You’ve gotta do what you’ve gotta do

I don’t like Accelerators (companies that, supposedly, help your startup), but can’t deny I learned 1-2 things from them.

In 2015, Bio Bureau was invited to pitch at the Rio de Janeiro edition of the ‘Seed Forum’, together with other Brazilian and Norwegian startups. The forum is a global event and has a structured pitch template, to which we were supposed to adapt our presentation. Nothing specialI, but the organizers wanted to check if all startups were compliant and see how they could help us improve. The problem is they landed in Rio 48h in advance to the event and had 1 day to meet with all 8 startups and go trough their presentations. “Not enough time” I thought, but they had an amazing trick: Instead of criticizing your pitch and make suggestions, they took the instructions to prepare the slides and asked in each slide of each speaker “do you think you accomplished the goal as stated in the template?” If the goal was to present the team, they’d ask if you think you introduced your team properly.

That was powerful stuff.

I’m convinced now it was more than a trick: it was a simple yet powerful method. Kind of psychoanalysis for entrepreneurs. Letting them finding the problems in their presentations just by forcing them to look at the slides from a different perspective. Using one’s own criteria to improve their presentations, while building more criteria and better presentations on the process. It didn’t scape me also that this was a way to filter the best startups and entrepreneurs.

As we try to build a more independent and autonomous team, I see myself going back to that day before of the Seed Forum Rio. But how can I teach someone self criticism?! I though a checklist could help. Here it is:

1. Do you know what is the output/product?
2. Do you know what to do for the group/company to produce the output/product?
3. Do you have the tools to do what you have to do?
4. Do you know the difference from what you need to be handed to you and what you have to look for (to do what you have to do)?
5. Do you know how (and who) to communicate what you are doing and when you have finished?
6. Is everything that you do bringing you and the group/company towards the output/goal?
7. Are you making more of the output/product/goal per unit of time and money?
8. What is the one thing that you know you should start or stop doing to make you more productive and reach the goal? When will you do it?
9. What is the one thing that someone else should start or stop doing to make you more productive and reach the goal? Do you have the means to tell them that? Have you done that?
10. Are you acting accordingly to the 5 values defined by the group: accountability, ethics, proactivity, boldness and clarity?

Here’s a revised version of your text for clarity, grammar, and spelling:

That’s it. The answer to each question must be ‘Yes,’ and you are accountable for the consequences of lying to yourself, your partners, and colleagues. This means your ‘Yes’ is a commitment between you and your team, who will be informed of your understanding and commitment to your goals. If the answer is ‘No,’ it is your responsibility to acquire the necessary information to turn that ‘No’ into a ‘Yes.’

Don’t take ‘No’ for an answer. If you begin working just after you answered ‘Yes’ to all the questions, everything will turn out fine for everyone.