I’ve coached thousands of founders and developers who swear their idea is the next big thing. After a while, you start seeing patterns — and you learn the uncomfortable truth: ideas don’t matter nearly as much as people think they do.

In this talk, I’ll share what I’ve learned from coaching teams across North America, Asia, Australia, and the Middle East, plus my own time building Evernote and multiple startups. We’ll break down the common mistakes smart people make when trying to ship a new feature, side project, or product — and why execution (not inspiration) separates the winners from the “maybe next year” crowd.

You’ll walk away with a practical framework for validating ideas fast, avoiding the trap of building for yourself, and understanding when to ship, when to stop, and when to pivot. And yes — we’ll talk about how to avoid the classic founder burnout spiral.

If you’ve ever had a side project die on your hard drive, this talk will feel uncomfortably familiar… and incredibly useful.