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Reddit Co-Founder Steve Huffman: Launch Early. Even If It Is Embarrassing.

By Steve Huffman · Leadership · 1 min read

Huffman launched Reddit before it was ready. That early feedback shaped everything.

Key Points

Launching early gets you real feedback before you waste months building the wrong thing
The first version will be embarrassing. That is the point.
Early users give you a roadmap. Late launches give you a guess.

Launch early. The feedback you get in week one is worth more than six months of planning.

Launch Ugly

Huffman launched Reddit before it was polished. Before all the features were built.

The early version was rough. But users started using it immediately.

That usage data became the roadmap for everything that followed.

Feedback Over Planning

Six months of planning produces assumptions. One week of real users produces truth.

Huffman says every day you delay launching is a day of learning you lose.

The embarrassment of a rough launch is nothing compared to the cost of building blind.

The feedback in week one is worth more than six months of planning.

The Fear

Every founder fears launching too early. What if people hate it?

Huffman says that is exactly the point. Find out what they hate. Fix it. Ship again.

The founders who wait for perfection never learn what perfection actually looks like to users.