Jason M. Lemkin argues founders need to know their core metrics: churn rate, revenue growth rate, and short-term average growth. Even pre-revenue startups should forecast customers and year-end revenue. Your model doesn't need to be perfect, just clear enough to speak with data.
Know your data, know your metrics, know your churn rate, know your revenue growth rate, know the average of your growth rate the last few months. Know if even if you're pre revenue, know your plan. Linda, Bob, Jay, Jane, what's your revenue gonna be at the end of this year? How many customers will you have? You have to know these numbers. You have to know your model cold. It does not have to be perfect or perfectly accurate, but you need to speak with data when you can.
