Starting a company is hard even when it goes well—and it never goes well. With all the challenges you face day in and day out, you have to be passionate about what you’re doing or you’ll be tempted at many points along the way to give up. For me and my colleagues, that passion is fueled by the chance to create something truly great, a product that people really love, and one that has the chance to transform an entire industry. Otherwise, why go through all the pain?

But how do you go about creating such a product? There are probably as many successful strategies as there are successful entrepreneurs. But for those of us at my current venture, it all comes down to crystal-clear vision for where we’re trying to go and the willingness to try, fail, and try again. Learning from failure is a huge part of success. With that in mind, here are some of the bigger things we’ve learned that have shaped what we’ve become today:

Figure Out What You Don’t Want

People have very different reasons for wanting to start a company. We wanted to have fun, so we approached things a little differently.

That’s why the first question I asked my partners wasn’t, “What do you want to build?" but rather, “What don’t you want to see in your next company?”

Think of it like dating. If you date enough people, you may not know exactly what you want, but you sure know what you don’t want. And these insights can help steer you in the right direction.

The same is true for creating a fun environment at a startup. By focusing on removing what we didn’t like from past experiences, it helped create a work environment free of unnecessary distractions—which allowed us to be ourselves and create a thriving culture.

Be True to Yourself

It’s not difficult to agree that being open and honest leads to trust. It’s the foundation of any great relationship with coworkers, investors, customers, and employees.

But in today’s startup environment, it’s harder to be transparent than you might think. Startups are continually pressured to tell exciting and compelling stories about their companies and products. Some believe that if the truth isn’t quite exciting enough, manufacture it. After all, a little spin never hurt anybody. Right?

Not in my book. I believe a company needs to stand on its own merits to be successful. If what we do is interesting to the whole world, great. If not, so be it. It’s always better to be part of a true story that’s less exciting than one that’s completely fabricated.