My company recently hit $30 million in annual recurring revenue. And if there’s one piece of advice I could give to early-stage founders chasing success, it’s this: Nail it before you scale it.
It sounds simple, but it’s not. In a world obsessed with fast growth, big rounds, and buzzy headlines, it takes a lot of discipline to do things slowly and deliberately. Scale too soon and you don’t just waste money, you build a company on shaky ground. I’ve seen it happen again and again.
What “nail it” really means
“Nailing it” is more than just product-market fit. It means you’ve solved a problem so well that your solution holds up in the messy, real world. Your internal systems actually work. Your processes are scalable. You’ve anticipated the second and third-order consequences of every operational decision.
Let’s take invoicing as an example. Sending one invoice is easy. But what if you have to send hundreds every Friday, like my company does? At Howdy.com, we build and manage elite software engineering teams across Latin America, and have to adjust for different currencies, taxes, time zones, and time-off policies. Suddenly, you need systems, working capital buffers, decision trees, and fallback plans.
Working out these details is what I mean by “nailing it.” However, many startups ignore the boring stuff. As entrepreneurs rush to scale, they say they’ll figure out the underpinnings of everything later. But those operational cracks don’t magically go away. They multiply.
Why founders scale too soon
In my experience, most founders scale prematurely out of ignorance, ego, or external pressure. A lot of early-stage advice encourages this: “Ship fast,” “move fast and break things,” “if it’s perfect, you waited too long.” That’s great advice for testing products or finding product-market fit, but people apply it to entire companies. And that’s where things fall apart.
Some of it comes down to inexperience. Young founders who haven’t worked in real businesses often don’t see the cost of poor operational infrastructure until it’s too late. They don’t realize that net-60 payment terms from enterprise clients can wreck your cash flow, or that poorly defined roles create internal chaos.
I didn’t want that kind of swirl. I’d seen too many chaotic startups as an employee. When I started my business, I wasn’t chasing a flashy launch or a massive team. I wanted stability, clarity, and something I could feel proud of.
The value of building in silence
When I first launched, I didn’t promote the company. I wasn’t on LinkedIn. I wasn’t taking interviews. I just quietly helped a few people solve their problems. Because until I knew it worked, I couldn’t scale it in good conscience.
That period was hard. I drained my savings. I second-guessed myself. I had moments of depression. Going back to “broke life” after years of stability was much harder in my 30s than in my 20s. But that slow, deliberate approach gave me a foundation I could trust.
Eventually, word spread before I was ready. Customers started coming to me. I didn’t have a website, a sales deck, or marketing materials. That’s when I knew I was onto something. When demand finds you, not the other way around, you’re probably solving something real.
Stay grounded amid the noise
The hardest part was tuning out the noise. Friends would constantly send me articles about competitors raising millions. Or companies doing something “similar.” I had to ask them to stop.
Not because I didn’t care, but because it demoralized me. I’d lose hours to self-doubt. Was I too late? Was I missing out? So I stayed offline. I focused inward. I permitted myself to build with blinders on. And honestly, I think that’s what saved me.
Avoiding a too-soon money raise
Had I raised capital early on, I would have made terrible decisions. I would have overhired. I would have given people inflated titles before the org needed them. I might have hired leaders who never did the job themselves, which erodes respect and clarity.
Bootstrapping forced me to hire intentionally. Everyone who joined did the work. They grew with the company. And today, they lead with the credibility that comes from experience.
Hire a team that thrives in “nail it” mode
People who succeed in “nail it” environments are scrappy. They’re curious. They’re comfortable with ambiguity and don’t expect polished tools or endless resources. They find creative ways to solve real problems.
When I hired early team members, it wasn’t about whether they had a nice pedigree. It was about whether they could get into the trenches and make progress with limited resources. That kind of DNA set the tone for our culture—and still does.
Don’t get derailed by headlines
Growth is only impressive if it’s real. Solve one painful thing better than anyone else. Build processes that work. Delight a few customers so deeply that they tell others. Once you’ve done that, then you can pour gasoline on the fire.
This article originally appeared on Inc.com