BC LIFE
Saved by @jacobhtml

When I was 17, I was in a school shooting. It was traumatic

I'm convinced that overcoming fear is the secret to winning at startups, business and life:

Here's some tips and lessons on overcoming FEAR:

 The greatest productivity tip of all time:

It isn't to drink coffee or get 8 hours of sleep or use Notion

It is conquering your fears. Period.
Life is too short for fears

"Adjusted for the subjective increase in how fast time passes, life is half over by 23 or 24. Don't waste time."
h/t @samaltman

Time is ticking
Beat your "amygdala"

Amygdala = the part of your brain that registers all your fear

When you have an experience that creates fear, it gets "coded" into your brain

For the rest of your life, your amygdala, is tainted with your past experience

Arm wrestle your amygdala and win
Rejection sucks. But it's one of the most useful ways to refine your craft

Mindset shift: use fear to learn & motivate, not run away & demotivate
The only "true" way of getting rid of 100% your fears:

Stop putting yourself out there. Don't do anything worthwhile. Care about what others think about you

That's a sad way to live

Point: A healthy amount of fear is healthy
Building a startup is scary. You're basically a wild explorer

Just have fun and know that you're sailing into unknown waters

You might find gold or you might not, but I promise it will be a hell of a journey
Statements rooted in fear:

- Get a safe job and stick with it
- Don’t question the established order
- Don’t talk to strangers
- Go to college
- Always have a plan B
- etc.

Often times these "truths" drive the worst decisions
How to escape fear:

1. Trust fear
2. See #1
Reframe your fear:

Are the butterflies in your stomach nervousness or excitement‽

Is your heart racing because of terror or because of eager anticipation?

Are you scared or are you pumped up?

Reframing is a bravery superpower
A fear of mine:

Asking people to follow me on Twitter

Doing it anyways

Follow me on Twitter @gregisenberg as I share startup tips and insights on building internet communities
Mini-fears are the secret to overcoming big fears

It brings "the positive motivation loop" (h/t @nateliason)

Take large fear: break it up to many mini-fears. If you want to run 5k, start buy running around the block

Crawl. Walk. Run.
Understand the "knowns" and the "unknowns" of your projects

“Whatever you’re doing, don’t give a voice to things you’re not able to change.” - Vince Vaughn

Habit: write down your knowns & unknowns every single week
Reminder: every person on earth is suffering from fear

Let them know there are no bears running after them. Most fears aren't due to real danger

Unlock their potential
Common fears:

- Fear of change
- Fear of danger
- Fear of the unknown
- Fear of being judged
- Fear of being scared

What am I missing?
Don't completely rely on reassurance from friends/colleagues

Reassure is nice. But it's a crutch
Society is organized to sell into your fears:

- Retirement plans
- Heated blankets
- Insurance
- Substances

Don't blindly buy into products that sell "security"
I hope you enjoyed this thread

If you did, I write a newsletter around startup insights, internet communities, and community-first businesses. Sign up for free insights into your inbox

https://t.co/o2YiBTeG4v

More from GREG ISENBERG

GREG ISENBERG
GREG ISENBERG
@gregisenberg
I interviewed 5 billionaires this week

I asked them to share their lessons learned on startups, life and entrepreneurship:

Here's what they told me:

A startup idea isn't "one" idea

It's a 10000 ideas, 100,000 decisions and 1,000,000 headaches

You will lose some friends. Kiss most of your high school friends goodbye

Certainties of life:

- Death
- Taxes
- Losing friends

A sign of wealth:

No longer needing an alarm clock to wake up

When in doubt, please don't send that angry email response

Wait 24h. Go for a walk

Angriness makes you drunk. Send emails sobers
STARTUP , BUSINESS
GREG ISENBERG
GREG ISENBERG
@gregisenberg
THREAD: Most advice is garbage

Here's some advice you shouldn’t listen to on startups, careers and life:

“90% of startups fail”

