{"id":194295,"date":"2026-02-05T15:35:15","date_gmt":"2026-02-05T13:35:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/?p=194295"},"modified":"2026-02-05T15:35:15","modified_gmt":"2026-02-05T13:35:15","slug":"when-do-you-know-that-enough-is-enough","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/en\/when-do-you-know-that-enough-is-enough\/","title":{"rendered":"When do you know that enough is enough?\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Founders are told to \u201cnever give up.\u201d Real life is more complicated. At\u00a0sTARTUp\u00a0Day, Anne-Liisa Elbrecht (Head of\u00a0Tehnopol\u00a0Startup Incubator) moderated a conversation about the moment persistence turns into stubbornness \u2013 and what it takes to pivot or close down in a way that\u2019s fair to everyone involved: no surprises, no hiding, and a clear plan for what happens next. On stage with her: Elise Sass (ex-CEO and co-founder of Salto X, co-founder of Lift99), Marek\u00a0Kesk\u00fcll\u00a0(ex-CEO and founder of\u00a0Scorestars), and Aleks Koha (former co-founder of\u00a0Promoty, CEO and founder of Matagi).\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Pivoting\u00a0isn\u2019t\u00a0panic,\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0a process<\/strong>\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Pivoting\u00a0shouldn\u2019t\u00a0be an impulsive reaction to a bad week.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0a deliberate decision that can affect the product, the target customer, and sometimes the team. What founders need is continuous learning with clear checkpoints: talk to customers early, test assumptions fast, and be honest about whether the \u201cpain\u201d\u00a0you\u2019re\u00a0solving is big enough \u2013 and frequent enough \u2013 that customers will\u00a0actually pay.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As Aleks put it, early traction can become a trap if it keeps you repeating the same playbook without real progress: \u201cIf you do the same things, you get the same results.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>A shared vision keeps\u00a0hard decisions\u00a0from turning into chaos<\/strong>\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Both pivots and shutdowns are emotionally heavy, but the\u00a0speakers\u00a0emphasized that clarity\u00a0can\u00a0reduce\u00a0the damage. One approach was building alignment around a shared vision: what\u00a0you\u2019re\u00a0trying to reach, how\u00a0you\u2019ll\u00a0get there, and what kind of team is needed for the journey. When that picture is clear, the hard conversations become less personal and more directional: this is the plan; these are the milestones; this is the\u00a0team\u00a0structure it requires.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/SUD-2026_Insight-Stage_Silver-Gutmann-2-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-194299\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/SUD-2026_Insight-Stage_Silver-Gutmann-2-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/SUD-2026_Insight-Stage_Silver-Gutmann-2-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/SUD-2026_Insight-Stage_Silver-Gutmann-2-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/SUD-2026_Insight-Stage_Silver-Gutmann-2-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/SUD-2026_Insight-Stage_Silver-Gutmann-2-400x267.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/SUD-2026_Insight-Stage_Silver-Gutmann-2-120x80.jpg 120w, https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/SUD-2026_Insight-Stage_Silver-Gutmann-2-200x133.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/SUD-2026_Insight-Stage_Silver-Gutmann-2-1200x800.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/SUD-2026_Insight-Stage_Silver-Gutmann-2-600x400.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/SUD-2026_Insight-Stage_Silver-Gutmann-2.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Photo by Silver Gutmann<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Radical transparency with teams and investors<\/strong>\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>On the \u201chow do you tell people?\u201d question, the panel was aligned: hiding reality is what destroys morale. Keeping the numbers, runway, experiments, and\u00a0possible scenarios\u00a0visible helps teams stay grounded \u2013 and helps investors support you earlier, not just after things collapse.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Aleks described an operating style where nothing came as a shock: \u201cEverybody in the team always knew what\u2019s happening \u2013 how much cash is left, what our runway looks like, and what the next experiments are.\u201d He added that even when outcomes\u00a0aren\u2019t\u00a0\u201cstorybook exits,\u201d transparency can make tough decisions feel like a transition, not a collapse.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Elise echoed the importance of openness with investors and boards: when\u00a0bad news\u00a0isn\u2019t\u00a0\u201cpunished,\u201d you can discuss pivots and alternatives sooner \u2013 before\u00a0you\u2019re\u00a0forced into a corner.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>\u201cEmotional runway\u201d is real, and it runs out<\/strong>\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>When the panel turned to shutdown decisions, Marek offered one of the clearest rules of thumb of the session: you need wins \u2013 regular signs of forward motion. Without them, founders\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0just burn cash; they burn themselves.\u00a0\u201cYou need those wins, otherwise you\u2019re burning yourself\u00a0emotionally\u00a0and you\u2019re burning your emotional runway,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For Marek, a key mechanism was setting a deadline: try a pivot, define what \u201csuccess\u201d looks like by a certain time, and if it\u00a0doesn\u2019t\u00a0happen, stop. He framed shutting down as leadership, not failure \u2013 especially when you do it in time. In\u00a0Scorestars\u2019 case, the team had runway left, returned money to investors, and sold the IP created during the pivot. Even after closing, interest in the product continued, which underscored that ending a company\u00a0isn\u2019t\u00a0\u201cthe end of the world\u201d \u2013 just the end of that setup.