Contrary to popular belief, being overrated is good. It opens doors and gives you credibility.
But don’t let this go to your head. Stay hungry, humble and hardworking.
I interviewed 100 legendary investors, founders and executives.
Collectively, they have created over $1 trillion of value for the world.
Here are 20 practical career lessons they shared with me 👇👇👇
Contrary to popular belief, being overrated is good. It opens doors and gives you credibility.
But don’t let this go to your head. Stay hungry, humble and hardworking.
Expiring skills are tactical; their relevance diminishes with time and technology
Permanent skills are evergreen and create disproportionate impact
E.g. communication, judgement, trust, empathy
If you get advice from enough people, the advice will cancel out.
You can find 2 smart people to take opposite sides of the argument on virtually every topic.
Focus on developing your instincts and trusting your own intuition.
Open Minded People:
- Ask genuine questions
- Insatiably curious
- Listen attentively
Close Minded People
- Make statements instead of ask questions
- Focus on being right
- Speak more
Most people hate messes and avoid them like the plague.
But this is where the impact lives.
If you let details go, you slowly chip away at your core.
Doing 1% less consistently makes underachievement inevitable.
It’s really important to separate inputs (process) from output (outcomes).
Every so often you will have a great outcome that seemingly comes out of nowhere — this is luck.
Do not get seduced by it.
It isn't repeatable.
Every commitment is 2 decisions:
1. A decision to engage on X
AND
2. A decision not to engage on Y.
Guard your time. As the road widens, many of the detours are seductive.
Most people hit roadblocks and give up.
Successful people understand roadblocks are a part of the journey.
When you hit a roadblock - embrace it, work through it, celebrate and then “re-rate” your baseline.
Cows consistently graze. This is akin to 9-5 jobs. Always operating at ~30% efficiency.
Lions pounce in bursts. This is counterintuitive. Work on high intensity, high value projects. Execute at 120%.
Rest. Rejuvenate. Repeat.
Every complexity starts out as a snowball. Address it head on.
If you let it fester, it’ll turn into a boulder and you’ll either (a) get crushed or (b) have to spend an inhumane amount of energy to fix it.
- Be Top 1% in the world at 1 thing
- Be Top 25% in the world at 3 things
Top 25% is achievable by most people.
The problem is most people focus on being Top 1%.
Work on combining “3 pretty goods” and stay at it.
It’ll pay off big.
Build in public. Send that cold email. Build relationships with people you look up to.
The most interesting opportunities are never on job boards, they’re created organically.
- Best idea? Maybe
- Correct answer? Maybe
- Most useful answer? Maybe
Most persuasive story? Definitely
Nobody wants the facts, everybody wants a story.
Every opening is a sale - partnerships, recruiting, vision, fundraising
Every close is a negotiation - hiring, alignment, price, terms, value
Can Control:
- Attitude
- Mood
- Reaction
- Effort
- Curiosity
- Motivation
Can’t Control:
- Other People
- The World
To win big, surround yourself with 3 things:
1. Other greats
2. Role players
3. A system that brings out the best in everyone.
All three of these are equally important and allow you to thrive.
How to build a successful business:
- Traction
- Speed
- Simplicity
- Consistency
- Community
- Iteration
- Imitation
How to feel like you're building a successful business:
- $ Raised
- Investor Brand
- Advisors
- Headcount
- Adulation
Interesting thought experiment:
If you had the opportunity to switch places with Warren Buffet, would you do it?
You would be a billionaire, but you would also be 90.
Time > Money.
At the end of the day, everyone wants the same thing: to feel fulfilled, maintain pride and enjoy what they’re doing.
Remember that, apply it to every interaction you have and you can get through the toughest of conversations.
Religion. Family. Friends. Kids. Whatever it is, find it.
Life only gets more complicated as you grow older.
Anchors help keep it simple - they remind us what actually matters.
More from Romeen Sheth
Early career years are painful.
You feel like an idiot 98% of the time - lost, confused and insecure.
I wish I had a playbook on principles for my first job.
So I put one together.
Here are 9 threads packed with lessons about building a career I wish I knew sooner:
1. First and most important - have a clear mind.
Without clarity of thought, nothing else matters.
Here are the most common types of distortions I’ve observed over the years.
Self awareness has helped me catch myself before falling into a trap.
