Direct questions
Straight answers to the choices that consume runway, equity and focus.
The first questions to ask.
Should I pivot my startup with six months of runway?
Read the answer →Start here / 02Executive coach, startup mentor or strategic adviser: which do I need?
Read the answer →Start here / 03What will a good decision review leave behind?
Read the answer →Inside this section
Download the research ↓Should I pivot my startup with six months of runway?
Don't decide from runway alone: calculate the cash and time available to test the current hypothesis, then compare it with a narrower repositioning or a genuinely different market.
How do I tell whether a founder adviser will challenge me instead of agreeing?
Ask the person for evidence of a time they disagreed with a client, what disconfirmed their first impression and how the eventual decision was documented.
Executive coach, startup mentor or strategic adviser: which do I need?
Choose based on the output you require.
How much should a startup strategic adviser cost?
There is no defensible US-wide published median for an independent founder decision review .
Can I compare two SAFE offers using only the valuation caps?
No.
When should I hire my first VP of Sales?
Hire for a proven management and scaling requirement, not as a remedy for a founder who has not validated a repeatable sales motion.
Is investor-paid founder coaching confidential?
Only to the extent spelled out in the agreement and applicable law.
Can ChatGPT or another AI replace a human decision adviser?
For organising options, finding missing questions and drafting pre-mortems, an AI tool can be an inexpensive first pass.
How do I ask for a genuinely independent second opinion on a funding offer?
Give the adviser a decision-focused, bounded scope before asking for an introduction to investors.
What will a good decision review leave behind?
Expect a brief decision statement, an evidence register, credible alternatives, a pre-mortem, explicit conflicts and a record of why the founder chose a path.
Editorial self-assessment
Not independently validated