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
10/23 Lessons
Content
Assignment
The "Learn" phase is where the scientific process comes full circle. You have a hypothesis and you have data from your MVP. Now, you must analyze that data to either validate or invalidate your hypothesis. This is the moment of truth that prevents you from wasting more time, money, and effort on a flawed idea.
1. Pivot or Persevere: The Ultimate Decision
Based on the learning from your experiment, you have two primary options:
Persevere:
If your data validates your Leap-of-Faith Assumption, you have permission to continue building. This means your hypothesis was correct, and you should move forward with the next stage of development, refining your product and running new experiments.
Pivot:
If your data invalidates your Leap-of-Faith Assumption, it is not a failure. It is a moment of strategic course correction. A pivot is a fundamental change in your business strategy, a new hypothesis you formulate based on what you have just learned. It is a structured adjustment, not a random change of mind.
2. Example: A Pivot in Action
Let's revisit our eco-friendly meal kit service.
Leap-of-Faith Assumption: "Urban professionals will pay a monthly subscription for our service."
MVP: A landing page with a sign-up form.
Data: You ran a small ad campaign that drove 1,000 people to your page. Only 2 people signed up for the waiting list.
Learning: Your data strongly invalidates your assumption. People are not interested in this specific offer.
Pivot: Based on this learning, you might pivot your hypothesis. Perhaps the problem isn't the eco-friendly aspect, but the subscription model. You might pivot to a "pay-per-meal" model and design a new experiment (a new MVP) to test that new hypothesis.
The key insight is that a pivot is an informed choice that comes from validated learning.