10 Mistakes Founders Make (And How Aussie Startups Can Avoid Them)

Startups are interesting ventures that can be everything from messy, to exhilarating, and unforgiving all in one. You can have the best idea on the block, but one “tiny” blind spot can stall your growth or sink the whole ship.

At KPL Ventures, we’ve seen what works (and what doesn’t) through years of building, scaling, and backing Aussie startups that break out globally. So, here are ten slip-ups that catch founders off guard… plus our tried and tested ways to avoid them.

1. Chasing Too Many Shiny Objects

The trap?
Early-stage founders feel like they have to do everything for everyone. You spot a new market, someone suggests a ‘killer feature’, and suddenly you’re juggling 8 half-baked ideas instead of refining one sharp, clear offer.

Real talk:
When Atlassian started out, they didn’t set out to build a 20-product suite. They nailed JIRA for developers first and then expanded. Focus builds momentum.

How to avoid it:
Define who your customer is and what pressing problem you solve for them. Write it down. Stick it on the wall. Put the rest on the backburner (for now). This discipline saves you time, cash, and helps you gain clarity.

2. Building in a Bubble

The trap?
It gets too easy for some founders to stay locked in stealth mode forever, tinkering endlessly, and polishing pitch decks. But when you zoom out, you realize this endless tinkering is just a way to avoid real feedback because it feels ‘too early’.

Real talk:
If you’re not embarrassed by your first version, you probably launched too late. Let’s take a leaf from Canva’s book, it started as a simple online tool to take care of basic design tasks, not the all-in-one creative platform we now know it as. 

How to avoid it:
Find a way to get your rough idea in front of your target market ASAP. If you have to, run cheap ads, build a basic landing page, find the email addresses of your target audience, send pitches to them introducing your idea (and provide some value upfront to get them to respond), and see how they respond. Notice what areas have a lot of friction — and those that run smoothly. Every bit of early feedback can save you a fortune later.

3. Picking the Wrong Co-Founders

The trap?
Your best mate’s up for it — so you jump in. But when the heat is on, you realise you both do the same thing and nobody wants to handle sales or finance.

Real talk:
The wrong founder combo is one of the biggest reasons startups break apart. Check out any strong founding team — they balance each other out. One’s technical, one’s commercial. One’s big picture, the other takes care of the details.

How to avoid it:
I know this sounds odd, but see it like a marriage with a pre-nup. Be crystal clear about roles, equity splits, exit scenarios, and expectations. Document it early. Talk through worst-case scenarios before they happen.

4. Ignoring the Pivot Signal

The trap?
Founders fall in love with how they do something instead of why they’re doing it — so when the data says ‘switch lanes’, they are too attached and don’t want to let go.

Real talk:
Slack started as an internal tool for a failed gaming company. Now it’s the default workplace chat for millions. Pivoting isn’t failure — but ignoring reality can lead to failure.

How to avoid it:
Track your assumptions. Are real customers paying for what you thought they’d pay for? If not, don’t wait six months to test new angles fast. Stay flexible enough to adapt.

5. Burning Through Cash Like It’s Endless

The trap?
It’s easy to splash early funding on big hires, fancy offices, costly cloud computing options, or expensive branding when you’re feeling flush.

Real talk:
Every dollar you burn now is runway you might wish you had later. Many Aussie founders forget how fast it goes — especially when scaling overseas.

How to avoid it:
Invest first in revenue engines. Sales, marketing experiments, a developer who ships fast. Keep your overheads as lean as possible. 

6. Forgetting That Story Sells

The trap?
You pitch your tech stack, your features, your roadmap — but you forget to tell a story that connects with people and makes them care.

Real talk:
Investors and customers don’t fall in love with specs, they buy into your ‘why’. Think how Afterpay didn’t sell ‘payment software’; they sold freedom to pay later with no fuss.

How to avoid it:
Think about your target market and craft a narrative that aligns with their worldview. Think about their worldviews, their biases, their day-to-day challenges, and how your product solves their challenges. Make your story clear, sticky, and repeatable across all channels.

7. Thinking Too Small

The trap?
Building for the local market only can seem smart at first, but then, it becomes questionable when you need to scale and you’re struggling to expand because your product, team, or compliance didn’t factor in the global market.

Real talk:
Many of Australia’s top tech success stories — Canva, SafetyCulture, Envato — designed for global scale from day one. They didn’t get stuck in Sydney or Melbourne alone.

How to avoid it:
Ask yourself: could this work in the US or UK? Are your systems, pricing, and processes built for scale? If they are… awesome, you should start making global connections early. But if they’re not, perhaps it is best to rethink that aspect of your market strategy.

8. Skimping on Legal & IP

The trap?
‘We’ll sort the paperwork later’ — famous last words before someone takes your code, poaches your customers, or disputes equity.

Real talk:
One dodgy handshake can undo years of sweat. Proper legals aren’t glamorous, but they are important to protect your future.

How to avoid it:
Get solid shareholder agreements, protect your IP, and know your compliance obligations — especially when expanding to the US or UK. Good advisors early on can save you future headaches later.

9. Hiring Too Slow — Or Too Fast

The trap?
Wearing every hat for too long means burnout. Panic-hiring when the wheels are falling off means culture clash and poor fits.

Real talk:
Startups thrive on the right first hires. Your first employees set your culture and your pace.

How to avoid it:
Hire for mission-critical skills first. I know hiring can be tough, but this is where you need to be picky. Screen for cultural fit as much as talent. Don’t be afraid to part ways fast if someone isn’t right.

10. Going It Alone

The trap?
Trying to tough it out solo because you’re worried about looking inexperienced.

Real talk:
No great founder builds alone. Mentors, peers, and investors are force multipliers. Plugging into a community early can save you years of effort, trying to figure it out alone.

How to avoid it:
Find people who’ve done what you’re trying to do. Join founder networks. Tap investors who bring sweat equity, not just capital.

Final Word

If you see yourself in even a few of these, there’s good news: you’re ahead of most. The best founders know where they’re blind and ask for help.

At KPL Ventures, we back Australia’s boldest founders and help them sidestep these traps so they scale faster and smarter.

Ready to level up? Pitch your idea to us today — and let’s see if we’re your unfair advantage for going global.