Startup Anti-Patterns

# Intro to Startup anti-pattern Series | Insights, not just posts Source: [https://www.itamarnovick.com/intro-to-startup-anti-pattern-series/](https://www.itamarnovick.com/intro-to-startup-anti-pattern-series/) An anti\-pattern is a commonly used process, structure, or pattern of action that, despite initially appearing to be an appropriate and effective response to a problem, has more bad consequences than good ones\. Simeon Simeonov first wrote an introduction to the value of startup anti\-patterns back in 2013\. To sum it up, it’s hard to pinpoint the exact set of reasons startups succeed, but experienced entrepreneurs and investors have a good sense of what drives startups’ failures\. Startup[anti\-patterns](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-pattern)are all about that — patterns that increase the risks associated with startups \(hey, it’s a risky business to begin with\)\. Pursuing an anti\-pattern doesn’t mean that your company will die tomorrow or in the next year, but each anti\-pattern adds\-up and could lead to clouding your focus and hampering your ability to execute\. Together with Itamar Novick from Recursive Ventures,[Simeon Simeonov](https://sim.vc/)is bringing the Startup anti\-pattern series to life\. Stay tuned for more in this series as we work through each anti\-pattern with tangible examples from our experiences as founders and investors in 100\+ startups, and the experiences of guest founders from our portfolio\. ### **Startup Anti\-Patterns full list \(work in progress…\)** 1. [Elephant hunting](http://www.itamarnovick.com/startup-anti-pattern-3-elephant-hunting/) 2. [Ignorance](https://www.itamarnovick.com/startup-anti-pattern-2-ignorance/) 3. [Platform risk](https://www.itamarnovick.com/startup-anti-pattern-3-platform-risk/) 4. [If you build it, they will come](https://www.itamarnovick.com/startup-anti-pattern-4-if-you-build-it-they-will-come/) 5. [Bad revenue](https://www.itamarnovick.com/startup-anti-pattern-5-bad-revenue/) 6. [Chasing the competition](https://www.itamarnovick.com/startup-anti-pattern-6-chasing-the-competition/) 7. [Chasing Blue Oceans](http://www.itamarnovick.com/startup-anti-pattern-7-chasing-blue-oceans/) 8. [Analysis paralysis](http://www.itamarnovick.com/startup-anti-pattern-8-analysis-paralysis/) 9. [\(Founder\) Arrogance](https://www.itamarnovick.com/startup-anti-pattern-9-founder-arrogance/) 10. [Boiling the ocean](https://www.itamarnovick.com/startup-anti-pattern-10-boiling-the-ocean/) 11. [Bridge to nowhere](https://www.itamarnovick.com/startup-anti-pattern-11-bridge-to-nowhere/) 12. [Design by committee](https://www.itamarnovick.com/startup-anti-pattern-12-design-by-committee/) 13. [Confirmation bias](https://www.itamarnovick.com/startup-anti-pattern-13-confirmation-bias-2/) 14. [Bleeding on the edge](https://www.itamarnovick.com/startup-anti-pattern-14-bleeding-on-the-edge/) 15. Attribution risk 16. Changing strategy instead of execution 17. Confusing activity with results 18. Consulting to product 19. Death by pivot 20. Deathmarch 21. Delayed scaling 22. Demand generation 23. Designing for investors 24. Drag 25. Escalation of commitment 26. Escape to the familiar 27. Escapism 28. Featuritis 29. Forward thinking 30. Founderitis 31. Groupthink 32. Hail Mary 33. Ivory tower 34. Lack of focus 35. Lagging indicators 36. Learned helplessness 37. Long feedback cycles 38. Lying to investors 39. Magic salesperson 40. Mentor whiplash 41. Missing your exit 42. Myopic bootstrapping 43. Next round only 44. Not knowing your investors 45. One\-off customization 46. Oooh, shiny\! 47. Overengineering 48. Overselling 49. Oversteering 50. Platform trap 51. Premature optimization 52. Premature scaling 53. Promiscuity 54. Proof by anecdote 55. Pushing a rope 56. Raising too little 57. Random founders 58. Scapegoat 59. Second class citizens 60. Seed extensions 61. Secrecy 62. Silver bullet 63. Spreadsheet Bingo 64. Stovepipes 65. The one idea entrepreneur 66. Top\-down planning 67. Uber pivot 68. Underqualifying 69. Unicorn hunting 70. Unrealistic expectations 71. Warm bodies 72. Weak board 73. Yes man 74. Zombie 75. Outsourcing your architecture \(via Alan Neveu\) *Note: the list is not “drawn to scale\.” Some anti\-patterns occur more frequently than others and some are more likely to cause a startup to fail than others\.*