Startup Lessons
Hard-won advice and how-tos for building from day one.
Some of the most useful content on the network is the plain how-to — the hard-won, specific advice founders give when they're being honest about what they got wrong and right.
A running collection of practical lessons for building from day one, pulled from across every show — the stuff you'd want a more experienced founder to tell you over coffee.
“I don’t think anybody knows what AI is.”
What founders want to know
Answers are drawn live from the network's conversations by Ask the Network.
Shows covering Startup Lessons
The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series
54 episodes on Startup Lessons
First Cheque with Cheryl Mack & Maxine Minter
12 episodes on Startup Lessons
The Startup Retro with Will Richards & Gemma Clancy
7 episodes on Startup Lessons
In The Blink Of AI with Georgie Healy
6 episodes on Startup Lessons
Documentary: The History Of The Australian Startup Ecosystem
6 episodes on Startup Lessons
Pick My Brain with Alan Jones
5 episodes on Startup Lessons
Founders in Motion with Thea Ngo
4 episodes on Startup Lessons
Mumbition with Carrie Kwan & Lucy Kippist
4 episodes on Startup Lessons
Unfunded with Joan Westenberg
4 episodes on Startup Lessons
Life After Launch with Megan Luttrell & Geo George
3 episodes on Startup Lessons
Welcome to Day One with Adam Spencer
3 episodes on Startup Lessons
Building Tech Teams with James MacDonald
2 episodes on Startup Lessons
Secured by Galah Cyber
2 episodes on Startup Lessons
Diaspora NZ with David Booth
2 episodes on Startup Lessons
Oversubscribed with Brendan Hill
1 episode on Startup Lessons
Perspective X with Pauline Fetaui
1 episode on Startup Lessons
Fintechfun with Chris Titley
1 episode on Startup Lessons
117 episodes on Startup Lessons
▶ Life After Launch with Megan Luttrell & Geo George · 28 September 2026
Chad Stephens – You Can't Make Money From a Form
▶ Building Tech Teams with James MacDonald · 26 August 2026
Nobody Knows What to Pay Anymore: A Building Tech Teams Best-Of
▶ Life After Launch with Megan Luttrell & Geo George · 18 August 2026
Darius Monsef – You're the Number One Consumer of Your Own Bullshit
▶ In The Blink Of AI with Georgie Healy · 14 August 2026
Benjamin Plummer (Dragonfly Intelligence) on AI's Real Bottleneck, and Why He's Betting on Australia
▶ Founders in Motion with Thea Ngo · 13 August 2026
Quibi: How a $1.75B Startup Died in 6 Months
▶ First Cheque with Cheryl Mack & Maxine Minter · 3 August 2026
Eric Ries on What Investors Get Wrong About Governance
▶ Founders in Motion with Thea Ngo · 31 July 2026
Why AI Can't Fix Your Business and the $10M Raise He Regrets | Lee Lagdameo, Shikii Labs
▶ In The Blink Of AI with Georgie Healy · 31 July 2026
Lucas Cantor: “I Don’t Think Anybody Knows What AI Is”
▶ Life After Launch with Megan Luttrell & Geo George · 28 July 2026
Dom Pym – The Little White Lie That Built a Bank for 1.4 Million Aussies
▶ Founders in Motion with Thea Ngo · 23 July 2026
Impact Investing at $10: The Fortune He Lost, The Fund He Built | Arjun Agarwal, inaam
▶ Perspective X with Pauline Fetaui · 16 July 2026
From a Secondhand Desk to a $120M Exit: Mark Samlal's Story
▶ Founders in Motion with Thea Ngo · 9 July 2026
Passive Investing Australia: Get Rich Slow, The Fintech That Tells You to Trade Less | Hayden Smith, Pearler
▶ Building Tech Teams with James MacDonald · 30 June 2026
Why Your First Hire Isn't an Engineer Anymore — Michael Batko, ex-Startmate CEO
▶ First Cheque with Cheryl Mack & Maxine Minter · 22 June 2026
How to Think About M&A as a Startup with Alex Feldman
▶ First Cheque with Cheryl Mack & Maxine Minter · 8 June 2026
How to Think About Equity as a Startup Employee
▶ Pick My Brain with Alan Jones · 28 May 2026
How to Price Your Business So You Actually Take Home Enough | Quinnie Chen from Profit Plainly
▶ Secured by Galah Cyber · 15 May 2026
What AI Is Actually Changing in Cyber and How to Keep Up
▶ Secured by Galah Cyber · 2 April 2026
What the ISM AI Update Actually Means for Cyber Teams
▶ First Cheque with Cheryl Mack & Maxine Minter · 12 January 2026
The Australian Venture Playbook for 2026
▶ Oversubscribed with Brendan Hill · 29 October 2025
Inside the Playbooks of Australia’s Million-Dollar Founders
▶ First Cheque with Cheryl Mack & Maxine Minter · 20 October 2025
