Character Capital

Lenny's Podcast · Jul 13

Rapidly test and validate any startup idea with the 2-day Foundation Sprint

Built the Foundation Sprint in 2021 and 2022 and runs one right after each investment, now more often than design sprints. Its Character Labs program runs a Foundation Sprint followed by three weekly design sprints.

Tips

• Clear the core team's calendar for about 10 hours at the start▶ 11:33They run more Foundation Sprints than design sprints with their startups now, and founders say it compresses three to four months of work into three to four weeks.
• Use note and vote with a single decider to avoid groupthink▶ 21:42When teams look up from writing, they see answers they did not expect, which is where the early value shows.
• Skip the sprint only if you already have clear product market fit▶ 1:08:20Maor's Base44 sold for $80 million in six months without a formal process, which they treat as selection bias rather than a template.