Boredom as a Filter
Boredom is a filter. Common ideas come before it. Uncommon ideas come after it. Sit with a project long enough to get bored with it, then sit a little more. The most useful insights bubble up after you get bored.
Learning by Teaching
The person who learns the most in any classroom is the teacher. If you really want to learn a topic, then teach it. Write a book. Teach a class. Build a product. Start a company. The act of making something will force you to learn more deeply than reading ever will.
Use the Best Idea Now
Use the best idea you have right now. Claiming you need to learn more or get your ducks in a row is often just a crutch that prevents you from starting. Education is a lifelong pursuit. You will always need to learn more. It is not a reason to wait.
Courage in Decisions
In my experience as CEO, I found that the most important decisions tested my courage far more than my intelligence.
That line from Ben Horowitz stuck with me. We talk about decision-making as if it is mostly analysis. Often it is not. Often the hard part is being brave enough to act once you can already see the right move.
Sam Altman on Success
1. Compound yourself. Compounding is magic. Look for it everywhere. Exponential curves are the key to wealth generation. Your rate of learning should always be high.
2. Have almost too much self-belief. Self-belief is immensely powerful. The most successful people I know believe in themselves almost to the point of delusion. Cultivate this early. As you get more data points that your judgment is good and you can consistently deliver results, trust yourself more.
3. Focus. Focus is a force multiplier on work. It is much more important to work on the right thing than it is to work many hours. Most people waste most of their time on things that do not matter. Once you figure out what matters, be unstoppable about getting those few priorities done quickly.
4. Work hard. You can get to about the 90th percentile in your field by working either smart or hard, which is still a great accomplishment. But getting to the 99th percentile usually requires both.
5. Be hard to compete with. This is true for companies and true for people. If what you do can be done by someone else, eventually it probably will be, and for less money.
Paul Graham on Hard Problems
Paul Graham makes the counterintuitive recommendation that startups should choose hard problems, not avoid them.
Use difficulty as a guide not just in selecting the overall aim of your company, but also at decision points along the way.
That idea matters beyond startups. Hard things create barriers to entry. Hard things make imitation slower. Hard things build judgment. If two paths are equally valuable, there is often a hidden advantage in choosing the more difficult one.