If you’re building a startup for the money, please quit

You’re probably better off working for FB or AMZN and rising the ranks

A successful startup isn't just about the valuation. It's about impact on your team, the world and yourself

The journey is 🔥

“You'll sleep when you’re dead”

If you don't sleep, you'll BE dead

Sleep is crucial to a happy mind and body

Without sleep, you become "foggy drunk", unable to take control of your life, startup or career

Beware of hustle culture and sleepless nights

“Become a doctor, lawyer etc”

This is probably some of the most undercover toxic advice parents can give to their children

The internet has opened the doors for anyone to become anything

Discover WHO you want to become before you decide on WHAT you want to become

“Don’t talk to strangers”

- You can't make lifelong friends if you don't talk to strangers
- You can't really discover who you are if you don't talk to strangers
- You can't get the benefits of the internet without talking to strangers

BE CAREFUL, but please talk to strangers
STARTUP
Advertisement
GREG ISENBERG
GREG ISENBERG
@gregisenberg
10 reasons why I think now is the greatest time to launch a startup

You should probably consider starting something

Just listen to this:

You can start with the community

I’ve identified ~8000 communities that could be unbundled from Reddit

- They are thriving
- They could make you ~$1m/year of revenue
- You often need $400 max to build MVP to tap that untapped value
- It's fun

Sounds like a dream job to me

People in Silicon Valley don’t have an edge on you

SF held the monopoly on startups for decades. Now, being in SF doesn’t matter for 99% of businesses

Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise

The world is flat and is staying flat

Hell yeah. That feels good to say

You have 10x the amount of funding sources

You used to have to rely on VCs. Not anymore

To name a few:

- Fund via your community
- Fund via NFTs
- Fund via pre-sales
- Fund via tokens
- Fund via accelerators all over the world
- Etc

All of a sudden, you have 10x the options

Niche businesses can be worth billions

People used to laugh at niche. Why “go small” when you could “go big”?

The way to go big right now IS to go small

Large tech companies can’t be everything to everyone
STARTUPS , STARTUP , ALL
GREG ISENBERG
GREG ISENBERG
@gregisenberg
Anyone else love a useful how-to?

I put together a mega-thread of mega-valuable how-tos that can transform your startup, career or life

All you have to do is read these 10 how-tos:

How to write a cold email:

- Be short
- Humanize it. Record a 60s selfie video
- Write a cold DM instead of a cold email if possible
- Never follow up by saying “just following up”

How to write copy that isn’t boring (and that sells):

- Don’t write copy, write stories
- Can be long or short, but must take you for a ride
- Focus entire story on the problem the customer has
- Share credibility
- Use inviting, warm words
- Create a clear call-to-action

How to come up with compelling startup ideas:

- Framework #1: X for Y (Robinhood for Canada)
- Framework #2: Anti-incumbent (Anti-Spotify, Anti-Amazon)
- Framework #3: Unbundling of X (Reddit, Facebook etc)
- Framework #4: Ask your community, they’ll tell you

How to sell a company:

- Spend 5% of your energy building allies at incumbents
- Get them excited about what you’re doing
- Make them feel invested and jealous
- Get them to ask if you’d be open to selling
- Profit $$

I've seen this strategy work for $10k-10B size deals
ALL , STARTUP
GREG ISENBERG
GREG ISENBERG
@gregisenberg
Startups taught me more about life and business than I ever could imagine

Thread: 20 tips I wish I could give to my 20 year old self

Startups are simple:

There are good times and bad times

Good times: enjoy the ride
Bad times: enjoy the ride

Beware of pessimistic people

Pessimism is the worst disease

Professional lies we tell ourselves:

1. Your email inbox is getting stuff done
2. A full calendar is positive
3. Big meetings are the answer

You know better

FAANG give you credentials
Startups give you education
ALL , CATEGORY

More from Life

Robert Frank
Robert Frank
@Robertfrank615
Years ago I would troll CrossFit/Planet Fitness until I got bored with it and created the “Car Rage” guy. People would say, stop screaming in your car and go back to trolling CrossFit. I didn’t listen.

