Zoe Harper

After four long years of grinding, building, fundraising, and hiring, we decided to pivot. I wanted to write down my thought process and timeline because I wish I d seen more honest pivot stories when we were stuck. Not just we pivoted and everything was instantly great but the real version where we kept trying to make the original idea work for way too long because we already put so much into it.

I went through YC S20 (the first COVID batch) as a solo founder working on @Basedash. After YC, I did what you re supposed to do. I talked to users. I built product. I did founder-led sales. I hired a great team. It felt like progress because I was constantly busy and the product kept getting better.

There are countless products and services out there, and I ll admit I sign up for more than I probably should. But I usually stop using them for a few common reasons:

1. It doesn t actually fit my needs

2. The company feels unreliable or opaque

3. The value doesn t justify the cost

After spending my career in enterprise software, I ve noticed that many of these issues aren t just product problems, they re relationship problems.

When companies show a bit of intention, clarity, and care, trust goes up. When they don t, everything feels disposable, even good tools.