6 things I’d actually do as a first time founder in 2026

Working with and for brands all day long has exposed just where and how the tectonic plates have shifted in this wacky new world we live in.

I don’t work with early stage founders as often as I used to, but I got to work with a few this year as part of an incubator that a First Rodeo reader reached out to invite me to. Advising young founders really got me energized— if I’m honest, I’m realizing it’s one of my favorite things to do. I feel my best when I feel like I’m doing work that actually helps, makes a difference, matters... and don’t we all? Helping consumer founders who are “starting from scratch” is one thing I know I can be useful at. Eventually I’d love to formalize this type of work, whether by offering 1:1 sessions as a Founder Whisperer™️ again, or working sessions and office hours on Zoom, but for now, I do it for fun when I have time, as I have a different— albeit pretty relevant— whole ass full time job.

The conversations I was having with these founders brought up a lot for me though.

This is such a radically different time to build a business than ever before. I started my first start-up about six years ago exactly— which in the grand scheme of time, is nothing, but might as well be 1999 when I’m talking to founders incorporating in 2026.

So much has changed. AI, creative, marketing— those are radically transformed. A lot of the unsexy parts of running a business— ops, finance, supply chain, wholesale—haven’t really changed that much at all, but the tools to manage them have. Working with and for brands all day long has exposed just where and how the tectonic plates have shifted, for me.

So here is my advice as a former founder/operator for folks who are starting from scratch... or want to!... right now. Three things that have changed and that you can’t fake your way past in 2026, then three things that haven’t changed at all and that nobody told me, that I wish someone had.

What’s changed (and you can’t fake your way past)