"The correct question is not how do you keep a culture from changing, it's what culture do you want to have, and how do you get there," says John Collison, co-founder and president of the online payment system Stripe. He discusses how his startup began with a culture of immediate action but grew over time to be more methodical and metrics driven.

John Collison, co-founder and president of the "developer-friendly" payment system Stripe, says the company realized that its product had potential for greater success after seeing the intense passion of early customers. He explains how that level of attachment became a better measure of success than more traditional, lagging metrics such as revenue or user numbers.

Stripe's John Collison talks about how the focus and culture at a startup may need to evolve as it grows. He also discusses the concept of "path dependence," where a venture's direction isn't guided by working toward a grand vision, but by achieving intermediate goals and letting that journey determine trajectory.

Stripe Co-Founder John Collison discusses the importance of entrepreneurs truly understanding the vision for their venture early on, in order to identify the fundamentals that shouldn't be compromised, versus what can be changed or adjusted in response to challenges or customer feedback.

Stripe Co-Founder and President John Collison describes how the creation of the online payment system was a slow and difficult process, not an "overnight success" as it's often portrayed in the news. Collision also says the gradual progress was a blessing in that it forced the company to hyper-focus on customers and product, which paid off as the business grew.

Despite the lofty missions espoused by today's biggest startups, and the grand visions uttered by their founders, entrepreneurs usually start out with smaller, more tactical goals in mind, says John Collison, co-founder and president the online payment system Stripe. He adds that aspiring entrepreneurs should feel better that the bigger picture only becomes clear over time.

When considering who to work with, beyond looking for basic traits such as honesty and integrity, Stripe's John Collison advises entrepreneurs to also consider deeper issues like working style and how someone interacts with others. He acknowledges the importance of diverse perspectives, but warns against bringing together people who are so different that it will hinder production.

Stripe's John Collision describes how even Google and Facebook made mistakes in their early days, and how that should reassure those becoming entrepreneurs. In conversation with Stanford Professor of the Practice Tina Seelig, Collison also cautions that missteps in product direction and hiring should be avoided because they affect a startup at the root level.