In 2003: I had just come over from the UK to attend Stanford GSB. Back in Europe, I had been part of the founding team of lastminute.com (acquired in 2005 for $1.1B) and was figuring out ideas for my next startup. That startup became real estate marketplace Trulia (merged with Zillow for $3.5BN in 2015).
20 years later: I recently had the opportunity to go back to Stanford and talk with GSB students about my Founder journey, including how we used a downturn to our advantage.
Today we’re making that talk public, to give more startups and CEOs a look at the playbook and tactics we used to grow a billion-dollar business from idea to IPO.
The talk covers most of my Founder journey from idea to IPO, including:
- How the idea for Trulia was crystallized [Read: Hidden Patterns of Startup Ideas
- The unique advantages of Student-Founders [Read: Why Google, Facebook, Microsoft and Trulia Were All Born on College Campuses]
- Solving the chicken and egg problem at Trulia [Read: 19 Tactics to Solve The Chicken and Egg Problem]
- How network effects made Trulia less fragile and more defensible [Read: The Network Effects of Trulia]
- The critical elements of company culture [Read: The NFX Culture Scorecard]
- The mental shift from product manager company manager [Read: The Mental Shift from Founder to CEO]
- Structuring your company for growth [Read: 4 Signs You’re Building A World-Class Team]
- Surviving (and gaining ground) in a downturn [Read: 39 Moves for Surviving and Thriving in a Downturn]
- Why it’s critical to avoid your own reality distortion field [Read: Don’t Believe Your Own Bullshit]
As Founders ourselves, we respect your time. That’s why we built BriefLink, a new software tool that minimizes the upfront time of getting the VC meeting. Simply tell us about your company in 9 easy questions, and you’ll hear from us if it’s a fit.
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