Episode 816 | Developing an Editorial Eye, The Right Kind of Stubborn, and The Power of Focus (A Rob Solo Adventure)

Startups For the Rest of Us

Rob Walling

Entrepreneurship, Management, Business, Marketing

4.9 • 819 Ratings

🗓️ 20 January 2026

⏱️ 23 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Have you ever pushed so hard on an idea that you missed the signal to change direction? In this solo episode, Rob Walling covers a wide range of topics and dives into three areas every founder should master: how to develop an editorial eye (or “taste”), the difference between persistence and obstinance, and why focus, not diversification remains the hardest, most valuable entrepreneurial skill. Episode Sponsor: Hiring engineers shouldn’t feel like sorting through AI-polished resumes. G2i cuts through all of that. They’ve pre-vetted over 8,000 engineers, all with 5+ years of real experience, and they run live, human-led technical interviews to verify actual skills. No time wasters. No guesswork. Just solid developers who can deliver. G2i is trusted by companies like Meta, Microsoft, and countless bootstrapped founders who need to move fast without making expensive mistakes. Get a 7-day free trial and $1,500 off when you mention Startups for the Rest of Us at https://www.g2i.co/rob Topics we cover: (1:55) – How to develop an “editorial eye” (and why it matters for founders) (7:03) – When to get out of the way and let true experts lead (8:07) – Why your product must start with a real problem (not just an idea) (9:11) – Paul Graham’s The Right Kind of Stubborn: persistence vs. obstinance (12:03) – Are you attached to your goal or just your first idea? (13:44) – How great founders adapt to new data without losing momentum (14:44) – Sam Parr on why “constant switching will kill you” (16:30) – Focus as a founder’s hardest and most valuable skill (16:49) – Why “Triple, Triple, Double, Double” isn’t dead (despite VC takes) (18:34) – The problem with clickbait startup advice Links from the Show: MicroConf Europe 2026 – Join us in Reykjavík, Iceland (Sept 21–23) - Promo Code: ROB50 The Mom Test by Rob Fitzpatrick Paul Graham: “The Right Kind of Stubborn” Sam Parr (@thesamparr) | X Harry Stebbings (@HarryStebbings) | X Rob Walling YouTube Channel The SaaS Playbook If you have questions about starting or scaling a software business that you’d like for us to cover, please submit your question for an upcoming episode. We’d love to hear from you! Subscribe & Review: iTune...

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hiring engineers right now is noisy. You post a role and get flooded with AI polished resumes
0:05.2	from people who've never actually shipped anything. G2I cuts through all of that. They've pre-vetted
0:11.1	over 8,000 engineers, all with over five years of experience, and they do live technical
0:16.5	interviews with real humans checking for real skills. There's no time wasters, no guesswork, just candidates who can actually get the job done.
0:25.4	Meta trusts them, Microsoft trust them, and so do bootstrap founders who need to move fast
0:30.6	without making expensive mistakes.
0:32.9	Check them out at g2i.co slash rob.
0:36.0	Get a seven-day free trial and $1,500 off when you mention startup for the
0:41.0	rest of us. That's g2i.com slash rob. Welcome back to another episode of startup for the rest of us.
0:48.8	I'm your host Rob Walling. And in this solo adventure, I'm going to talk about developing an
0:54.0	editorial I, a realization
0:56.4	a founder had about solving problems and being the right kind of stubborn.
1:03.7	Before we dive in to today's topics, microcomph Europe this year is heading to Iceland.
1:10.1	The dates are September 21st through the 23rd of
1:14.2	26. Tickets have just gone on sale. And if you want to buy a ticket and you should, you should use
1:20.0	promo code Rob 50 at microconf Europe.com. We are selling all of our microconf in-person events out and have for several years.
1:31.5	So if you want a ticket and you want it at the cheapest price, it will ever be, head to microconf,
1:36.8	Europe.com and enter code Rob 50.
1:39.4	Thank you. First topic I want to touch on today is about developing an editorial eye, or as I've
2:00.6	sometimes called it on this podcast,
2:02.5	developing taste. And I think in most of the instances I'm thinking about it, editorial
2:09.8	eye might be better. But I think about this applying to all creative or intellectual domains,
	...

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