Brendan Mahony - Why founders should look at building startups as a game and not a business!
Description
ππΌ About the Guest:
Brendan Mahony is the founder of Sunset, a company that helps tech companies shut down, saving founders thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours. He is also the ex-founder of Toybox (YC S18, acquired) and Contrast (shut down). From this experience, he built Sunset!
ππΌ About the Host:
Sharath is a founder, creator, and community builder. He is also a serial maker who built and shipped 15+ projects using no-code tools. His SaaS product Shoutout generated $30k ARR, which was sold to a UK-based product studio. Prev, Sharath worked for world-changing startups like Product Hunt and On Deck, where he helped build and nurture communities. He also grew his audience on Twitter from 200 to 24,000 using give-first principles and creating high-value content. He recently sold his second SaaS product, GuestLab, and he is working on a startup idea while hosting this show.
ππΌ Sponsor Corner:
Shoutout to Acquire.com for sponsoring The Undefeated Underdogs podcast! Theyβre the best online marketplace to buy/sell startups and I know many founders who have sold their businesses there. If you're looking to wind down your business and cash in some of your founder chips, check them out - https://try.acquire.com/sharath/
ππΌ Description:
Listen in as Sharath and Brendan discuss raising money, finding customers at an early stage, weird startup ideas, and more!
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ππΌ Timestamps:
- 00:00 : Episode Highlight
- 00:22 : Shoutout to Acquire.com
- 02:47 : Introduction to Brendan Mahony - founder of Sunset, a startup helping you shut down your startup correctly
- 04:33 : Why create a startup about shutting down startups
- 10:00 : How Brendan raised money as a first-time founder
- 19:05 : How to get investors on board for your startup
- 20:50 : Finding customers as an early-stage startup
- 25:20 : Lessons from the first year of building Sunset
- 27:20 : Building a startup at Y Combinator
- 32:34 : How to bend the rules when you're in founder mode
- 38:16 : How to deal with shutting down your startup - operationally, physically, mentally, emotionally
- 42:12 : What would Brendan work on if not Sunset?
- 46:00 : Weird startup ideas
- 48:25 : Problems startups deal with
- 50:47 : Outro and closing thoughts
ππΌ Resources:
- Link to Acquire.com: https://try.acquire.com/sharath/
- Andrew Gazdecki: https://www.andrewgazdecki.com/
ππΌ Where to find Brendan:
- Twitter: https://x.com/bmaho2211
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendan-mahony-72929385
- Sunset: https://www.sunsethq.com/
ππΌ Where to find Sharath:
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/5harath
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@5harath
- Website: https://5harath.com/
- Newsletter: https://5harath.substack.com/
- Founder Gigs: https://foundergigs.com/