Eliminate Ego and Invalidate Lore By editor on February 19, 2018 — 2 mins read Company building is very difficult. Very, very, very, hard, especially if you think about this framework that I’ve talked about. If you’re going to build a successful company, by definition, it means that you have selected an area that is scarce. Which means that you will be alone. In order for you to thrive and... More
Measure, Test, and Try By editor on February 19, 2018 — 1 min read Specifically in my group, what I would tell them all the time is, we need to do three things consistently, and repeatedly: We need to measure things, we need to test hypotheses, and we need to try all kinds of random things — especially the things that may sound silly, or wrong, or stupid. And... More
Defeat By editor on January 28, 2018 — 1 min read We’re not there to be mercenary about it. We try to put our best foot forward and help people across the spectrum. But when ego overrides good decision making, I’m not going to sit there and not take an opportunity to just pound them into the ground. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nqy6CcU84Xs (31:55) More
Hollywood By editor on January 28, 2018 — 1 min read Hollywood is the perfect example. You had a bunch of people, unbelievably ego-driven, ego-ridden, ego-filled. Power brokers, power mongers, betrayers, cajolers, all of these people sitting on top of what really wasn’t a huge industry. Kind of a meh industry, but it had a lot of social capital. To be a producer meant something. And... More
Bandwidth By editor on January 28, 2018 — 1 min read Even when the smartest of the smart allocate 24 hours of the day, they can barely run a public company well. In fact, none of them can except one guy. Statistically, it makes no sense! The only reason why this stuff happens is because of ego, and that’s a terrible way to make decisions. It’s... More
Deflating Ego By editor on January 28, 2018 — 2 mins read I can give you a very elegant narrative now: I came to a point in my life where I was tired of checking boxes for people. I had basically been living my parents’ life. When I went to college, they basically helped me decide what college, what major. In many ways I was repressed. I... More
Ego-Driven Decisions By editor on January 28, 2018 — 1 min read We should all have ego, but we should not be ego-driven in critical decision-making. We should be unpacking our behavioral biases constantly, and finding ways of mitigating them. I think those are examples where that screaming red flag of things that are structural that just provide a very poor future forecast for that company’s ability.... More
Staying True By editor on January 28, 2018 — 1 min read I made $4.55/hour at Burger King, I’d get a $50 cheque, and I’d buy bus passes. That’s awesome, and I don’t ever want to forget that. I’ll go months and not remember that. I started as a good, earnest person, and I need to stay a good, earnest person. It’s very easy to end up... More
Power and Corrosion By editor on January 28, 2018 — 1 min read Ego’s a very powerful thing. It can empower you to do things. But ego’s a very corrosive thing, which is that it can entrench you in a set of decisions that fundamentally are about outsider’s perceptions of you versus your true-north internalization. https://www.recode.net/2017/8/28/16212318/venture-capital-chamath-palihapitiya-social-capital-investing-vc-kara-swisher-recode-decode-podcast (46:35) More
