Running Lean

In Running Lean, entrepreneur and Lean Canvas creator Ash Maurya provides a practical, repeatable roadmap for transforming uncertain ideas into validated, profitable businesses. He argues that most startups fail not because the founders are unskilled, but because they build products based on assumptions instead of verified customer needs. Traditional business plans, he explains, give a false sense of certainty—they’re static, time-consuming, and disconnected from reality. In contrast, Running Lean teaches founders how to systematically test every part of their business model and adapt based on evidence.

Maurya’s method replaces the “big launch” mentality with a cycle of continuous learning and iteration. This approach mirrors how successful companies like Airbnb, Dropbox, and Buffer evolved from small experiments into global platforms. Airbnb, for instance, started by renting air mattresses in their living room and taking photos themselves—a humble beginning that allowed them to validate the idea cheaply. Running Lean distills these kinds of lean, iterative practices into a framework that any entrepreneur can apply.

Visualizing Ideas with the Lean Canvas

The Lean Canvas is the foundation of Maurya’s system. It’s a one-page business model that breaks an idea into nine key components:

Unlike a traditional business plan, the Lean Canvas is a living document that evolves with every experiment and insight. Maurya emphasizes that entrepreneurs should fill it out in 20 minutes or less, focusing on clarity rather than perfection.

For example, imagine a founder creating a meal delivery app. They might start with the assumption that “busy professionals” are their ideal customers. After interviewing users, they realize their most engaged early adopters are actually young parents who want healthy meals but lack time to cook. Updating the canvas shifts the business entirely—changing the target customer, marketing channels, and pricing model. The Lean Canvas keeps these insights visible and testable, ensuring founders never lose sight of what matters most.

Obsess Over the Problem, Not the Product

Maurya insists that successful entrepreneurs fall in love with the problem, not the solution. Most founders do the opposite: they become emotionally attached to their idea and twist customer data to fit it. This “Innovator’s Bias” leads to wasted time and capital.

Instead, Maurya urges founders to immerse themselves in customers’ worlds—interviewing, observing, and empathizing. He calls this the “problem discovery” stage. For example, before developing a new budgeting app, an entrepreneur should talk to dozens of users struggling with money management. They might learn that people aren’t looking for more data or charts—they’re looking for emotional relief from financial anxiety. That insight would dramatically reshape the product’s design and messaging.

Maurya also introduces the concept of “switching triggers”—moments when customers abandon an old solution for a better one. Consider how music consumption evolved:

• Cassettes → CDs for instant song access.

• CDs → MP3 players for portable convenience.

• MP3s → Streaming for unlimited, effortless access.

Each shift happened when an existing solution became inconvenient. By identifying such triggers, entrepreneurs can position their product as the next logical step in a customer’s journey.

Measuring Progress with Traction

In Running Lean, traction—not revenue, investors, or product...