After screaming in my car for 3 years I started doing other shit......

.... like MeatHead Minutes, Hater Dance Videos, Macho Man impersonations, Podcasting, exposing the hypocrisy of BLM, doing Live Streams nightly on YouTube, etc. People would say, stop doing this other shit and go back to screaming in your car. I didn’t listen....

.... my FB page has grown over 176k new followers since my first George Floyd video in June and all I really post about is current event shit. I posted a “Car Rage” video yesterday and people are saying, stop screaming in your car and go back to talking about politics......

.... moral of this cool story bro is the BEST thing I ever did, is not listen to what anyone told me to do. Be you.
LIFE
Jaimie Gradus
Jaimie Gradus
@jaimiegradus
I’ve put together my list of top 10 tips for early career researchers and I’m going to share it here as promised. But first a disclaimer...I don’t know everything. This list is based on my experience in academia. I would love for others to add and augment. With that in mind....🧵

1: Decide what you want your LIFE to be. This career could consume you completely if you let it, but it won’t always love you. Focus on the other things in your life that bring you joy and fulfillment and cultivate those just as much as you cultivate your research career.

2: Decide what you want your CAREER to be. What are your values? What are you in this for? There will be hard times. But knowing your values and what success means to you can help guide you through them.

3: Decide whose opinions really matter to you. Mastery requires feedback and you will get a lot of it, some useful some less so. Identify the small circle of people you can really trust to give it to you straight. This includes forming a no committee.

4: People are people are people. Don’t be afraid to email someone about a postdoc or job or grant idea. We’ve all been there. Some people are not generous people. This is good information to have. Move on to other colleagues and mentors if you encounter these people.
LIFE
Advertisement
Brian Koppelman
Brian Koppelman
@briankoppelman
1) I was 30 years old. And in what many would consider a dream job. But I was pretty miserable. Because I knew I was letting my real dream--to become a screenwriter/filmmaker--die.

2) Sitting in my office one night, it hit me, if I did let the dream die, I would become toxic, because that's what death does, and that toxicity would ooze out of me, onto those I loved.

3)In that instant, I decided to make a shift, to find a way to finally, after years of denying it, do the thing. Try, at least. So I went to my best friend, @DavidLevien, who was already writing, and asked him for help.

4) David gave me The Artist's Way and said that when we had the right idea, he and I would write a screenplay together.

5) Soon thereafter, I had to good luck of walking into an illegal poker club in NYC, called David in the middle of the night, and we decided to write the thing.
LIFE
#Peace&Justice \U0001f637Rab Nesbitt\U0001f637 #\u039a\u03cd\u03c1\u03b9\u03b5_\u1f10\u03bb\u03ad\u03b7\u03c3\u03bf\u03bd
#Peace&Justice 😷Rab Ne...
@blepharon
Keir Starmers new policy blitz will of course, be based on the ten pledges he made while campaigning for the

1. Economic justice


2. Social justice


3. Climate justice


4. Promote peace and human rights
LIFE
Corporate Machiavelli (He / Him)
Corporate Machiavelli ...
@corporatemach
I started TRT before the age of 30.

I did it because I wanted to, not because I needed to.

My Total Testosterone Levels (naturally) were just above 700 ng/dl

That's **Good, but not Great**

I wanted to be at 1,000 ng/dl (GREAT)

...

So, I talked a doctor into prescribing me Testosterone Cypionate.

NO DOCTOR IN AMERICA is going to agree to prescribe TRT to a man who is naturally at 700ng/dl

So, I intentionally crashed my natural T levels down to 300-400 ng/dl, then got bloodwork done

(I intentionally made my natural T levels look far lower than what they really were)

How did I intentionally crash my natural testosterone levels? (to go from 700 nd/dl, to 300-400ng/dl)

Bloodwork was planned for Thursday

...

