focus on getting a really small number of users that really love the product
Best founders
The ability to clearly articulate the vision of what they are trying to do
easier to recruit
easier to promote
easier to raise fund
determined
passionate
intelligence
Effective in execution
Early stage investing
network effects at play
Reason to launch quickly
gain conviction
Recognize a shift in the world
see that people are constantly using the app over and over again even when being ridiculed by the masses
figure our core metric that gets better 10% each week
Pivots
Found an opportunity that worked
Built the stuff that you originally wanted to work
Found an opportunity that could be monetized
A rush to get an idea is very bad! If original idea is bad. Shut down the company, return the money and go travel the world for an organic idea
Learnings
The only most valuable pre-start experience is to join a really successful rapidly growing company so that you get put into different roles that you don’t have much experience yet for
Most critical mistake
Not firing bad people fast enough
it hurts both the company and the employee by keeping them around longer
the employee will stagnate during the time he is with the company
explain clearly and be firm in the decision that the employee needs to go
allow the employee to communicate his needs prior to departure
he could work from home while looking for a new position
he could state that he is still working for the company while looking for a new position
preparing the termination letter prior to communication only creates a highly adversarial environment
Time window
You only have a relatively short window of 20 years to be great.
between 25 – 45 years old
focus on the one single problem that you really find important and want to solve
learn how to become a great CEO then or
join a company whose mission you really care about
Valuation
An employee should consider the valuation of the company 5 years down the road and how many percent of the valuation he owns.
current valuation for a position that is illiquid is only a distraction
valuation only means something when someone else is willing to pay for the shares at that valuation
