In any case, I think you’re right on in this post. One of the hardest things in a startup is to maintain a balance between the following two world views: “we have a great idea that is going to change the world” and “dammit, it doesn’t work very well and no one wants it.” The former belief is what motivates smart people to do rock star-level work, but the latter is what motivates them to make it better. I have seen far too many companies that focus too much on making the “change the world” belief into orthodoxy that can’t be questioned. It certainly happened once or twice at the ‘Tree. Once that happens, the company can’t meet user expectations, because they aren’t willing to question their basic beliefs about the company idea.