What I Wish Someone Had Told Me

1. Optimism, obsession, self-belief, raw horsepower and personal connections are how things get started.


2. Cohesive teams, the right combination of calmness and urgency, and unreasonable commitment are how things get finished. Long-term orientation is in short supply; try not to worry about what people think in the short t

... See more

Below, co-founders Dylan Diamond and Max Baron share their biggest lessons on building a viral social consumer app, including:

1. Embracing single-player mode as a wedge for social products


2. Building a product that users feel was built just for them


3. Why it’s OK to be unscalable—you can make it scale later


4. Building a familiar product is much easier if you’r

... See more

And as a creator or as an influencer, you might go on Instagram and you want to start a cooking account, where you post pictures or videos and talk about your cooking. Maybe you want to sell a book, or you want to launch a TV show eventually, you want to get a show on the Food Network about cooking. You have to work extremely hard to grow that acco... See more

• Embrace Opportunities for Edutainment. TikTok’s short-form video format isn’t just addictive—it offers brands a unique opportunity to educate consumers about their products. Additionally, teaming up with TikTok beauty and fashion experts, à la The Inkey List, can help brands build credibility and win over potential skeptics.