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$100m is just the starting line

I keep hearing from founders that they are holding tight until $100M. And just yesterday, a startup executive shared they’re all waiting to reach $100M ARR. It’s the promised land where problems vanish, and liquidity arrives. Their families are now counting on becoming cash millionaires soon.

This “100M” mantra might be wrong for three reasons. It’s obsolete, VCs invest in growth rate and not in absolute numbers, and it creates a finite-game mindset. In fact, (1) $100M ARR is today obsolete. Startups IPO’d at that level in 2010. Today the bar is $500M to $1B. This reminds me of the old individual goal of “becoming a millionaire”. But $1M in 1980 is ~$5M today. And similarly for startups, $100M in 2010 is ~$1B in 2025. (2) Second, at any stage, VCs invest in growth rates (and revenue quality), not absolute numbers. If growth slows, reaching $100M ARR won’t maintain the previous revenue multiple and unlock ESOP liquidity. (3) Lastly, the 100M is perfectly fine if it’s just another milestone. But it could create a finite-game mindset and emotional debt. 

It’s important to keep in mind that in the venture world, $100M is the starting line. The goal should be to grow at least 100% YoY after $100M in revenue. Founders who understand this make different decisions from the early days. They understand that it’s “the founder’s job to fight the entropy of ambition.” And that after $100M you’re competing with the global maximum and institutions and no longer with the local maximum and other startups.

The input goals should be to create an infinite-game mindset in the team and build a system where everyone“enjoys the process as much as the proceeds” (Munger). Plenty of advice exists, but two key areas are especially prone to pitfalls. First, how to use the lever of growth. Second, how to create a team that energizes you, and can scale the company beyond the founders and their PMF.
(1) First, in the venture game, growth is essential: it’s the cure for all sins, until it doesn’t. When growth is strong, everyone feels gifted and forgets any problem. When growth slows, no one is winning easily as before, and succeeding feels impossible. All the emotional debts, misleading promises, and liquidity mirage (if any) emerge across all employees at once. Use the growth and momentum levers extensively, but don’t rely on them alone.
(2) Second, everyone agrees that hiring great talent and “delegating without abdicating” is key. But I see two common errors. (a) Too often, founders have a hard time adapting their management style to the next stage of the company. Initially, centralized decisions help you build PMF. But decentralized decisions help you scale the business. Too often, founders create lasting resentment by decapitating emerging leaders in the name of unity and even devotion. The second common mistake I see is (b) not setting the right incentives. The most effective one is to share both financial ownership and business ownership. Often, founders often hide and don’t share secondaries. Or forget how powerful business ownership is. Ultimately, the goal should be to create mini-CEOs with enough financial and business ownership. We should measure a founder’s success also by how many cash millionaire employees are created and how many alumni succeed after the startup.

There are great examples among tech startups. Many create thousands of cash millionaire employees and help build future founders and networks, or mafias. Another great example outside the tech industry is Olympic or full-time amateur athletes. Especially those in lower-tier underpaid sports. Alex Zanardi is an epic example. Watch this 3-minute video. He brings the same passion to his new, unnoticed sport as he did when he was shining in Formula 1. He exemplifies an infinite game mindset. And clearly enjoys craft and the process as much as the proceeds.

Ultimately, $100M is a rare outcome by itself, but it is not a finish line. It’s a starting point. Create an infinite mindset and a team that enjoys the craft. Build the right financial and ownership incentives to create Mini-CEOs that can scale beyond the founders. What a great ideal world. Now, let’s go back to reality and execute. All the best.