AN INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER

Unique insights from pioneers of Google’s Startup Accelerator on why building teams is harder than building tech—and a proven way to develop a strong, resilient and effective team.

Most startups fail not because of a bad product, poor timing, or mismanaged cash, but because of people problems: conflicts over strategy, decision-making, and team culture. Even the smartest entrepreneurs have been derailed by these soft problems: How do you fire a loyal friend who’s not up to par? How do you motivate your team to give their all? What happens when egos and emotions overpower facts and reason? The soft stuff can be shockingly hard.

Martin Gonzalez and Josh Yellin outline the common traps startup teams fall into, and share their powerful one-day workshop that helps teams escape those traps. The unique process of The Bonfire Moment brings colleagues together for a full day of facing hard truths, noticing hidden dynamics, and gearing up for the intense challenges of startup life. When the constant hustle feels overwhelming, a team’s Bonfire Moment pulls them out of the day-to-day intensity to reflect and reboot.

The Bonfire Moment has proven effective with hundreds of teams of all sizes around the world—from the smallest startups to large organizations—significantly improving their cohesion, focus and effectiveness. Now this book will teach leaders the principles behind The Bonfire Moment and how to run the workshop on their own. It's ideal for anyone who needs to build an extraordinary team to achieve big goals.

This road-tested playbook provides the tools to solve the people problems that sink even the most promising ventures:

Founder Conflict: Learn why most co-founder partnerships fail and how to navigate the hard conversations—from firing a friend to managing clashing egos.
The Four Traps: Discover the four predictable traps (Speed, Inner Circle, Maverick Mindset, and Confidence) that derail startup teams and the evidence-based strategies to escape them.
A Proven Leadership Framework: Get step-by-step instructions for running the one-day ‘Bonfire Moment’ workshop, the same process used in Google’s Startup Accelerator to reboot and realign teams.
Actionable Strategies: Move beyond theory with a facilitator’s playbook, assessment tools, and a guide for turning insights into permanent rituals for a high-performing team.