A New Kind of Incubator: Why I’m Launching a Community-Based Startup Incubator for Non-Technical Founders & Executives
I have been part of four 500 startups, two as a co-founder, one as an advisor, and another as an early team member. Through my journey, I have seen firsthand the challenges that first-time founders face when trying to navigate the early stages of entrepreneurship.
I have also seen how the process of starting a venture-backed company is often inaccessible to founders who live outside of startup hubs like Silicon Valley. It is also heavily biased towards those who already know the ins and outs of starting a company and have connections within the investors’ circle.
I was inspired to create a community-based incubator for non-tech founders to come together and learn, connect, and launch their startups. This is why I am launching a startup incubator specifically for non-tech founders. Our incubator is focused on helping founders navigate the complexities of starting a venture-backed company and providing a space for them to learn from one another and build the skills and knowledge they need to succeed. Our goal is to provide non-tech founders with the support and guidance they need to overcome the challenges of building a startup and achieve success. By building a strong community of non-tech founders, we hope to foster collaboration, innovation, and growth in the startup world.
You don’t work on your dreams, someone will, put you to work on theirs
Able is not a typical incubator that focuses on just ideas. Ideas are a dime a dozen, but execution is what truly matters. That’s why we built a process to find founders with a great “founder work ethic”, a data-driven approach, the ability to continuously execute, strong communication skills, and a knack for sales.
We offer this opportunity to anyone who wants to prove themselves, regardless of their background. We have had experienced founders who have worked at companies like Google, Facebook, Lyft, and Uber apply to join the program. We have also had numerous Stanford MBAs who have helped other founders scale companies to over $100M in revenue. Regardless of their backgrounds, all of them share one thing in common: they no longer want to work on someone else’s dream. They want to work on their own, and Able is here to help them do just that.
Objective and result oriented learning and doing
At Able, we believe in objective and results-oriented learning and doing. This means that founders start with a goal and are provided with the initiatives and resources they need to complete that goal. It’s not just about learning, but also about applying what you learn to your startup. For example, founders are required to conduct the Mom Test for their idea and are taught how to do it. This helps them validate their idea and ensure that it has a good chance of achieving product-market fit. By providing a structured approach to learning and doing, we can help founders avoid common pitfalls and make the most of their time and resources.
At Able, we believe in the power of peer review. When you learn something and it’s time to apply it to your startup, you can have it peer reviewed to ensure that you are on the right track. This allows you to get valuable feedback from others who have been through the process and can provide valuable insights and guidance. With Able, founders can have everything they learn peer reviewed and get valuable feedback that they can then use to create an execution playbook. This helps them to actually apply what they have learned when they are ready to execute on their ideas. By providing access to peer review, we can help founders to avoid common pitfalls and ensure that they are on the right track as they build their startups.
Mapping What You Learn to Your Startup Idea: How Able Helps Founders Apply What They’ve Learned”
At Able, we believe in the power of mapping what you learn to your startup idea. This means that everything you learn is automatically connected to your startup idea to help you apply what you have learned in a practical and relevant way. This can help you to avoid getting bogged down in unnecessary details and focus on the things that really matter. By providing a structured approach to learning and applying what you learn, we can help founders to make the most of their time and resources and increase their chances of success.
A video shopping app with 1 million+ users with no marketing budget
Mapping what you learn to your startup idea and applying it is important because it helps founders avoid the common mistake of thinking that their idea is unique and that the rules don’t apply to them. This is a mistake that I made with my own startup, Nice, a video shopping app. Even though we had over 1 million users and a 4.6+ rating with 9,000+ reviews on both iOS and Android, we failed to achieve product-market fit with our target users and had to shut down in November of 2017.
Getting peer review is also important because it allows founders to get valuable feedback and guidance from others who have been through the process. This can help them to avoid common pitfalls and ensure that they are on the right track as they build their startups. By providing a structured approach to learning and applying what you learn, and by incorporating peer review, Able can help founders to avoid the mistakes that I made with Nice and increase their chances of success.
Able is not just about learning and doing, but a community of like-minded founders, investors, and startup executives who want to work together to build something great. This community provides a space where founders from around the world can connect, learn, and launch their startups. Able provides a range of support and resources to help first-time founders succeed, including mentorship from experienced entrepreneurs, networking opportunities, and access to funding. The goal of the Able community is to provide non-tech founders with the support they need to overcome the challenges of building a startup and achieve success.
Who’s Able for and why join?
Able is not just for non-tech founders or first-time founders. Executives can also use it to gain a deeper understanding of what it’s like to work in an early stage startup. According to a billion-dollar CEO, “Any executive who wants to be part of an early stage startup should join Able first.” This incubator provides a range of support and resources to help founders succeed, including mentorship, networking opportunities, and access to funding. The goal of Able is to provide founders with the support they need to overcome the challenges of building a startup and achieve success.
“Any executive who wants to be part of an early stage startup should join Able first.”
Seventy percent of founders say that they would be extremely disappointed if they were no longer able to use Able after just two weeks of using it. When asked why, they said that even if they did not start their own startup, they now have a better understanding of what goes into building a product from scratch, which would be helpful in any startup environment.
Are you a non-tech founder looking to launch your startup? Do you want access to mentorship, networking opportunities, and funding? Join the Able incubator today and take the first step towards building a successful startup. Our community of like-minded founders, investors, and executives will support you every step of the way. Don’t miss this opportunity to learn, grow, and launch your startup with Able. Apply now and start your journey towards entrepreneurial success.
