startup-skills

Builds brand positioning, messaging, and content strategy through Dunford Positioning, StoryBrand narrative, and distribution-first content architecture. Use when defining positioning, writing brand messaging, planning content strategy, creating editorial calendars, or when someone asks "how should we talk about [YOUR_COMPANY]?"

Manages the full client lifecycle from founder-led sales through partnerships and client success, using structured qualification, provider management, and expansion frameworks. Use when preparing for a sales call, qualifying a deal, managing provider relationships, onboarding a new client, or tracking client health.

Designs and validates business models through Business Model Canvas, positioning analysis, willingness-to-pay research, and unit economics modeling. Use when launching a new product line, entering a new market, redesigning pricing, or when someone asks "how do we make money from X?"

Builds and maintains competitive intelligence through Wardley Mapping, 7 Powers analysis, battlecards, and JTBD competitive mapping. Use when a new competitor emerges, preparing for investor meetings, building sales enablement materials, or quarterly strategy reviews.

Designs go-to-market strategy using Crossing the Chasm sequencing, Racecar growth diagnostics, developer-first PLG playbook, and land-and-expand motions. Use when entering a new market segment, launching a new product, redesigning channel strategy, or when someone asks "how do we get our first [N] clients?"

Diagnoses growth health through AARRR pirate metrics, North Star alignment, API developer adoption funnel analysis, and KPI dashboards. Use when setting up analytics, diagnosing growth bottlenecks, preparing quarterly OKRs, building investor narratives, or when someone asks "how are we growing?"

Builds and maintains financial models including revenue forecasts, burn rate analysis, unit economics, cash flow projections, and scenario planning. Use when updating financial projections, preparing for investor conversations, analyzing pricing changes, running scenario analysis, or when someone asks "how much runway do we have?"

Manages multi-jurisdiction regulatory strategy including licensing decisions, corporate structure optimization, AML/KYC program design, and regulated financial product compliance. Use when entering a new market, evaluating licensing requirements, designing compliance programs, assessing provider regulatory status, or when someone asks "can we operate X in Y country?"

Evaluates and sequences market entry across geographies using attractiveness scoring, regulatory readiness assessment, and entry mode analysis. Use when considering a new country/region, prioritizing expansion markets, or assessing regulatory feasibility for a new jurisdiction.

Manages the full fundraising lifecycle from deck creation through investor pipeline management, monthly updates, and round closing. Use when preparing for a fundraise, building an investor deck, setting up investor CRM, writing monthly updates, or analyzing investor pass reasons.

Shapes product decisions through tiered frameworks -- Shape Up for features, DIBB+PR/FAQ for strategic bets, ICE for prioritization, and Opportunity Solution Trees for discovery. Use when writing feature specs, evaluating strategic bets, prioritizing the roadmap, or running product discovery.

The meta-skill that orchestrates your company's strategic direction and operating rhythm, combining strategy formulation, OKR execution, decision frameworks, hiring, and team operating system. Use for annual planning, quarterly OKR setting, monthly strategy check-ins, evaluating strategic bets, making Type 1/Type 2 decisions, hiring, or when someone asks "what should we focus on?"

Validates startup ideas through a sequenced workflow of Lean Canvas, Riskiest Assumption Testing, Mom Test interviews, and Pretotyping. Use when exploring a new product idea, pivoting an existing product, testing a B2B or B2C hypothesis, or when someone says "should we build X?"