It looks like progress. But it’s not.
If you’ve spent any time around early-stage startups, you’ve seen it.
Founders buzzing between demo days, investor coffee chats, LinkedIn threads, and pitch decks. Their roadmap sounds sharp. Their vision slides sparkle. Maybe they’ve even got a few warm intros and tentative angel interest.
But step closer and ask: How many customers have paid them—unprompted, repeatedly, and without favours? Often, the answer is silence.
Under the hood, a lot of so-called “momentum” is just motion.
That’s not growth. That’s drift.
The Drift Pattern: Why Founders Get Stuck in the Illusion of Progress
Let’s be honest—no one sets out to stall. Drift doesn’t happen overnight. It’s a slow slide into looking the part without playing it.
1. They talk to everyone… except actual customers.
When founders avoid tough conversations, they cling to soft ones. Ecosystem advisors. Other founders. Mentors. LinkedIn.
The harder thing? Sitting down with 10 strangers who resemble your ideal user and asking:
“What are you trying to get done and why hasn’t anything worked yet?”
That’s Jobs-to-Be-Done work. That’s uncomfortable. That’s growth.
2. They build a narrative before they build a product.
Founders get praised for being “visionary.” But ideas are cheap. Execution, painful.
Some founders fall into a trap: shaping the image of a promising startup founder before they’ve validated anything real.
They’re addicted to the story of becoming, not the substance.
3. Early applause gives them false confidence.
Polite nods from incubators and accelerators. Encouragement from colleagues and friends. “Good luck!” from other founders and pitch judges.
It feels like validation, but it’s just permission to keep dreaming, not proof that someone needs what you’re building.
If five strangers haven’t paid you yet, you don’t have traction. You have theatre.
4. Fundraising becomes the first milestone, not the earned outcome.
Drifters say: “We need capital to test the idea.”
Builders say: “We’ve tested the idea. Let us show you what’s working.”
If your only fuel is someone else’s money, you’re not building a business. You’re gambling with optics.
5. They fear focus and confuse breadth with ambition.
Drifting founders often can’t pick one customer.
“If we only serve X, we’ll miss out on Y.”
But if you try to serve everyone, you serve no one well. Growth requires prioritisation. Drift thrives on the illusion of optionality.
6. They work alone and assume that’s a strength.
If no one wants to build this with you, why would anyone want to buy it?
Solo founders often say they’re preserving control. Sometimes, they’re just protecting themselves from rejection—from users and collaborators.
Why This Happens: The Hidden Ecosystem Incentives That Feed the Drift
The startup world rewards the performance of building more than the proof of building.
Pitches are polished. Stories are tight. Momentum is mimicked.
But here’s the tension: many support systems—accelerators, awards, pitch events—accidentally reward surface-level signals.
It’s easier to get a grant than a customer. Easier to land a mentor than meaningful feedback. Easier to feel productive than to face the truth.
Founders are human. We respond to incentives. And right now, the ecosystem is built to validate the image, not the outcome.
Snapping Out of Drift: What Real Builders Do Instead
Want to build something that matters?
Start here:
- Talk to 10 real people who might pay you. No prompting. No leading. Just listen for the struggles they already have.
- Map the Four Forces of Progress. What pushes them to change? What’s pulling them toward alternatives? What’s making them anxious? What habits keep them stuck?
- Run one test that proves (or disproves) a core assumption. Don’t design a product. Design an experiment.
- Stop asking how to raise money. Start asking how to earn it.
- Document a living strategy. Keep it lean. Update it weekly. Let your learning shape your moves.
You don’t need to look the part. You need to build the thing.
A Note to Founders: This Isn’t About Shaming. It’s About Reclaiming.
Every founder I work with has been here.
They’ve felt the drift. They’ve talked the talk. They’ve mistaken noise for signal. So have I!
The difference is what you do next.
You can keep orbiting the startup ecosystem, gathering likes and pitch deck templates.
Or you can get serious about solving a real problem for real people and earn your way to growth.
Want Help Cutting Through the Noise?
If this post hits uncomfortably close to home, it’s okay.
This is the work I do every day with founders across accelerators like Techscaler, Barclays Eagle Labs, and Edinburgh Innovations.
Together, we ditch the vanity and dig deep into:
- Customer interviews (JTBD + Four Forces)
- Positioning that makes your stand out
- Punchy messaging that sticks
- Testable go-to-market strategies
- Hands-on execution with ROI tracking
We ditch the fluff. We stop burning cash and energy. We embrace clarity, traction, and growth.
Drop me a line if you’re ready to turn your energy into momentum and your momentum into results.
TL;DR: Stop Drifting. Start Building.
You’re not behind. You’re just distracted. The ecosystem may love a good story, but only your customer can give you the ending you want.
Get back to the fundamentals. Talk to real users. Run small tests. Follow the signal. I’m here if you want a strategic partner in the trenches.
Let’s unlock growth.