Author, Investor, Speaker, Mentor
Y Combinator CEO Sam Altman just released a fascinating set of statistics about the firm. The numbers are pretty stunning; Y Combinator’s 940 companies are now worth more than $65 billion. That’s an astonishing mean value of $69 million…and recall, that Y Combinator buys into those startups at a sub-$1 million valuation. Now that’s a … Continue reading The Odds Are Always Against Startups
Leo Widrich at Buffer recently wrote about how he has been reflecting on the dangers of ambition: “[Ambition] gets in the way of doing the great work of our lives, of living out what we’re already naturally gravitating towards. It also blinds my awareness especially of accepting things how they truly are—instead of making them … Continue reading Ambition vs. Meaningful Goals
First Round Capital, the first and foremost of the “micro” VC funds, recently released a retrospective set of lessons learned based on 10 years of investing data. It’s an incredible trove of data, some of which I love, some of which makes me feel uneasy. But since I always believe in working with the world … Continue reading The Ultimate Startup Success Plan (based on 10 years of data)
Alex Schiff is a great guy and the creator of one of my favorite products, Fetchnotes. I met him when he was raising money for Fetchnotes (in the end, I decided not to invest because while I loved the simplicity of the product, I concluded that there weren’t enough self-organizing people like me to represent … Continue reading The Only 4 Reasons Investors Say “Yes”
I like to say that I don’t feel guilty about things. For example, I don’t bother replying to Christmas cards. Every year, I receive boxes of cards. I never send a single one. And I never feel a single pang of guilt. Yet even though I don’t feel guilt, I’m not a sociopath. I try … Continue reading Don’t Feel Guilty, Feel Committed
As I read an editorial, Americans Need Jobs, Not Populism, by Jack Markell, the Democratic governor of Delaware, I was struck by the following thought about populism–left and right: The problem with populism is that it puts the focus on feeling good, rather than getting what you want. Whether you’re a Tea Partyer, or you’re … Continue reading The Problem With Populism
I read with some interest this longform piece on how the desire of the wealthy to live in cities is effectively exiling the bohemians who made those communities attractive to gentrifiers: The essence of the argument is this: “American bohemians are in a state of slow-motion flight, perpetually facing the threat of exile at the … Continue reading A Modest Proposal for Saving San Francisco’s Bohemian Neighborhoods
1. I met Dave when I was raising money for Ustream back in 2007. At that point, the founders had just launched the site, and it was growing like mad. But without a clear revenue model for live streaming, we were operating the company on a shoestring. The founders weren’t taking any salary, and the … Continue reading In Memory of Dave Goldberg
Step 1: Read books. For all that we mock the traditional publishing industry, any book that makes it through that process has gone through many quality filters. If you further limit yourself to books that have withstood the test of time, reading books is the best way to inject concentrated, high-quality knowledge into your brain. … Continue reading How To Hack The Learning Process
I always remember one English seminar I took while I was at Stanford. We were discussing Rebecca Harding Davis‘ travails, and one of my more militant classmates flatly stated, “Look, she was white, and she had money. I don’t want to hear about her problems.” (You probably won’t be surprised to learn that my militant … Continue reading Compassion is not a zero-sum game