As a startup, you are an organization designed for learning, and learning is sensationally exciting. But it has its downsides: As you continue to learn, it\u2019s tempting to try to chase every great opportunity that comes along.<\/p>\n

The mistake is to fall for the temptation and lose focus.<\/p>\n

\u201cOftentimes, this sneaks up on people because people have completely different systems that they\u2019re trying to push forward,\u201d Evcimen told me. \u201cThey\u2019re saying, \u2018Oh, this could work in this application, and this application and this application.\u2019 Alternatively, a company may say, \u2018Oh, it\u2019s just the same thing, but bigger,\u2019 or \u2018It\u2019s just the same thing, but smaller.\u2019 I think it\u2019s really important to know that each variation of a product is just an additional product line. Similarity doesn\u2019t mean anything. Even if that is true, you still have to have individual designs; you still need to manage your supply chain. And \u2026 you even need to develop multiple supply chains.\u201d<\/p>\n

A smaller module might mean different chips. A different casing could mean different molds and tooling. Each small change can affect the whole product development timeline. Even something as simple as launching exactly the same product in a different color can create significant bottlenecks.<\/p>\n

\u201cWorking on more than one version takes away from early learning because you\u2019re trying to do too much at once. You\u2019re already a small team, trying to operate with cost constraints and time constraints,\u201d she said. \u201cIt also dilutes the understanding of the market: If you do your proper due diligence and your user studies and market research, you\u2019ll start to get a sense of which one is going to be potentially the most lucrative, or which variant you can use to learn quicker. By giving up focus, you are going to start learning slowly on all of them. That means you need to bet on one, rather than pursuing one that has the most potential.\u201d<\/p>\n

And that can be a killer: Startups raise money, then make a bunch of products, trying to push them all forward at once. If something happens in the production process, they\u2019re stuck with a bunch of half-baked products, sucking up funding along the way. It\u2019s a spiral, and it\u2019s not pointed in the right direction.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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