Mike Maples on Navigating the Idea Maze and Building Breakthrough Companies

Today’s episode of Request for Startups features

* Mike Maples,Jr: Founder of Floodgate and Host of the Starting Greatness podcast. @m2jr on X

* Erik Torenberg: Investor, Founder of Turpentine.co. @eriktorenberg on X

In this conversation, Erik Torenberg sits down with Mike Maples, Founder of Floodgate, to discuss the idea maze, insight hacking, inflections, and effective leadership strategies. Mike also shares why uniqueness matters more than being the best. The conversation took place at a live event for On Deck in 2020.

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Request for Startups is produced by Turpentine: a network of podcasts, newsletters, and more, covering technology, business, and culture — all from the perspective of industry insiders and experts. We’re launching new shows every week, and we’re looking for industry-leading sponsors — if you think that might be you and your company, email us at erik@turpentine.co.

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TIMESTAMPS:

(00:00) Intro

(01:33) The why behind “How to Build a Breakthrough”

(04:56) Motive power of startups

(12:32) Sponsor: Turpentine

(24:20) Insight hacking framework

(27:31) Exploring the Jobs-to-be-Done framework

(29:13) Navigating false positives and negatives in market insights

(30:23) The role of domain expertise in startup success

(39:59) Symptoms of a company that is not succeeding

(49:14) Choosing your market

(49:59) Finding your startup's niche

(56:04) Wrap