5min
Module 1: The Lean Startup Mindset
Module 2: Defining Your Vision
Module 3: The Build-Measure-Learn Feedback Loop
Module 4: The Minimum Viable Product (MVP)
Module 5: Validating with Customers
Module 6: Pivoting or Persevering
6/23 Lessons
Content
Assignement
You've mapped your business model and identified your core hypotheses. Now, the next step is to prioritize them. Not all assumptions are created equal. Some are minor details, but one, in particular, is the linchpin of your entire venture. This is your "Leap-of-Faith Assumption."
1. What is a Leap-of-Faith Assumption?
A Leap-of-Faith Assumption is the most critical hypothesis on your Business Model Canvas. If this one assumption is wrong, your entire business model is fundamentally flawed, and no amount of hard work or pivoting will save it. It is the core premise that must be true for your business to have any chance of success.
Think of your business idea as a chain of dominoes. The Leap-of-Faith Assumption is the first domino in that chain. If you don't validate it, all the dominoes that follow—your growth strategy, your revenue model, and your customer relationships—will fall. You must test and prove this assumption before you do anything else. .
2. How to Identify Yours
Finding your Leap-of-Faith Assumption requires critical thinking. Here is a simple process:
Review Your Hypotheses: Look at the Value, Growth, and Customer hypotheses you created in the last lesson.
Ask the "If-Then" Question: For each hypothesis, ask yourself, "If this assumption is wrong, what happens to my business?"
Rank by Risk: Rank your hypotheses based on which one would cause the most damage if it turned out to be false. The assumption at the top of that list is your Leap-of-Faith Assumption.
An example could be, let's imagine you are building a new online learning platform.
Hypothesis 1 (Value): "Students want a new, interactive way to learn to code." (Risky, but a known problem.)
Hypothesis 2 (Growth): "We will acquire customers through targeted social media ads." (Risky, but a known marketing channel.)
Hypothesis 3 (Customer): "Students are willing to pay $49 per month for our platform, even though many free options exist." (Extremely risky! If this is wrong, your entire revenue model fails.)
In this case, the customer's willingness to pay is the clear Leap-of-Faith Assumption. You must validate this before you build a fancy platform or spend a fortune on ads.