In episode 744, Rob Walling is joined by Tracy Osborn and Einar Vollset to give their hot takes on some recent news. They cover the recent rise of Bluesky, kicking off a 4-figure bet between Tracy and Einar. Then they discuss TinySeed’s third fund, YC Combinator backing competitors, dealing with imposter syndrome, and finally government involvement in banning social media.

• (1:49) – Will Bluesky survive and thrive?
• (9:07) – The bet on Bluesky growth
• (13:46) – TinySeed is raising a third fund
• (17:25) – Y Combinator backs duplicates
• (22:18) – Dealing with Imposter Syndrome
• (27:46) – Australia's social media ban

• The SaaS Launchpad – Start Free with “The DNA of a Great SaaS Idea”
• Invest in TinySeed
• Rob Walling (@robwalling.com) | Bluesky
• TinySeed (@tinyseed.com) | Bluesky
• Tracy Osborn (tracymakes) (@tracyosborn.com) | Bluesky
• Einar Vollset (@einarvollset) | X
• Y Combinator often backs startups that duplicate other YC companies, data shows
• Procrastination and the Fear of Not Being 'Good Enough' by Swapnil Chauhan
• Startup Founders, Do THIS to Beat Imposter Syndrome
• Australia proposes 'world-leading' ban on social media for children under 16

If you have questions about starting or scaling a software business that you’d like for us to cover, please submit your question for an upcoming episode. We’d love to hear from you!

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In episode 743, Rob Walling and Dr. Sherry Walling read the first chapter of their new book, Exit Strategy: The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Selling Your Company Without Regret. They discuss the emotional and psychological challenges of selling a business, and why it’s often harder than founders expect. They offer insights on how to prepare for a sale, protect your mental health, and how to best navigate this major life change that few others understand.

Back the book on Kickstarter

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• (1:49) – Exit Strategy Introduction
• (6:56) – Exits are complicated
• (11:16) – One of the hardest things you’ll ever do
• (15:57) – Your business is your baby
• (18:35) – Entering the unknown
• (26:49) – Six factors that shape how you feel about an exit
• (31:03) – Making it real

• Exit Strategy: The Entrepreneur's Guide to Selling Your Business Without Regret
• Back the book on Kickstarter
• MicroConf Connect Applications Close Today, December 10th
• Rob Walling (@robwalling) | X
• Dr. Sherry Walling (@sherrywalling) | X
• The SaaS Playbook
• Built to Sell by John Warrillow
• Touching Two Worlds by Dr. Sherry Walling
• The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Keeping Your Sh*t Together by Sherry Walling, PhD, Rob Walling

If you have questions about starting or scaling a software business that you’d like for us to cover, please submit your quest...

In episode 742, Rob Walling goes solo to explore normalizing doing hard things and facing your biggest threats. He also discusses a framework for founders looking to scale without cutting corners – making things work, making them right, and then making them fast.

Exit Strategy Kickstarter ends on December 12!

• (2:39) – Normalizing doing hard things
• (6:54) – The “hard things” in your startup
• (10:27) – Walking into the storm
• (16:21) – ”Make it work, make it right, make it fast”
• (22:04) – Building your “Founder Gut”
• (25:42) – Think in years, not months

• Exit Strategy: The Entrepreneur's Guide to Selling Your Business Without Regret
• MicroConf Masterminds Applications Close on December 4th
• Rob Walling (@robwalling) | X
• Dr. Sherry Walling (@sherrywalling) | X
• The Comic Lab Podcast
• The SaaS Playbook
• The Stair Step Method of Bootstrapping
• This Took 11 Years to Be An "Overnight Success" - SaaS Exit Strategy

If you have questions about starting or scaling a software business that you’d like for us to cover, please submit your question for an upcoming episode. We’d love to hear from you!

Subscribe & Review: iTunes | Spotify