Everything42

Life, the Universe, and Fusion42 #009

Hello Hello,
I hope you all had a fantastic week and are making great moves. It was an up and down week here at Fusion-42. Here’s the 😇 Good, 😈 Bad and the 🤢 Ugly so we can all learn together.

😇 The Good

⭐️ We got the Telegram community update done this week, many thanks to Laith for helping out and getting it done. I love it, so much clearer, so much easier to navigate and all aligned with our core offerings. All the topics are in the right place now.

⭐️ We also want to welcome Farzeen-Zia to the F42 fam. Farzeen is getting all of our content up on insights, which includes the Raise Interviews, all of the masterclasses and Deepdive podcasts. 🙏🏼

This is a must read, we took all the insights over all the interviews and this is what we found

50 Hours, Countless Investors—The 5 Hard Truths Founders Keep Getting Wrong

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The GLOBAL SUPER ACCELERATOR is Off to a great Start!

Nearly 100 sign-ups in just 4 days prove we’re not here to mess about. We’re all about execution—delivering real tools and tangible outcomes that cut through the noise and give you serious traction.

Here's a sneak peek at our must-attend build in live workshops:

• 💯 The 100 Challenge:
  Validate real customer pain by engaging with 100 potential users. Don’t build in a vacuum—discover what truly matters. You’ll be held accountable with regular check-ups throughout the programme.

• ✍️ This Is How to Write Your Pitch Deck:
  A straight-shooting guide to rise above the noise, debunk the BS, and secure investor meetings. Plus, you’ll get a copy of our book to keep the insights close at hand.

• 📊 Financial Model Building:
  Develop a robust, data-backed financial model that proves you know your numbers. In this two-hour session, you'll leave with a model that works for your startup.

• 💰 Fundraising Strategy:
  Create a targeted plan to connect with the right investors at the right time, ensuring you pitch to those who matter. You’ll also gain access to our ever-growing database of over 400 funds with more than £100b of capital to deploy.

Stay tuned for more updates—this is where execution meets results.

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🚀 What build-in-live workshop would you love to see?

Drop your answer in the comments here or in the Global Super Accelerator topic in the community 🙏🏼

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😈 The Bad

Since our little flat spot in Feb, community growth has picked up again… and maybe this shouldn’t be in “😈 The Bad” 🤷🏼‍♂️, but IMO, the same steady rate just isn’t good enough. We should be seeing network effects kick in, with growth accelerating—not just ticking along.

In a strong, founder-led community there should be signs of a Network Effect? every new member should bring in more than one other founder, driving compounding growth. Right now, it looks like we’re just adding at a constant rate—not bad, but not where we need to be. The referral effect isn’t scaling yet.

So here is the reality check and why this is in the “😈 The Bad” …Why Aren’t We Seeing The Network Effect Yet?

Network effects separate fast-growing communities from ones that just trickle along. Here’s the deal:

• Direct network effects → Every new member makes the platform more valuable (think WhatsApp—more friends, more value).

• Indirect network effects → More users attract better offerings (like Amazon—more sellers = more buyers).

Where’s the Network Effect?

Growth is steady… but it’s not compounding. If network effects were kicking in, we’d see an exponential surge, not just a steady climb. At this rate, I’ll be 127 years old before we hit 50,000 members 😝. Right now, each new founder is bringing in one more—but to really scale, we need each founder bringing in multiple others.

Me again… seems like a habit is forming 😁

So What Are the Right Questions to Ask? (this is something we can all use btw)

1️⃣ Why aren’t more people referring?

• Do they not see the value fast enough?

• Is it too much effort to invite someone?

• Do they just not think about it?

2️⃣ What would make inviting others a no-brainer?

• More tools and resources they can instantly use?

• Recognition—badges, leaderboard, “OG” status?

• 💰 Actual financial incentives? (Referral bonuses, affiliate commissions, utility token)

3️⃣ Are we missing an obvious viral loop?

• Should referrals unlock something special?

• Should we gamify it—streaks, milestones, rewards?

• Are there natural points where people want to share (wins, insights, intros)?

Let’s hear it from you 👇

Vote below or drop a reply—let’s crack this together. 🚀

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🤢 The Ugly

Well 🤢 you can GFY this week—it’s been a really good one. But let’s be real, we need to see some real network effect kicking in. No passengers. Let’s run this invite experiment—bring in 2 founders this week and let’s break the plateau.

Cheers,

Enjoy and hope to see you soon.

Derek, Henrik and Kurt

If you have not joined the Fusion42 Community on Telegram —
it is probably time to do so.

For the ❤️ of Startups

📅 Upcoming Online Webinars and Masterclasses
Get the calendar here.

For the ❤️ of startups

✌🏼 & 💙
Derek

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