No matter how much success we create with our startups, it almost never "cures" our need for validation. If anything, it often makes it worse.

It usually starts with this feeling that we need to prove the world wrong, and when we do, we'll have the last laugh (which is just code for "I need personal validation"). The relationship between building a startup and getting "revenge on something" is particularly strong with Founders because the very nature of what we do is so damn combative!

Haters and doubters are as much a part of our startup DNA as investors and customers. We've all had someone who thought we'd never pull this off, who questioned our ability and idea. Whether we admit it publicly or not, we all want to show them how incredibly...