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The Job Is Not To Build
Startup CTOs or founding developers are the first technical people in the business. It is natural to think your job is to write code and build software. This is backwards. Your first job is not to build software. Your role is to use your technical expertise to help the startup figure out fast if you have a valid solution to a compelling problem, and then a valid product for a big enough market. You might do this through building software, but you might not need to.