This is basically the one thing that no one ever teaches you but is arguably the hardest part. I think Steve Blank's Customer Development Manifesto nails it on

This is basically the one thing that no one ever teaches you but is arguably the hardest part. I think Steve Blank's Customer Development Manifesto nails it on the head: https://growthorientedsustainableentrepreneurship.files.wordpress.com/2016/07/en-customer-development-manifesto.pdf https://growthorientedsustainableentrepreneurship.files.word... This is the reason you often see older (person's age) entrepreneurs more successful because they've already created network of trust, or people who have exited multiple companies...getting intros to potential clients for customer development is stupidly easy because you're already pre-sold because of those relationships. That being said, I've found in my career that as long as you're willing to listen to early potential customers most individuals of any size company are motivated to tell you all about their issues. Trust me, get someone on the phone and they'll air all of their dirty laundry. You gain trust with those early potential customers (and eventually payments) by being a good listener - replay back what you heard, explain how you're going to fix it, and then deliver. As Steve Blank says "There are no facts inside your building, so get outside". I'm going to generalize here, but I think the reason too may technically minded entrepreneurs fail is because they're simply too introverted to get outside.