Why “Boring” Businesses Make the Best Startups (Replay Ep with Matthew Browne)
▶ Mumbition with Carrie Kwan & Lucy Kippist · 8 September 2025
Episode 121: Startup Realness: Branding Balance & Bold Moves
▶ Pick My Brain with Alan Jones · 27 August 2025
Cole Cornford on Protecting Startup Attack Surfaces | Galah Cyber
▶ In The Blink Of AI with Georgie Healy · 15 August 2025
The Truth About AI Agents: Real Wins, Real Failures
▶ Pick My Brain with Alan Jones · 13 August 2025
The 4 Things Every Investor Wants to Hear in Your Pitch
▶ Fintechfun with Chris Titley · 31 July 2025
Mastering Money Management: Jason Leong on Bootstrapping PocketSmith and Empowering the Home CFO
▶ First Cheque with Cheryl Mack & Maxine Minter · 28 July 2025
Decode the VC Dictionary Before Your Next Raise
▶ Pick My Brain with Alan Jones · 16 July 2025
How to Build a Community-Led Startup | with James Davie from Miyagi
▶ Mumbition with Carrie Kwan & Lucy Kippist · 11 July 2025
Episode 119: Systems, Sanity & School Pickups: Mumbition with Korryn Haines
▶ First Cheque with Cheryl Mack & Maxine Minter · 2 July 2025
Why Australia Builds More Unicorns per Dollar Than Anyone | with Ben Grabiner from Side Stage Ventures
▶ Mumbition with Carrie Kwan & Lucy Kippist · 18 June 2025
Ep 114: Cyber Awareness & Tech Tools for small business
▶ Pick My Brain with Alan Jones · 4 June 2025
How Bardar Pivoted: Dexter Todd’s Festival Data Playbook
▶ Mumbition with Carrie Kwan & Lucy Kippist · 28 May 2025
Forensic Finance to Empowering Women with Julie Garis
▶ In The Blink Of AI with Georgie Healy · 29 April 2025
Anish Sinha (upcover) on How Founders Can Thrive Despite Australia’s AI Budget Blunder
▶ Diaspora NZ with David Booth · 28 March 2025
S3 | E4 - Bowen Pan (Common Room) on launching Facebook Marketplace, spotting hidden opportunities, and mastering the art of product
▶ Diaspora NZ with David Booth · 21 March 2025
S3 | E3 - Joel Little (Grammy-winning producer) on making Royals with Lorde, creative collaboration, and why startups are like hit songs
▶ In The Blink Of AI with Georgie Healy · 7 March 2025
The Ultimate AI Toolkit for Busy People ft. Gareth Rydon
▶ First Cheque with Cheryl Mack & Maxine Minter · 16 December 2024
The 2024 Wrap-Up and Spicy Predictions with Cheryl & Maxine
▶ In The Blink Of AI with Georgie Healy · 13 December 2024
Scaling AI Education for Founders: Inside BuildClub with Annie Liao
▶ The Startup Retro with Will Richards & Gemma Clancy · 15 September 2024
Square Peg's global shift, Linktree's 2023 & SA rocket launches
▶ Unfunded with Joan Westenberg · 12 September 2024
Building a Profitable AI-Driven Design Platform Without VC Funding
▶ The Startup Retro with Will Richards & Gemma Clancy · 8 September 2024
Turo partners with Uber, AirTrunk's $23B sale & agtech spotlight
▶ The Startup Retro with Will Richards & Gemma Clancy · 1 September 2024
$66M fund, AustralianSuper's loss & CAST's debut
▶ Unfunded with Joan Westenberg · 29 August 2024
Cole Cornford Discusses Bootstrapping and Balancing Business with Family Life
▶ The Startup Retro with Will Richards & Gemma Clancy · 25 August 2024
Uber shuts down Car Next Door, Sitemate acquires Nomad Fleet
▶ The Startup Retro with Will Richards & Gemma Clancy · 18 August 2024
Breakthrough Vic saga, FMiA update & Slice's US expansion
▶ The Startup Retro with Will Richards & Gemma Clancy · 11 August 2024
OneVentures' 7th fund, accelerator cohorts & Google monopoly ruling
▶ First Cheque with Cheryl Mack & Maxine Minter · 7 July 2024
Bronwen Clune on Risk Appetite and the Future of Australian Startups
▶ The Startup Retro with Will Richards & Gemma Clancy · 7 July 2024
Fintech vs. banks, AI jobs surge & top startup raises
▶ Unfunded with Joan Westenberg · 20 June 2024
Sheree Rubinstein on Bootstrapping, Pivoting, and Building One Roof
▶ Unfunded with Joan Westenberg · 20 June 2024
Unlocking Startup Success: Lucy Lloyd founder of Mentorloop on Bootstrapping & VC Funding Challenges
▶ First Cheque with Cheryl Mack & Maxine Minter · 26 May 2024
Marvin Liao Shares Insights on Investing and Developing an Edge in Startup Ecosystems
▶ First Cheque with Cheryl Mack & Maxine Minter · 17 December 2023
Elaine Stead discusses bravery, diversity, and changing the investing ecosystem
▶ First Cheque with Cheryl Mack & Maxine Minter · 3 December 2023
