IMO the theory is what gives you the confidence. You know it works, that the actions taken are repeatable. The basics of how to start a startup: https://playbo

IMO the theory is what gives you the confidence. You know it works, that the actions taken are repeatable. The basics of how to start a startup: https://playbook.samaltman.com/ https://playbook.samaltman.com/ Growth. Or figuring out when your startup is doing well or poorly, runway, why it takes so long: http://www.paulgraham.com/growth.html http://www.paulgraham.com/growth.html I think when people criticize a startup's profitability, they don't really understand that the goal of a startup is to grow assets, not earn money, and then then sell those assets to someone who can make more money from it. A very different book to the usual, Startup Owner's Manual: https://www.amazon.com/Startup-Owners-Manual-Step-Step/dp/0984999302 https://www.amazon.com/Startup-Owners-Manual-Step-Step/dp/09... It's a good book on validating what works and how ambitious to be. Much of it is in the form of checklists, which help you decide the next step. It's not a boring book, though. I haven't read through the whole thing as we got off the ground before finishing the book. It's the book that got my ex-co-founder away from more traditional businesses and into startups.