Macro lessons on building #3
(mistakes -> scar tissue -> lessons) + things i read this week
est. reading time = 4 min
Today at a glance:
Lessons
Things I read this week on the internet that you might enjoy
This is part 3 of lessons from building Minecraft, Streamlabs, and 2 failed startups. Part 1 is here and part 2 is here.
I started part 1 by saying that the lessons are noise. 1s and 0s on a page. I say this because I believe that most of the time we have to live through it, suffer the consequences (win or lose), extract the lessons, and adjust for the future. This was true for me - none of the books or advice landed as well as the actual experience.
Cool, so why repeat the same point as in part 1 and why write at all? I repeat this because the #1 thing that matters is action and moving forward. I hope that you are making moves. And why write? I write because (1) the builder’s journey is lonely and even if I help 0.1% - I am happy, (2) I want to create more, (3) this is difficult for me therefore I should pursue it.
Summer of 2021. I moved back to NYC in search of something. And I distinctly remember writing these lessons down in this studio. I was obsessed with making Streamlabs (the people and the business) successful.
This is what was on my mind at that time. Let’s get on with it!
Shit happens. Keep going:
Life/business is much more stochastic than we think. We are bad at processing random events. You could do everything right and still fail for XYZ reasons. There are 2 implications from this.
First, when things go poorly - we fall to the level of our systems/habits. Therefore invest in systems. Bet on culture/systems/mental models/people. This is immutable and if done right, will prevail in the long-term - amidst all the things that go wrong. You also avoid destination disease (ex. what happens when you reach your goal? How do we not settle?).
Second implication is to keep going. Work hard. Work like hell. Show up and do your best. Many start-ups fail because founders run out of energy, not because of lack of funding.
If you are going through hell, keep going - Churchill
Think independently from the ground up and encourage team to do the same:
Important to think deeply about all P0 issues. Come up with an independent POV and only then share with others. Encourage others to practice independent thinking. Avoid consensus seeking culture.
Be mindful of how I am showing up in conversations and what implicit influence I am having on others. For example - if I say “have we thought of doing X in ABCD way” there is a high % chance that people will look at X in ABCD way. There is also a % chance that some may interpret this as an order. That’s not good.
Embedded in this a lot of behavioral psychology about how you say what you say to get to best outcomes, how you show up to ensure that people are bringing forward their authentic POVs, how to encourage psychological safety, how to avoid the naked king/queen tragedy. Holding back your POV and actively soliciting POVs of others may help.
Give feedback:
I’ve never regretted not giving feedback (praise and tough love). I’ve almost always (handful of exceptions) regretted delaying feedback. You are doing a disservice to the person and to your team. Do not conflate being popular in the moment (because you skirted the hard truth), with being effective long-term. And when you give the feedback → prepare, be specific, be kind, and follow up.
Do not coddle or overprotect people. Ensure that there is good team cohesion. You can get the team through almost anything if the bonds/cohesion is good. And if there isn’t team cohesion - get to the bottom of the issue and find solutions.
If there is no enemy within, the enemy outside can not harm us - african proverb
Do not take anything for granted. Keep up the rigor:
Resources ($ or time) may seem in abundance once you reach milestone X, but need to apply the same rigor as when we had nothing. Why? Shit happens. Community trust can be lost. Competitor can emerge. Platforms copy. Market can turn sour.
This is especially true with money. It is easy to get desensitized to resources once you have them and it is easy to feel the pressure to spend once you have the $. Once something becomes a recurring line-item on your P&L - it rarely gets questioned. What does this mean long-term?
A poker analogy. You take a shot at higher stakes. Things go your way and you are up 2 buy-ins by midnight. Grinding non-stop at your regular stakes - it would take you a week to win this much, but you have it in a few hours. You get comfy and accustomed to the pace of the game and the large bets. You start making questionable decisions pre-flop because “you are up a lot and it’s only $100”. Few hands later, you get in a spot with a weak hand that you should have folded against a tough opponent and they take you for all you’ve got. The end.
Do not settle and do not take anything for granted - keep building.
Adjust beliefs based on new info:
Apply Bayesian thinking to everything and keep learning. Given X, how do we change our approach to Y where Y can be a dynamic with a specific person, a cultural element, product strategy, capital allocation, marketing approach etc.
All of it is iterative and bayesian as long as you apply yourself and think about thinking. This is different from coming up with your own POV. It is a call to (1) think about all aspects of the team/business and (2) adjust beliefs based on new info.