2. Enter the side door
Most people enter the “front door” in their careers.
The problem is - when you do what most people do, you get the results most people get.
If you want a n-of-1 career, don’t take the 1-of-n path.
3. Adversity is inevitable
Any journey that’s worthwhile is filled with adversity.
If it was so easy...everybody would do it.
Here’s the way I’ve worked through dealing with the road blocks that are part of every entrepreneur’s journey.
4. Learn from the world's best
I love talking to world class people - CEOs, Founders, Execs, Athletes.
There's a lot of commonality in world class success.
Unpacking how these people got to where they are is always inspiring.
You feel like an idiot 98% of the time - lost, confused and insecure.
I wish I had a playbook on principles for my first job.
So I put one together.
Here are 9 threads packed with lessons about building a career I wish I knew sooner:
1. First and most important - have a clear mind.
Without clarity of thought, nothing else matters.
Here are the most common types of distortions I’ve observed over the years.
Self awareness has helped me catch myself before falling into a trap.
The world's most valuable skill:
— Romeen Sheth (@RomeenSheth) September 22, 2021
Clarity of thought.
The problem? There's no school for this.
It takes time, patience and a lot of early career fumbling.
Here are 10 cognitive distortions I faced early in my career and an insight for you to break through each one \U0001f447\U0001f447\U0001f447
2. Enter the side door
Most people enter the “front door” in their careers.
The problem is - when you do what most people do, you get the results most people get.
If you want a n-of-1 career, don’t take the 1-of-n path.
The ultimate hack to 10x your career:
— Romeen Sheth (@RomeenSheth) November 2, 2021
Enter the Side Door.
Let's break it down \U0001f447\U0001f447\U0001f447
3. Adversity is inevitable
Any journey that’s worthwhile is filled with adversity.
If it was so easy...everybody would do it.
Here’s the way I’ve worked through dealing with the road blocks that are part of every entrepreneur’s journey.
15 timeless principles on how to deal with adversity \U0001f447
— Romeen Sheth (@RomeenSheth) November 16, 2021
4. Learn from the world's best
I love talking to world class people - CEOs, Founders, Execs, Athletes.
There's a lot of commonality in world class success.
Unpacking how these people got to where they are is always inspiring.
I interviewed 100 legendary investors, founders and executives.
— Romeen Sheth (@RomeenSheth) September 24, 2021
Collectively, they have created over $1 trillion of value for the world.
Here are 20 practical career lessons they shared with me \U0001f447\U0001f447\U0001f447
I love Twitter.
It’s truly the Town Square of the Internet.
But finding the diamond in the rough voices can be tough.
Here are 20 of my favorite people to follow:
1. Alex Lieberman - @businessbarista
Alex writes extensively about the Founder journey.
The cool part is he’s lived everything he talks about - starting from $0 and selling for $75M with hardly any outside capital raised.
My favorite piece:
2. Ryan Breslow - @ryantakesoff
Ryan is a Top 1% founder.
This guy is a machine - he’s built 2 unicorns before the age of 27.
Ryan spells out lessons on fundraising, operating and scaling.
My favorite piece:
3. Jesse Pujji - @jspujji
Jesse is who I think of when I think “bootstrapping.”
He bootstrapped his company to an 8-figure exit and now shares stories about other awesome bootstrappers.
He’s also got great insight into all things growth marketing:
4. Post Market - @Post_Market
Post puts out some of the most thoughtful investment insights on this platform.
It’s refreshing because Post cuts through the hype and goes deep into the business model.
Idk who he/she/it is, but the insights are 💣.
It’s truly the Town Square of the Internet.
But finding the diamond in the rough voices can be tough.
Here are 20 of my favorite people to follow:
1. Alex Lieberman - @businessbarista
Alex writes extensively about the Founder journey.
The cool part is he’s lived everything he talks about - starting from $0 and selling for $75M with hardly any outside capital raised.
My favorite piece:
A life well-lived is a life-well planned.
— Alex Lieberman \u2615\ufe0f (@businessbarista) July 14, 2021
5 steps to build your own "Life Map" \U0001f9f5
2. Ryan Breslow - @ryantakesoff
Ryan is a Top 1% founder.
This guy is a machine - he’s built 2 unicorns before the age of 27.