Tuesday and Wednesday Night, intentionally get trash quality sleep (balls can't produce testosterone when you are sleep deprived)

Drink a ton of alcohol Wednesday Night (high alcohol consumption suppresses testosterone levels)
LIFE

You May Also Like

Pieter Levels \u2728
Pieter Levels ✨
@levelsio
Joe Rogan's podcast is now is listened to 1.5+ billion times per year at around $50-100M/year revenue.

Independent and 100% owned by Joe, no networks, no middle men and a 100M+ people audience.

👏

https://t.co/RywAiBxA3s

Joe is the #1 / #2 podcast (depends per week) of all podcasts

120 million plays per month source https://t.co/k7L1LfDdcM


https://t.co/aGcYnVDpMu
MAKERS
Nyck de Vries
Nyck de Vries
@nyckdevries
Lately there have been various rumours in the media about myself and Jumbo in relation to Williams. To clarify things, Jumbo is not and will not invest any money in my career. 1/2

Of course we’re collectively looking at career opportunities, however this is certainly not our philosophy and strategy. I hope to announce my future plans soon, be patient 😉 2/2
SPORT
Advertisement
Mitesh Patel
Mitesh Patel
@Mitesh_Engr
How to sell option?
Here let me explain through simple math.
Say BN at 30000
30000 straddle trading at combine premium 800 ( based on current volatility)
Put at 400
Call at 400
You don’t know direction. Sold both.

If move will not come than both will decrease gradually.

At day end it will come down to 720-740 if move will not come. Difference is your profit.

Now case 2:
Move started.
At one points combine premium will start increasing.
Say 810.
Exit immediately. No need to do adjustment.
Let market settle.

Sell again straddle once market settle.
Now repeat same thing.

Straddle selling webinar over.
Good luck.

One can keep SL 550 for both strike to escape from sudden movement.
OPTIONSLEARNING , MITESHOPTIONS
Pramesh CS
Pramesh CS
@cspramesh
Let me tell you an amazing story...

In the 1990s, a maverick breast surgeon at @TataMemorial (fresh from his return from the UK) stepped up to do research. Now, to understand the situation, you should go back 30 years, when research was not as big as it is now, and certainly not from surgeons.

Surgeons, and especially cancer surgeons, were renowned for their technical prowess, and their sheer bravado – "wherever the cancer, however advanced, I will take it out". So, our surgeon-researcher was ridiculed for even attempting clinical research

For a surgeon, he couldn’t have chosen a worse topic to research on: early detection; nothing to do with surgery, or even treatment. Remember, this was the 1990s. Cowboy surgery was celebrated, and research ridiculed

Being a breast surgeon, he was troubled with women consistently coming with advanced cancers, and he set out to see if he could work on picking them up at an earlier stage. But community-based early detection needs money, and he just didn’t have it.
ALL , LIFE SAVER DR INDRANEEL MITRA
Patrick McKenzie
Patrick McKenzie
@patio11
It’s underremarked upon that stablecoins accomplish basically all of the original design goals for Bitcoin qua a transactional mechanism (instant free value transfer anywhere), but that nobody cares about this because nobody ever cared about that part of the pitch.

“Why do people care about stablecoins then?”

A mix of “they encourage dollar-denominated liquidity in the cryptocurrency ecosystem and discourage withdrawal of the same” and “they’re good for money laundering.”

“But they make value transfer between exchanges much faster!”

This was a solved problem in traditional finance, too, mostly through the extension of credit. (It doesn’t matter how long settlement takes if there is sufficient trust to enable credit.)

The Bitcoin ecosystem is *positively allergic* to credit, so you have to call it a coin for them to accept it. And after you call it a coin they ignore everything the world has learned about credit, like risk management.

“Stablecoins aren’t credit!”

They’re pretty much exactly credit? A tether is a zero-coupon Bitfinex bond with a non-functioning call option. I
TECH