Hype Is Easy, Hope Is Hard: The Case for Ethical Storytelling in Startups

Been seeing a lot of interviews & posts by AI companies suggesting this or that about the nature, in the next twelve months, of work or the economy or the general landscape of technology. It's *very* optimistic. So much hype, in my opinion. And honestly? I felt like throwing my opinion into the discourse.

I hope more people realize hype is just going to be a never ending "oh, it'll be like that in a year" when it's nowhere near reality. I understand the need for founders to hype their brands (they should), but there's a difference between believing in your offering & outright lying.

I have a firm belief that founders need to be their firm's main hype people, their startup's storytellers. I've written extensively on the idea of passion, after all. I stand by that. However, I believe we have an ethical obligation to all stakeholders. We're all a part of society, of course.

By that token, there's a difference between "hype" and "hope". I have a lot of hope for my firm. I have a lot of hope for my clients' firms. I have a lot of hope for innovation making a better future. But I'm also pragmatic.

There's a lot of opportunity for building a better world. I think the tech that's being developed today will lead to a bright future. That said, hype will only poison this well. When the reality inevitably falls far short of the hype being sold, cynicism will set in.

People are not stupid. And, now more than ever, we have the records. How frequently do you see people suggesting something will happen by the end of next year, only for someone to pull a post from 2 years ago from the same person suggesting it was supposed to happen last year?

Ultimately, it's just noise. And noise is distracting. It dilutes the signal and turns attention away from real innovation and real problems. That doesn't help anyone, except the folks doing the hyping.

Problem solving yields real value. That's what we should be focused on. And I'm sure every founder/entrepreneur reading this knows that, too.

My advice? Stay away from the hype. Ignore it. Or, at the very least, put it into context. Integrate it. Think about it. Is the hype real? Will it even solve a problem that you're facing right now? If not, what would?

All this is to say, I'd rather worry about real problems and work on real solutions. I'm a problem solver by nature. Every founder is. Go solve a problem. Skip the hype.

If you're tired of hype; if you're tired of hearing solutions that are only the solver's products/services, reach out to us. We're focused on curating the services & products that fit your business's strategic needs.

And we don't charge for the consultation. We only get paid, if you go with the solution we recommend. And we'll only recommend it, if we think it'll solve your problem. The choice is yours. Hype or hope?

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*Not financial/legal advice