Productivity tip for African startups (learned from @pixeldahn)
I chose to put together this outstanding piece initiated by Daniel Abayomi, who is a product designer at Meta. I found the content to be personally meaningful and relatable. I had to document it in a way that worked best for me to refer to later.
Here is it:
"It may be advisable for African startups to slow down their expansion as they grow. While rapid growth in the early stages can be impressive, it's important to approach it thoughtfully and ensure that you're prepared for it.
While it's natural for ambitious entrepreneurs to constantly seek opportunities to expand and accommodate a growing or self-generated demand, it can be possible to overstretch their business — before being ready. This can result in premature scaling.
One might be tempted to think that the quantity of new users a company acquires is the most important metric for demonstrating growth, but this mindset can lead to a range of issues such as:
Struggle to maintain its usual high standards, leading to quality issues due to over-commitment.
Cost of operations increasing due to the resources required to fix errors.
Customer complaints increase because of underperformance.
Emerging problems and customer discontent can cause a company to shift from proactive planning for the future to reactive firefighting.
When a company experiences a surge in volume, its processes may become inefficient because they weren't designed to handle that level of activity.
Pressure on employees can cause a decline in team morale.
A cycle of repeated mistakes occurs due to being busy that there's no time to learn from mistakes and make improvements.
Goodhart's law states that "when a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure". You might begin to set targets for your employees, and they may end up gaming the system due to Goodhart's law. This is risky.
Although expanding too quickly can be risky, failing to grow at all could be even worse. That's why it's crucial to determine the right time to invest in growth and which areas of the business to prioritize for the greatest effect. As you progress, it's important to comprehend both your present and future market.
Realistically acknowledge that managing a business requires a significant portion of your time and effort, particularly in the initial phases. Therefore, adjust your growth strategies accordingly.
I'm C.Sam aspiring to become a remarkable individual. This work will serve as a valuable reference for me in achieving my goals, and I hope you also find it useful. Thank you.