Sandra Shpilberg - New Startup Mindset: Ten Mindset Shifts to Build the Company of Your Dreams

Sandra Shpilberg is a unicorn and this book is one, too. Simultaneously profound and practical, replete with the soundest advice and great storytelling while being tender toward the readers soul, this is a game-changing must-read for anyone who dreams of creating a businessand in particular for those who dont fit the mold. Go Sandra Shpilberg, go!

Julie Lythcott-Haims, author of the New York Times bestseller How to Raise an Adult, and Real American: A Memoir

Sandra Shpilbergs phenomenal book, which showcases her literary talent and entrepreneurial skills, will change the minds of aspiring entrepreneurs... for the better.

Michael Szenberg, editor in chief emeritus, American Economist; distinguished professor of economics, Touro College and University System

Sandra Shpilbergs book is a must-read for all founders or anyone contemplating starting a business. She graciously provides an insiders guide on how to overcome a wide array of challenges that founders face. This is a gem of a resource for any type of entrepreneur.

Mona Bijoor, founder of JOOR, partner of Kings Circle Capital, author of Startups and Downs: The Secrets of Resilient Entrepreneurs

If youre thinking about starting a business, New Startup Mindset is THE book to read. Sandras story offers lots of practical wisdom and inspiring examples delivered with even more heart. Its the book I was looking for during my early days of running CD Babythis new way of thinking would have had me jumping out of my seat in excitement.

Derek Sivers, founder of CD Baby and author of Anything You Want

Copyright 2021 Sandra Shpilberg
All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the publisher.

Published by Girl Friday Books, Seattle

Produced by Girl Friday Productions
www.girlfridayproductions.com

Design: Paul Barrett
Project management: Bethany Davis

Image credits: cover Shutterstock/Rzoog

ISBN (paperback): 978-1-954854-04-8
ISBN (e-book): 978-1-954854-08-6
ISBN (audiobook): 978-1-954854-09-3
Library of Congress Control Number: 2021906238

Second edition

To Coby and Karina.
When we first moved to Palo Alto,
I said you were adaptive and resilient.
You responded: Are we adopted and Brazilian!?
You are, and will always be,
my most meaningful and loved co-creations.

When you learn, teach.
When you get, give.

Maya Angelou

• You want to start something new but are afraid to do so
• You want to start something new but are waiting for X, Y, and Z to happen first
• You are afraid of hard work or burnout
• You are afraid startup culture is not for you
• You cant (even) imagine yourself raising funds from venture capitalists
• You seek financial freedom
• You seek inner freedom
• You seek meaning in your life

In New Startup Mindset, Sandra Shpilberg, founder and CEO of Seeker Health, lays out a clear path that all business owners should take: solve a true problem, delight your employees and customers, do it sustainably and profitably. Its a model thats easy to understand and based on tried and true business principles that will change the way you approach your business and your life.

Shpilberg introduces us to a new way of thinking about starting and scaling a successful company. She illustrates that Silicon Valleys startup formula is not the only beacon for success. Investing in predominantly white, male founders (in 2020, female founder funding declined from 2.8% to 2.3%) and pushing capital into businesses without sustainable results yetall in the name of creating a unicornis a model that only works for a select few companies. As a result, that formula propagates false hope and incorrect lessons for the next generation of entrepreneurs.

Now more than ever, the world needs innovative entrepreneurs, and Shpilbergs model is an essential formula for how to be one. The pandemic helped many of us crystallize our priorities in business and in life. Today, its not just about creating a business that inspires people to consume, its about building a sustainable business that tackles big problems such as climate change, health care, and education. Entrepreneurship offers a path to innovation that can make the most meaningful impact.

Through this book, you will also gain a realistic view of entrepreneurship that is neither linear nor about the final outcome. Success will always take more steps than you expected or planned, and thats something I highlighted in my own book, Startups and Downs: The Secrets of Resilient Entrepreneurs.

Most entrepreneurs, however, dont initially think about the real law of progression. They create a big vision and aim to reach their goals in a few (difficult) steps and that rarely works. Landing a large batch of funding can be thrilling, but it might not be what your business truly needs at that moment. When you rush the process, it may feel like youve succeeded in the short-term, but your long-term approach suffers.

As the well-known self-help author Robert Collier once said, Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out. Consistency and purposeful actions should drive the processes that you utilize to work. Through this iterative approach, you take steps to achieve your vision.

As an entrepreneur, whether you find yourself moving backward, forward, or pivoting, having consistent and clear focus will lead to progress. Even failure is progress if you can make the most of what youve learned. The trick is keeping your eyes trained on your goal. Sustained momentum is what brings actual results.

By picking up this book, you will have access to the type of eye-opening inspiration that is the seedling for entrepreneurship. You, too, can create a company that makes an impact, and New Startup Mindset will show you how.

Mona Bijoor

Founder, JOOR

Partner, Kings Circle Capital

Author, Startups and Downs: The Secrets of Resilient Entrepreneurs

May 2021

Whats normal? A setting on a washing machine.

Ashley Purdy

If this is a mans world, who cares?

Sophia Amoruso, Nasty Gal

The formula: Young male founder in a garage in Silicon Valley. Hes Caucasian, Indian, or Asian, and a programmer. He has a cofounder in the same demographic. Hes accepted into that fancy name incubator, where he spends three months focusing on how to turn his idea into a business and learning how to pitch for venture capital. He receives incubator and angel funds and spends the next year attempting to figure out how to prove traction.

If he only had more funding, he thinks.

He pitches to venture capitalists (VCs). He drops into the conversation that he was indeed number one in his ninth-grade class, and Top 20 under 20 because #humblebrag. Then, based on untethered optimism and a fictitious valuation, not rooted in the fundamentals of businessthat is, revenue and profithe closes his Series A of funding.