Podcast Of The Week: Software Is (Still Working On) Eating The World

Marc Andreessen on the invest like the best podcast

Maybe you won’t agree with everything Marc Andreessen says, but you have to admire the way the man constructs an argument and organizes his thoughts. If you have to think or speak in public, an interview like this is a masterclass. The big thread running through the entire episode is how software ate half of … Continue reading Podcast Of The Week: Software Is (Still Working On) Eating The World

Podcast Of The Week: Personal Branding And Coaching With Steve Schlafman

Steve Schlafman’s been successful as an operator, a venture investor, and as a coach. Schlafman’s got a gift for boiling down big concepts and sharing his sources (see the extremely handy resource he maintains, Founder Library). In this interview with Ari Lewis, they cover his career progression and how he chose what to do next, … Continue reading Podcast Of The Week: Personal Branding And Coaching With Steve Schlafman

Attract Talent, Attract Capital, Be Mission Driven

Paul Desmarais III, Cofounder of Portag3 Ventures, says he looks for three qualities in the entrepreneurs his firm works with. Whether you’re picking a team to join, hiring for a team, or building one from scratch, these character traits are broadly applicable: They need to be able to attract talent (they have a sense of … Continue reading Attract Talent, Attract Capital, Be Mission Driven

Forced Experiments Now Create Applicable Skills Later

We’re thinking and wondering what will and won’t be forever changed due to this quarantining. We’ll go back to work, school, and being social, but neither ourselves or our other activities will be exactly the same. Professionally, this means we have to be asking questions now about which new aspects will stick, which won’t, and … Continue reading Forced Experiments Now Create Applicable Skills Later

Podcast Of The Week: Optimistic And Realistic Coronavirus Conversations

Coronavirus and negativity don’t have the patent on being infectious, positivity and good old-fashioned pragmatism can actually spread too. Two podcasts this week - one for the optimists or those in desperate need of one, and one for the pragmatists who want to hear how two great thinkers are processing all of this information and … Continue reading Podcast Of The Week: Optimistic And Realistic Coronavirus Conversations

Podcast Of The Week: Tyler Cowen Interviews Reid Hoffman

Hearing Cowen talk to Hoffman is less of an interview and more of a study method. It's like he approaches him as a queryable database he can just search through. Religion (he's a "mystical atheist"), partnering referral questions (what's this person's greatest weakness and greatest challenge?), and games (the relationship between strategy, tactics, and uncovering … Continue reading Podcast Of The Week: Tyler Cowen Interviews Reid Hoffman

Clarity And Vision With An Open Mind: The Advantages Of Having A Thesis

Union Square Ventures (USV) has a long and interesting (and successful) record of funding businesses. One thing they consistently talk about is being “thesis-driven investors” and how their thesis is ever-evolving. John Siracusa summed it up* as “clarity and discipline with an open mind.” This is a great first principle we can apply to our … Continue reading Clarity And Vision With An Open Mind: The Advantages Of Having A Thesis