Do Things that Don't Scale

In this essay, Paul Graham argues that startups should prioritize actions that do not scale, particularly in their initial stages. He explains that focusing on manually acquiring and delighting users is crucial for gaining traction and generating growth. Graham emphasizes that early-stage startups are fragile and require intense effort from the founders to ensure success. He encourages founders to think of startup ideas as vectors with two components: the product itself and the unscalable actions needed to launch it. Graham argues that these unscalable actions often contribute to a company's long-term success by shaping its culture and providing valuable insights. He advocates against relying on big launches or partnerships to gain traction, instead urging founders to actively engage with their users and learn from their feedback.