The Founder's Notes
A blog by Scott Hofert.
Welcome to The Founder's Notes.
I will keep this short. This is a place where I write honestly about what building something actually looks like. The good, the hard, and the stuff most people never talk about.
Over the past 20+ years, I've founded and built both for-profit and nonprofit ventures. The journey has humbled me more times than I can count - and it's also given me real joy through the learnings, the surprises, and the moments of hard-won clarity. I'd love to share what I've discovered along the way: the places I've grown up, the lessons that took time to earn, and just as importantly, the failures that shaped me. I don't see those failures as detours - I see them as the curriculum. If you're building something and want a steady, honest partner in the process, I'd be honored to walk alongside you. I'm looking forward to the journey ahead.
Grateful, Scott
Let the Argument Go
For years I thought I could win people over with facts. If I said something rational and the other person was being irrational, I figured they'd eventually come around. My...
9 - END GAME - What’s Your Future Intent?
What's Your Future Intent? Where do you ultimately want this company to land? And when that day comes, how do you want to hand it off? Most of us never...
8 - Progressing - What Got You Here Won't Keep You Here
If you're thinking about becoming an entrepreneur, or you're a few years into it and starting to feel the ground shift under you, I want to tell you something nobody...
7 - MESSAGING - Why "Great" Product or Service Isn't Enough: The Marketing Truth Every Entrepreneur Has to Face
Messaging - You can have the best product in the world, but if nobody knows about it, none of it matters. How do you say something that actually gets heard?...
5 - DEVELOPMENT - My own personal trajectory plays a key role in future growth of the company
DevelopmentWho you are as a person will either grow your company or hold it back. So what does it look like to keep growing as a person, not just as...
3 - STRUCTURE - What systems do you need to put in place in order for your business to move forward?
Stage Three: Structure What systems and processes do you need so this thing can actually get delivered, again and again, without you holding it together with duct tape every time?...
2 - MASTERY - How good do you have to get before someone is willing to pay you for it?
Stage Two: Mastery You've probably seen the stats floating around. Spend eighteen minutes a day on something for a year and you'll be better than 95 percent of people who...
1 - CONTRIBUTION - What’s the service or widget you want to offer the world?
What Are You Here to Offer? One of the things I run into more than almost anything else when I'm coaching is this: people who deeply want to be entrepreneurs...
