Fit, Grit, Wit (the It Factors)
The three signals Lubetzky looks for in a founder — and the order he learned them in.
**Grit** — does the founder lean in when it's tough? Resilience, work ethic, no-quit. **Fit** — does the product actually meet a real need better than the competition? Without product-truth, grit just buys you more time at the wrong door. **Wit** — creativity, resourcefulness, the strategic ability to go around when the door is closed. Lubetzky says he had infinite grit at PeaceWorks but no wit — he'd spend two hours forcing a wrong store on Broadway instead of triaging which stores to hit first. All three are required; any two is insufficient.
- Grit without wit burns hours on the wrong door.
- Fit is non-negotiable — no work ethic compensates for a product that doesn't meet a need.
- Wit is migration strategy: which door first, which second, which to skip.
Self-diagnosis from PeaceWorks: 'I had all the grit but no wit. I had no brainpower to realize that I was focusing hours of my invaluable time trying to get into the wrong store.' Now used as his Shark Tank investing filter.