They do contradict one another. In one Paul lays out a process, actually the process (which gels with my experience) which involves a lot of pain and flat to down time, followed, in the very long run, by the eventual ramp and growth phase.

Now he suggests you need to have 5% growth per week or your startup is doing it wrong.

I think that the first view is that of a founder, whereas the second view is that of a VC.