I Completely Blew Up My Startup Pitch in Front of a Hundred People and Investors

Here’s what I learned.

Photo by BRUNO EMMANUELLE on Unsplash

The Background

The only thing that mattered when I got out of university was getting a job in a startup.

After a few (failed) applications in marketing, I realized that my lack of experience was to blame.

So I read 20 or so marketing books and grew my blog to demonstrate my know-how.

Meanwhile, I had gotten a job in the customer service of a European mobility startup.

The first month was exciting. The next two were rather boring.

So after 12 weeks of spying, I entertained the idea of looking for something else.

From Customer Service to CMO

I learned through a friend that a small startup was looking for a marketing person.

I applied, did the two interviews, and got the job.

The impostor syndrome kicked in right away.

I had NO IDEA what the hell I was doing — or what I was supposed to do.

The only thing I had going was that I had read Justin Mares and Gabriel Weinberg’s Traction, and I knew how to write.