The Art of Building a Network: How Rayn Ong Became the All-Seeing Eye of the Australian Startup Ecosystem
▶ Documentary: The History Of The Australian Startup Ecosystem · 19 December 2022
The History Of The Australian Startup Ecosystem - Part 1
▶ Documentary: The History Of The Australian Startup Ecosystem · 19 December 2022
The History Of The Australian Startup Ecosystem - Part 2
▶ Documentary: The History Of The Australian Startup Ecosystem · 19 December 2022
The History Of The Australian Startup Ecosystem - Part 3
▶ Documentary: The History Of The Australian Startup Ecosystem · 19 December 2022
The History Of The Australian Startup Ecosystem - Part 4
▶ Documentary: The History Of The Australian Startup Ecosystem · 19 December 2022
The History Of The Australian Startup Ecosystem - Part 5
▶ Documentary: The History Of The Australian Startup Ecosystem · 19 December 2022
The History Of The Australian Startup Ecosystem - Part 6
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 29 November 2022
John Allsopp discusses the startup ecosystem’s evolution from a “community” to an “industry”
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 22 November 2022
Lars Rasmussen discusses the key ingredients for successful founders
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 25 October 2022
Eloise Hall and Isobel Marshall discuss how social enterprises fit within the startup community
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 23 October 2022
Joshua Flannery discusses the key differences between Australia and Japan’s startup ecosystems
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 18 October 2022
Markus Kahlbetzer explores support opportunities for government and universities
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 16 October 2022
Pauline Fetaui discusses the difference between the corporate and startup worlds
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 11 October 2022
Kim Heras relives the major milestones he witnessed during the growth of the ecosystem
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 9 October 2022
Darryl Lyons believes Australia has an opportunity to lead the world in Agri-tech
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 27 September 2022
Megan Sebben believes there is still work to be done in improving access for underrepresented groups
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 11 September 2022
Don Wright believes the various startup ecosystems within Australia should work cooperatively
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 23 August 2022
James Fielding shares his belief that Australia’s talent pool is world class
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 7 August 2022
Evan Thornley discusses the evolution of the startup ecosystem
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 3 July 2022
Louise Nobes: Australian startup ecosystem needs to be brave enough to “think untraditionally”
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 28 June 2022
Darren Winterford believes Australian Entrepreneurs would benefit from more networking
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 26 June 2022
Craig Swann fears complacency may slow innovation
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 19 June 2022
Moira Were discusses what metrics companies can use to measure “good”
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 5 June 2022
Kate Jones explains why the Tech Council of Australia was founded
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 31 May 2022
James Tynan shares his unpopular views on startup accelerators
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 29 May 2022
Pete Horsley explains why diversity is so important in the ecosystem
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 26 May 2022
Mick Liubinskas: Australia’s startup ecosystem would be stronger with a single city leading it
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 24 May 2022
Pete Lead: “You have permission to be awesome and complete freedom to fail”
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 10 May 2022
Leslie Delaforce highlights the unique challenges facing Indigenous founders
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 26 April 2022
David Burt explains why startups are essential to our standard of living
