Lessons from the Trenches: 10 Actionable Insights for Founders The path of a founder is rarely a straight line. It's a journey filled with challenges, pivots, and invaluable learning experiences. @MihaiBullseye, founder of @_AI_Nexus, and @TomosRees2, co-founder of @PhilanthrifyApp, have “been there and done that” and shared some key insights for building a business during the first episode of a new MultiversX series entitled “Founder Sessions: Lessons From the Trenches”. Here are ten takeaways to help you navigate your own founder journey: 1. Sell the Destination, Not the Engine. Users and investors care about the benefits your product provides, not the complex technology behind it. Much like a car buyer is sold on the speed and feel of a Ferrari rather than its engine's engineering, you need to focus your messaging on the outcome. 2. Build in Public and Iterate Fast. The Web3 space demands a different approach than traditional development. Instead of perfecting a product for years behind closed doors, the advice is to get it out quickly, gather feedback, and adapt. Don't be ashamed if it's not perfect; the goal is to get feedback and grow with your community. 3. Design Your Tokenomics With Care. Many good products are buried by poor tokenomics. Founders are advised to be very careful with their economic design and to steer clear of hyperinflationary models. Aim for a balanced, or even deflationary, system if possible. 4. Leverage Your Unique Edge. Your personal background and skills are your greatest assets. Mihai leveraged 16 years of experience in Web2 mobile gaming to build a user acquisition strategy for his Web3 project. Tomos used his dual experience in charities and fintech to build a transparent giving platform. Stick to what you know. 5. Find Profitability in the Mundane. Success isn't always flashy. One of the most successful games from a founder's studio was a taxi driving simulator, which pulls in 50,000 to 60,000 organic installs a day. This shows there are huge audiences for niche or seemingly "boring" ideas. 6. Embrace Your Community. The Web3 community is unique because they are often financially invested in your project. This makes them far more engaged and a powerful source of valuable feedback. Use your audience. 7. Plan for Failure, Not Just Success. Hope is not a strategy. You need multiple contingency plans—not just a Plan B, but a "plan C, D, E, maybe F". The most successful founders are not those who take the biggest risks, but those who are best at mitigating them. 8. Don't Depend on "Magic Money". A sustainable business cannot be built on the hope that its token price will go up. Your project should have a solid business model that provides real value, independent of market speculation, to ensure you can survive market downturns. 9. Allocate Time for "Moonshot Bets". Focus on your core strategy, but don’t discount high-risk, high-reward opportunities. Tomos won the highly competitive UK Innovation grant that only 1.5% of applicants receive, which proved transformative for Philanthrify. 10. Leverage the power of modern technology. Take your business plan and run it through an AI multiple times. This gives you access to a vast repository of knowledge that can help you refine your ideas and create a better, more robust plan. Indeed, there is "no escaping the trenches" on the founder's journey. So make it your trench. Turn it trench into a launchpad. The struggle isn't the obstacle; it's the very foundation of your success.