Mariya Valeva's Recent LinkedIn Posts

Most founders think startups fail because of bad ideas. In reality, they fail because of three decisions made early on. 1. The wrong co-founder The biggest risk isn’t lack of talent. It’s lack of integrity. A smart, high-energy partner without integrity doesn’t move the company forward - they slowly break trust, al…

Steve Jobs once said he envied Alexander the Great. Not for the empire. But for his mentor. Alexander had Aristotle by his side - someone he could question, challenge, and learn from directly. Jobs could read everything Aristotle ever wrote… but he could never ask him a question. In 1985, while visiting Sweden, Jo…

Most startups celebrate surviving 10 years. This company has been scaling for over 300 years. And it sells… soy sauce. Back in the 1600s, in a small town in Japan, a few brewing families started fermenting soybeans, wheat, salt, and water in wooden barrels. No growth strategy. No investors. Just fermentation that t…

At 16, Shuo Wang landed in the US with 2 things: A suitcase. And almost no English. No network. No Silicon Valley connections. Just an immigrant mother from China trying to survive. To help her family make ends meet, Shuo spent weekends selling scooters at flea markets near Washington, D.C. The profit? About $10 p…

Some investors can spot unicorns when they still look like ugly ducklings. In 2008, Airbnb looked like a strange idea at best. Three founders renting air mattresses in their apartment to pay rent. Investors passed. Many thought the market was too small. Others didn’t believe strangers would stay in each other’s hom…

Most startups celebrate surviving 10 years. This company has been scaling for over 300 years. And it sells… soy sauce. Back in the 1600s, in a small town in Japan, a few brewing families started fermenting soybeans, wheat, salt, and water in wooden barrels. No growth strategy. No investors. Just fermentation that t…