Ryan spells out lessons on fundraising, operating and scaling.
My favorite piece:
The biggest lesson I\u2019ve learned in building a $4B company:
— Ryan Breslow \U0001f57a (@ryantakesoff) September 23, 2021
It\u2019s all about the people.
I\u2019m thrilled to announce today that Bolt is the first tech unicorn to officially shift to a 4 day work week.
Here\u2019s why we did it and how we came to the decision \U0001f447\U0001f447\U0001f447
3. Jesse Pujji - @jspujji
Jesse is who I think of when I think “bootstrapping.”
He bootstrapped his company to an 8-figure exit and now shares stories about other awesome bootstrappers.
He’s also got great insight into all things growth marketing:
Welcome new followers!!
— Jesse Pujji (@jspujji) September 16, 2021
Thanks for joining my entrepreneurial community.
To learn more about my journey, listen 2 my convo with @patrick_oshag.
I tell my story about bootstrapping, marketing, DTC and building a culture with conscious leadership. https://t.co/BSg6hCEE0L pic.twitter.com/gH4tAjfFBx
4. Post Market - @Post_Market
Post puts out some of the most thoughtful investment insights on this platform.
It’s refreshing because Post cuts through the hype and goes deep into the business model.
Idk who he/she/it is, but the insights are 💣.
Sweetgreen, ~$400M run-rate in sales (RLM% of 16% in 2019) and 140 units (+20-25 per year).
— Post M. (@Post_Market) October 25, 2021
Lets say 400 units by 2030 @ $3.5M AUV ($2.5M today) and 21.5% RLM. $300M RL EBITDA less $200M in G&A less $25M in maint. capex. is $75M in 'owners' EBIT
Last round at $1.6B. Yikes.
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Fake chats claiming to be from the Irish African community are being disseminated by the far right in order to suggest that violence is imminent from #BLM supporters. This is straight out of the QAnon and Proud Boys playbook. Spread the word. Protest safely. #georgenkencho
There is co-ordination across the far right in Ireland now to stir both left and right in the hopes of creating a race war. Think critically! Fascists see the tragic killing of #georgenkencho, the grief of his community and pending investigation as a flashpoint for action.
Across Telegram, Twitter and Facebook disinformation is being peddled on the back of these tragic events. From false photographs to the tactics ofwhite supremacy, the far right is clumsily trying to drive hate against minority groups and figureheads.
Declan Ganley’s Burkean group and the incel wing of National Party (Gearóid Murphy, Mick O’Keeffe & Co.) as well as all the usuals are concerted in their efforts to demonstrate their white supremacist cred. The quiet parts are today being said out loud.
The best thing you can do is challenge disinformation and report posts where engagement isn’t appropriate. Many of these are blatantly racist posts designed to drive recruitment to NP and other Nationalist groups. By all means protest but stay safe.
There is co-ordination across the far right in Ireland now to stir both left and right in the hopes of creating a race war. Think critically! Fascists see the tragic killing of #georgenkencho, the grief of his community and pending investigation as a flashpoint for action.
Across Telegram, Twitter and Facebook disinformation is being peddled on the back of these tragic events. From false photographs to the tactics ofwhite supremacy, the far right is clumsily trying to drive hate against minority groups and figureheads.
Be aware, the images the #farright are sharing in the hopes of starting a race war, are not of the SPAR employee that was punched. They\u2019re older photos of a Everton fan. Be aware of the information you\u2019re sharing and that it may be false. Always #factcheck #GeorgeNkencho pic.twitter.com/4c9w4CMk5h
— antifa.drone (@antifa_drone) December 31, 2020
Declan Ganley’s Burkean group and the incel wing of National Party (Gearóid Murphy, Mick O’Keeffe & Co.) as well as all the usuals are concerted in their efforts to demonstrate their white supremacist cred. The quiet parts are today being said out loud.
There is a concerted effort in far-right Telegram groups to try and incite violence on street by targetting people for racist online abuse following the killing of George Nkencho
— Mark Malone (@soundmigration) January 1, 2021
This follows on and is part of a misinformation campaign to polarise communities at this time.
The best thing you can do is challenge disinformation and report posts where engagement isn’t appropriate. Many of these are blatantly racist posts designed to drive recruitment to NP and other Nationalist groups. By all means protest but stay safe.
