The Startup Compass.
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The book’s structure

Four distances from the same startup.

The problem gives direction. Ignition creates movement. The market responds. Time determines how long the company can keep learning from the response.

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The Startup Compass by Jens-Jakob Sandgreen. The hardest company to see clearly is the one you are building.
First English-language digital edition2026
01

Part 1

Mastering the Problem

Why should the company exist?

  1. 1.1The Value of the ProblemFree full chapter · 15 min.
  2. 1.2The Problem as a CompassFree excerpt · 13 min.
  3. 1.3The Timing of the ProblemFree excerpt · 16 min.
  4. 1.4Beneath the Surface of the ProblemFree excerpt · 10 min.
  5. 1.5Tool: The Five WhysFree excerpt · 10 min.
  6. 1.6Tool: First Principles ThinkingFree excerpt · 11 min.
02

Part 2

Ignition

How does the solution begin to work in reality?

  1. 2.1The Target AudienceFree excerpt · 18 min.
  2. 2.2MVP: Minimum Viable ProductFree excerpt · 18 min.
  3. 2.3Feedback LoopsFree excerpt · 15 min.
  4. 2.4NetworkingFree excerpt · 19 min.
  5. 2.5The Team Behind the CompanyFree excerpt · 17 min.
03

Part 3

The Market

How does the world around the company respond?

  1. 3.1The MarketFree excerpt · 19 min.
  2. 3.2Product-Market FitFree excerpt · 18 min.
  3. 3.3Go-to-Market StrategyFree excerpt · 15 min.
  4. 3.4KPI, Key Performance IndicatorsFree excerpt · 14 min.
  5. 3.5TractionFree excerpt · 15 min.
04

Part 4

Time

How does the company protect its ability to continue and move toward the future?

  1. 4.1Money Is TimeFree excerpt · 17 min.
  2. 4.2Time-Based AdministrationFree excerpt · 17 min.
  3. 4.3The Calendar and the BudgetFree excerpt · 14 min.
  4. 4.4Distribution Versus ProductFree excerpt · 13 min.
  5. 4.5Time and the FutureFree excerpt · 21 min.