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 24 April 2022
Rachael Neumann explores the effects of the pandemic on startups
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 21 April 2022
Pete Cooper discusses Universities’ role in the ecosystem
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 19 April 2022
Anna Wright: why “fail fast” is the greatest advice
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 17 April 2022
Chad Renando talks definitions of a strong ecosystem
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 7 April 2022
Baden U’Ren on the importance of teaching our youth entrepreneurship
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 3 April 2022
Aaron Birkby discusses the gaps in the Australian startup ecosystem
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 29 March 2022
Malcolm Turnbull discusses innovation in the political sphere
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 27 March 2022
Jodie Fox highlights the contrasts between the Australian and US Ecosystems
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 24 March 2022
James Alexander shares his thoughts on Governments’ roles in startups
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 20 March 2022
Phil Morle explains the struggles that incubators often face
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 17 March 2022
Silvia Pfeiffer discusses her first startup and the lessons it taught her
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 15 March 2022
Murray Hurps discusses the barriers to growth in the startup ecosystem
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 13 March 2022
Rachel Yang explores diversity and social issues
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 8 March 2022
Nicole O’Brien: The startup ecosystem is overwhelmingly positive
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 6 March 2022
Dean McEvoy on egos and startups
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 3 March 2022
Georgie Turner discusses the next steps for Australia’s ecosystem
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 1 March 2022
Colin Kinner discusses the key missteps first time founders often make
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 27 February 2022
Alan Jones: Can we talk about smartphones?
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 24 February 2022
Paul Bassat examines the evolution of the ecosystem
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 20 February 2022
Hamish Hawthorn discusses the evolution of the ecosystem
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 17 February 2022
Peta Ellis on the importance of innovation
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 15 February 2022
Alfred Lo compares startup ecosystems in different nations
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 13 February 2022
Sarah Pearson on the importance of cooperation and competition
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 10 February 2022
Michael Batko discusses the four prevalent business models of accelerators
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 8 February 2022
Julie Trell discusses the importance of diversity
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 3 February 2022
Maxine Sherrin discusses the importance of building a community of innovators
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 30 January 2022
Lauren Capelin and the importance of nurturing diversity
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 27 January 2022
Bruce Tulloch on some of the key challenges the Australian startup ecosystem faces
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 23 January 2022
Cheryl Mack on building communities and her passion for supporting founders
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 23 January 2022
Kate Cornick on ways to support Australians to begin their startup journey
▶ The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series · 23 January 2022
Niki Scevak is optimistic about Australia’s future
▶ Welcome to Day One with Adam Spencer · 16 May 2021
Antony Martin from Hone
▶ Welcome to Day One with Adam Spencer · 2 May 2021
Mike McKiernan from Deckee
▶ Welcome to Day One with Adam Spencer · 25 April 2021
Colin Goudie from Social Pinpoint
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