reuse things about your product and questions you would want to know more about. If done right you should aim for a positive return rate of 30-40% for your outreach. It all depends on your leverage and how interesting it seems to help you. So make the outreach text interesting! The only trade should be interesting minds meeting for 30 minutes and together maybe denting the world just a little bit in the right direction. π
Replies
Garen Orchyan @orchyan
Thanks for sharing.
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Generative AI Landscape
Sounds familiar π
Supademo
Awesome summary!
ClothingAI
This is amazing. I love this blog post!
@benjamin_sloutsky Thx. It took an unbelievable short time to write. And GPT was not even involved π. I did get feedback on it tho. From the usual suspects. π @stash_new , @busmark_w_nika , and others +++
This is super helpful, thank you for sharing!
Great summary π€
You have a winning mindset Andre ! Thanks for sharing this amazing advice which only 1% of people will take action on. Most are afraid to come out of their comfort zone and ask for help. Especially from someone who seems so out of reach. My advice is to never be a fan boy or girl ! Talk to the higher ups as if youβre at the same level as them. Without being arrogant or cocky of course! Thereβs a big difference between being confident and naturally curious and being full of yourself and annoyingly pestering. πMost people donβt have that balance thatβs why they donβt succeed with this type of outreach. Youβre exceptionally capable of going to places where no one else would. I admire you a lot! Not in a βfan girlβ way though π
@simona_o_neill3 π We are all conditioned from the start by sociaty to stay in our place. But there is this thing called the internet that has no walls. # Bending spoons β¨ π₯β¨
The idea of incorporating a "non-square-peg" question is brilliant.
It really opens up the conversation and can lead to unexpected insights.
Thanks for the tip!
AI HomeDesign
Thanks for sharing this. Anyone can learn from this summary.
Wow, your journey to gather feedback from tech stalwarts is like building the Avengers of startup advice! The mix of structured outreach and fearless reaching out is like crafting the perfect code for success. Here's to unlocking the next level with insights from the brightest minds in the business! π
Upvoted and saved for the future, thank you Andrè
Thanks for sharing your personal experience and insights this is super helpful!
6 degrees? More like 3...thanks for sharing!
LinkedCRM AI
Wow, your courage and strategy are really impressive! π«‘ I'm still working hard to refine my product, and I'm not quite ready to show it off before it's fully developed. π Your sharing has given me a lot of inspiration.
this is amazing! thank you so much for sharing.
So much value in learning the art of asking. Nice write up AndrΓ© π«‘
@mikerowewaves Yeah. Seems like you figured it out too ;) Lets try to maintain this mindset at every step of the journey. π
Thanks for sharing! Do you also post on a blog or Medium?
@filippo_calabrese Thanks π Nah. I just post on product-hunt, I love this community of makers and hustlers. It's real here πΈ But never say never.
This is fantastic advice! Itβs great to see such a detailed and actionable example of what works. Asking for help is such a valuable skill, and your structured approach to gathering feedback is inspiring. Thanks for sharing your journey and these valuable insights!
How do you decide which feedback to prioritize when you receive conflicting advice?
@lisa_hagen Thanks π And good question! It's important to talk to as many as you can. To not be overly swayed by one strong voice. usually what repeats is a good idea to pay attention too. And also try to execute on feedback quickly. So I did this for 30 days. And on the weekends there was no calls so that was usually the time to try the feedback out. And then present it to the next batch the following week. Also you have to use your inner product sense. Sometimes its just a hunch, and you're not sure which direction to go. But then you have 2-3 amazing people to brainstorm with the next day regarding that hunch. All in all its pretty effective way to validate next steps. And avoid dead end rabbit holes. Without becoming to conformed of course π
Its the best of both worlds right? Quality combined with Quantity. πͺ
@sentry_co Thanks for the detailed response! I love the idea of balancing quality with quantity and using weekends to implement feedback. Itβs a smart way to keep the process dynamic.
@lisa_hagen For sure! In any case the process is complimentary, you still have to combine it with a genuine product mindset honed from your unique life experience. The two go together sort of.