Conquering Startup Struggles with Martin Gonzalez + Josh Yellin

What's Next! with Tiffani Bova

Welcome to the What's Next! Podcast with Tiffani Bova.

I have a special treat for this show. We have not one, but actually two guests.

The first is Martin Gonzalez. He is the creator of Google’s Effective Founders Project, a global research program that decodes the factors that enable startup founders to succeed. He also works closely with Google’s engineering and research leaders on org design, leadership, and culture challenges.

Joining him is Josh Yellin, who co-founded Google's first Startup Accelerator and spearheaded its growth, reaching founders in 70 countries. Along with Martin, he co-founded Google's Effective Founders Project, and he recently spent four years as Chief of Staff at Google Brain and is presently an organizational leader at Google DeepMind.

Martin and Josh are the authors of a new book called The Bonfire Moment.

THIS EPISODE IS PERFECT FOR… founders of startups who want to avoid common pitfalls.

TODAY’S MAIN MESSAGE… research shows that 65% of startups will fail due to people issues - not the product development, resourcing, or any of the other challenging parts of being a founder. In this episode, Martin and Josh share how they face the people issues head-on and have trained thousands of founders through Bonfire Moment workshops.

Key takeaways:

• Startups thrive when people issues are addressed alongside product and market challenges

• Structured reflection helps startups solve hidden problems

• Addressing people issues early on fosters long-term growth and stability

• Finding a co-founder should be a slow and deliberate decision

• Self-awareness is a critical character trait for founders to develop

WHAT I LOVE MOST… Josh and Martin’s recommendation to not using the “maverick mindset” on the organizational side of things. Lean into innovative ideas for your product of service but rely on best practices when approaching leadership.

Running Time: 30:34

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Find Tiffani Online:

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Learn More About Martin and Josh:

The Bonfire Moment Website

Book: The Bonfire Moment