Published October 21, 2025 • Based on Founder Reality Episode 32
Also available on: Apple Podcasts • Spotify • YouTube
I just finished writing my first free e-book, and I'm pissed off enough about the state of startup advice to give it away completely free.
The book is called "The Anti-Unicorn: The Consulting Model" and it's based on a tweet I posted two weeks ago that said "Your first $100,000 should come from consulting, not VC."
Over 800 people liked that tweet. Apparently, I'm not the only one tired of startup advice that assumes you'll raise millions.
The Ferrari Manual Problem
Here's what pisses me off: only 0.05% of startups ever raise VC funding.
That's not a typo. Five startups out of 10,000 raise venture capital.
But 99.95% of founders are reading advice written for the 0.05%.
It's like reading a Ferrari manual while riding a bicycle. The advice isn't wrong—it's just for someone else entirely.
My Six-Year Detour Into Startup Theater
Six years ago, I was that founder reading the Ferrari manual.
I was 19, sitting in a tiny dorm room in Waterloo (a college town most Americans have never heard of), taking notes on every Paul Graham essay like my life depended on it. I watched all 42 videos of Sam Altman's "How to Build a Startup" series. I bought Zero to One, The Hard Thing About Hard Things, and devoured YC's blog.
I thought if I just worked hard enough and followed the formula, I'd make it.
What I didn't realize: all that advice assumes you have access to Silicon Valley VCs, entry networks, a US work permit, and probably $2 million to burn. It assumes you went to Stanford or Berkeley and come from a wealthy background.
I had none of that. I was in Canada on a student visa with zero connections.
But I didn't know that yet.
The Pitch Treadmill That Goes Nowhere
For years, I optimized for raising capital instead of building a real business. I pitched VCs in Canada and the US, hearing the same responses over and over:
"Come back when you have more traction." "We don't invest in Canadian companies." "Let us know when you move to SF."
That last one was particularly brutal. As if I could just quit school, get a visa, and relocate to the most expensive city in the world.
After months of this, I realized the game was rigged—not against me personally, but against anyone who didn't fit the Silicon Valley insider profile.
The Consulting Revelation
Three years ago, everything changed. Instead of trying to raise money, I started SimpleDirect as a consulting business first.
Within months, we were generating real revenue. Not runway—profit.
We solved actual customer problems instead of pitching imaginary solutions to investors. We focused on cash flow instead of burn rate. We built a real business instead of startup theater.
Today, SimpleDirect is profitable. ANC, our AI venture studio, is growing sustainably. We've never raised a dollar of VC funding, and we never plan to.
Three Chapters That Will Change How You Think
Chapter 1: The 99.95% Reality
Most startup advice is written by and for the 0.05% who raise VC. The rest of us need different playbooks.
The consulting-first model isn't a backup plan—it's often the better plan. You start with revenue on day one. You validate real market demand. You maintain control of your company.
Chapter 2: Why Exit-Obsessed Thinking Ruins Everything
The biggest lie in startup culture: you're building to sell.
When you plan to exit, you optimize for metrics that look good to buyers instead of metrics that create real value for customers. You focus on growth at any cost instead of sustainable profitability.
I've seen too many founders squeeze 5-7 years of their life into a startup, get lucky with an exit, and then have no idea what to do next. They're 40-something millionaires with zero purpose.
That's not winning. That's winning the lottery and calling it a business strategy.
Chapter 3: The Compound Advantage
When you're not planning to sell, everything changes. You focus on customers, profit margins, and revenue. You make decisions based on long-term value instead of short-term fundraising metrics.
I own 100% of my businesses. I'm proud of that. I'll never give up equity for venture capital or angel investors. I'm here for the next 30 years.
When you're not thinking about exits, your decision-making gets dramatically better.
Why Most Founders Are Afraid to Start
My friends at Apple and Google tell me they're afraid to start companies because they think they have to quit their high-paying jobs, give up their condos, and sacrifice everything like Jeff Bezos did when he started Amazon.
That's another Silicon Valley myth.
You can build a successful business while keeping your job by starting with consulting. You can validate demand, generate revenue, and grow sustainably without burning your life savings on a dream.
The Startup Advice Industrial Complex Is Broken
I'm not writing this book to make money—it's completely free and always will be.
I'm writing it because the startup advice industrial complex is fundamentally broken and poisoning young founders' minds. It's making people afraid to start companies because they think they need to fit a mold that only applies to 0.05% of entrepreneurs.
99.95% of founders will never raise venture capital. So why is 100% of startup advice written as if they will?
That's insane.
Who This Book Is For
This book is for the 99.95%. It's for:
- Bootstrap founders who want to build real businesses, not fundraising theater
- Consulting-first founders who understand revenue beats runway
- Toronto/Arkansas/Oregon founders, not just San Francisco insiders
- Freedom-over-growth founders who want to control their destiny
- Anyone tired of startup advice that assumes you'll raise millions
The Real Game vs. The Fake Game
I'm not saying VCs are evil or that raising capital is always wrong. I'm friends with many investors, and I respect what they do.
But their advice is written for their benefit, not yours. They write to find founders who believe their ideology and can play their game.
If you're not ready to play that game—or don't want to—you're not their target customer anyway.
The problem is when their advice dominates the entire startup conversation, making us think it's the only way to build a company.
It's not.
What You Can Do Today
The draft of "The Anti-Unicorn" is live as a Google Doc. It's version 0.0.3, so expect typos and rough sections. I've left comments open so you can collaborate with me on improvements.
Read it if you're tired of Ferrari manuals for bicycle riders.
Read it if you want to build a real business instead of playing fundraising theater.
Read it if you're part of the 99.95% who've been ignored by startup advice for too long.
And if it changes how you think about building companies, pass it on to the next founder who needs to hear this.
I spent six years learning this the hard way. Maybe you don't have to.
Tweet me @TheGeorgePu with resources you want discussed in the next episode.
Get my free ebook "The Anti-Unicorn" at founderreality.com - the consulting-first approach to building in 2025.
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