One thing that founders forget is that after they hire employees, they have to retain them.

If you don't need it yourself, and you're building something that someone else needs, realize you're at a big disadvantage.

It really is true that you become an average of the people you spend the most time with.

You want an idea that not many other people are working on, and it's okay if it doesn't sound big at first.

I think the best thing you can do is be aware that as a first time founder you are likely to be a very bad manager.

It's easy to move fast or be obsessed with quality, but the trick is you have to do both at a startup.

The other piece besides focus for execution is intensity. Startups only work at a fairly intense level.