The Art of Strong Opinions, Loosely Held: A Founder's Perspective on Pivoting

Hey there! Philipp here. As someone who's spent the last few years building products, consulting enterprises, and hosting the #buildinpublic podcast, I've learned a thing or two about the delicate dance of conviction and flexibility. Today, I want to share some raw thoughts about a paradox that every builder faces.

The Conviction Conundrum

You know what's funny? As I sit here in my garden in Mallorca (yeah, I split my time between here and Stuttgart - tough life, I know 😉), I often think about how building products is like growing plants. Sometimes you need to stick to your guns, and other times you need to know when to pull them out.

Strong Opinions: The Foundation

Here's the deal: You absolutely need strong opinions when building something new. Without them, you're just floating around like a plastic bag in the wind. When I started building PostFlow, I had this strong conviction that content creators needed a better way to handle ideation and scheduling. That belief drove every decision.

The Plot Twist: Being Ready to Drop Them

But here's where it gets interesting (and slightly uncomfortable): You need to be equally ready to throw those opinions out the window when they're not serving you anymore.

The Art of Knowing When

During my time helping corporate startups through Reruption, I've seen this pattern play out countless times. The million-dollar question is: How do you know when to persist and when to pivot?

Signs It's Time to Hold Strong

Your user feedback consistently validates your core assumption
The problem you're solving keeps getting bigger
Your gut feeling (backed by data) says you're onto something

Signs It's Time to Let Go

Market feedback consistently points in a different direction
Your solution feels like pushing a boulder uphill
The problem you're solving isn't actually that painful

The Learning Process

Look, I'll be real with you. As someone who's both failed and succeeded (and currently building PostFlow from scratch using AI), there's no shortcut to developing this skill. It's like mountain biking (another passion of mine) - you can read all the theory you want, but you gotta eat dirt a few times to really get it.

The Practical Approach

Start with strong convictions
Set clear metrics for success
Listen to feedback (but don't let it paralyze you)
Be honest with yourself about results
Make decisive moves when needed

The Confidence Factor

Here's something I rarely talk about on the #buildinpublic podcast with Pippo and Paul: It takes massive self-confidence to admit you're wrong. Not the loud, shouting-from-the-rooftops kind of confidence, but the quiet kind that lets you say, "Well, shit, I was wrong about that."

Building That Confidence

You know what helps build this confidence? Tools and systems that help you make informed decisions. (Speaking of which, PostFlow's analysis of content performance can be pretty enlightening for understanding when to pivot your content strategy - just saying 😉)

The Balance Sheet

After helping numerous enterprises explore new business models and watching countless founders navigate their journeys, here's what I've learned:

Being wrong is expensive
Being stubborn is more expensive
Being afraid to have strong opinions is the most expensive of all

Final Thoughts

As a 37-year-old who's seen his fair share of pivots (and enjoys the occasional sail when not building), I can tell you this: The magic happens when you can hold strong opinions while maintaining the humility to change them.

Want to explore more about building in public and leveraging AI for your projects? Check out my podcast or give PostFlow a spin - your first 30 scheduled content pieces are on the house. Because sometimes, the best way to develop this skill is just to start building something.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got some mountain biking to do here in Mallorca. These trails aren't going to ride themselves! 🚴‍♂️