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Founder's Journey

You’ll outgrow your company’s core values. Here’s what to do next.

It wasn’t working, and I was frustrated. Four years ago, we put hundreds of hours into developing our company’s core values, and they now felt broken. The things we used to do because they were “scrappy” were beginning to strain our infrastructure. The things we used to do because they were “fun” led to stagnation […]

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Alex Turnbull
CEO & Founder, Helply and Groove
11 min read |
You’ll outgrow your company’s core values. Here’s what to do next.
Founder's Journey

Real Wealth Is Not About Money

This April, our family got some devastating news. We had just returned from a wedding in Florida when we got the call. My father-in-law, an otherwise healthy man in his 60’s who had just retired this past year, was diagnosed with stage four cancer. As this kind of news tends to do, it came as […]

7 min read
Founder's Journey

Founder’s Depression Is Bullshit

I shared a story recently about one of the darkest moments of my career. We’re through it now and better because of it. But, woah… rough times. Two years ago, we were still in its grip. Our team retreat was just a few weeks away, and I was a wreck. Sitting at my kitchen table […]

7 min read
Founder's Journey

Vacations Are Important, but Most Founders Do Them Wrong

It felt like the exact wrong thing to do. It was crazy. Maybe even a little stupid. We had recently finished our rebuilding project, trying to rescue our company from a slide into failure, and we were just starting to find our footing. Things were going well, but after working our way out of the […]

7 min read
Founder's Journey

Why We Dropped “Fun” as a Core Value

And how, as a result, we’re having more fun than ever. “Have fun.” She stared at me. “Go ahead. Just have fun.” I wasn’t sure how to respond. “Having fun yet?” I was talking with my sister, Elizabeth, and she was helping me come to an embarrassing realization. Groove’s “Core Values”—the ones I had so […]

7 min read
Founder's Journey

What I Learned Rescuing Our Startup From Death

How we turned around a company that was headed toward failure

12 min read
Founder's Journey

Why I Almost Walked Away From the $500k/mo Company I Founded

The story of the darkest months of Groove’s history

10 min read
Founder's Journey

Why I Stopped Hustling

Taking on the most dangerous word in our community.

7 min read
Founder's Journey

Too Many Startups Like Playing Startup

7 signs that you’re focused on stuff that doesn’t matter, and how to snap out of it.

8 min read

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