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/SUD-2026_Insight-Stage_Silver-Gutmann-1-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-194296\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/SUD-2026_Insight-Stage_Silver-Gutmann-1-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/SUD-2026_Insight-Stage_Silver-Gutmann-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/SUD-2026_Insight-Stage_Silver-Gutmann-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/SUD-2026_Insight-Stage_Silver-Gutmann-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/SUD-2026_Insight-Stage_Silver-Gutmann-1-400x267.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/SUD-2026_Insight-Stage_Silver-Gutmann-1-120x80.jpg 120w, https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/SUD-2026_Insight-Stage_Silver-Gutmann-1-200x133.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/SUD-2026_Insight-Stage_Silver-Gutmann-1-1200x800.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/SUD-2026_Insight-Stage_Silver-Gutmann-1-600x400.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/SUD-2026_Insight-Stage_Silver-Gutmann-1.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Photo by Silver Gutmann<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Ending\u00a0isn\u2019t\u00a0always a shutdown; sometimes\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0a merge, sale, or tough exit<\/strong>\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Aleks described how an exit only became a serious\u00a0option\u00a0late in the journey.\u00a0Promoty\u00a0pivoted near the end of its runway, raised a small bridge, and built a product that quickly grew to break even. But the bridge was spent, the founders were putting in their own money, and fundraising became harder. Under that pressure, the question shifted from \u201chow do we push through?\u201d to \u201cwhat are the realistic options?\u201d \u2013 and that was the first time Aleks seriously started thinking about shutting down.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He also explained that acquisition talks\u00a0didn\u2019t\u00a0start as a formal sales process.\u00a0Promoty\u00a0and\u00a0Modash\u00a0had known each other for years, joking about a merger or being\u00a0acquired, until those conversations became practical about a year before the deal. They spoke on and off from January through August, agreed in August, and closed in January. The panel\u2019s point was broader than one story: \u201cin-between endings\u201d like joining forces, selling IP, or exploring acquisition can be messy and uncertain, but still\u00a0responsible\u00a0outcomes.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Elise highlighted another mindset shift founders often\u00a0resist:\u00a0being able to discuss \u201cdeath scenarios\u201d\u00a0doesn\u2019t\u00a0mean\u00a0you\u2019ve\u00a0given up \u2013 it means\u00a0you\u2019re\u00a0prepared. \u201cEvery single startup founder\u00a0has to\u00a0be able to think about death.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0part of the lifecycle,\u201d Elise\u00a0stated.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Teams: choose complementary skills, not just close friends<\/strong>\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>A practical\u00a0point landed strongly with the audience: early teams built from close friends can be comforting \u2013 but often lack the skill diversity needed to survive pivots, sales cycles, and scaling demands. The panel\u2019s advice was to prioritize complementary strengths and shared values, and to use advisors\/mentors (ideally \u201cone step ahead\u201d of you) to raise your hiring bar and avoid costly mis-hires.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A simple test was also suggested for choosing co-founders: a week in the forest, without phones. If the team still wants to work together after that kind of offline pressure-cooker \u2013 away from distractions, routines, and easy exits \u2013 it becomes a stronger signal that the relationship can handle the intensity of building a startup.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It also reinforced a practical reality: many startups\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0stall because the idea\u00a0isn\u2019t\u00a0good, but because the right people\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0meet at the right time. To make those matches more intentional,\u00a0Tehnopol\u00a0Startup Matchmaking connects early-stage teams and startup-minded specialists through ongoing matching and structured meetups focused on building real teams (not just swapping contacts). Read more and\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.startupincubator.ee\/tehnopol-startup-matchmaking\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">sign up here<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Founders are told to \u201cnever give up.\u201d Real life is more complicated. At\u00a0sTARTUp\u00a0Day, Anne-Liisa Elbrecht (Head of\u00a0Tehnopol\u00a0Startup Incubator) moderated a conversation about the moment persistence turns into stubbornness \u2013 and what it takes to pivot or close down in a way that\u2019s fair to everyone involved: no surprises, no hiding, and a clear plan for [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":28,"featured_media":194303,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"_s2mail":"yes","footnotes":""},"categories":[182],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-194295","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-startup-incubator"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/194295","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/28"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=194295"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/194295\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":194305,"href":"https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/194295\/revisions\/194305"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/194303"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=194295"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=194295"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tehnopol.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=194295"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}