Danilo T.’s Post

A timeless throwback interview between Vinod Khosla and Sam Altman where Vinod discusses the importance of overcoming "near-death" experiences as a rite of passage to advise entrepreneurs, particularly VCs sitting on a board. "Near-death" experiences will change how you perceive and manage risk for your company. Every pivot from every great startup today was born from a near-death experience. As it turns out, most successful startups that live to tell their story go through multiple near-death experiences (Airbnb, Slack, Tesla, Twitter, Square, Stripe, etc). This is an experience that entrepreneurs covet because it is impossible to truly understand without having gone through it firsthand.   Top VCs recognize this and use it as a lens when investing or providing advice. Vinod refers to the ability to make gut-wrenching decisions in highly ambiguous situations to address business risks, only to live to fight another day and tackle the next challenge. It's always the greats that have the most self-awareness.

👉 "I think 90% of investors add no value. My assessment is that 70% of investors add negative value. They are advising a company when they have not earned the right to advise... Just because you have an MBA and joined a venture firm does not mean you are qualified to advise an entrepreneur." - Vinod Khosla Founder Of Khosla Ventures As founders, we should exude confidence in our decisions and seek guidance from the right mentors. Recently, I crossed paths with a founder facing a dilemma. He decided to prioritize getting to profitability to sustain the business and his company's growth trajectory took a temporary dip. However, during his fundraising efforts, potential investors criticized the slower growth and urged acceleration. Founders, remember: You understand your business best, so you should do what's best for it. Equally important is seeking advice from individuals relevant to your stage and situation. You may not necessarily benefit from advice from an investor with an MBA but no entrepreneurial experience. Similarly, guidance from a CMO of a billion-dollar corporation, accustomed to large marketing budgets, may not directly apply to a founder striving to reach their first 1000 users. 🎥 Watch his interview here: https://lnkd.in/gNqKeSrh #venturecapital #vc #startup #entrepreneurship

🚀 Entrepreneurs, Don’t Miss This! A Must Watch 🚀 Vinod Khosla shares his candid thoughts with Sam Altman on the role of investors and board members in startups. 🌟 “I think 90% of investors add no value. In my assessment, 70% add negative value to a company.” Khosla emphasizes that earning the right to advise an entrepreneur is crucial, stating, “Just because you got an MBA and joined a venture firm doesn’t mean you’re qualified to advise an entrepreneur.” For those in PE and VC firms, it’s a reminder: earn the right to advise by understanding the complexities of entrepreneurial decision-making. Support, don’t stress. Provide value by being a calming and constructive force on the board. 🎥 Watch the full interview below. #StartupAdvice #VentureCapital #Entrepreneurship #Leadership #VinodKhosla #SamAltman #privateequity #startups #entrepreneurship #venturecapital #investing Vinod Khosla is the founder of Khosla Ventures, a firm focused on assisting entrepreneurs to build impactful new energy and technology companies. He was the founding CEO of Sun Microsystems, where he pioneered open systems and commercial RISC processors.

The Just Start Manifesto There’s never been a better time to act on your “big idea”. And this manifesto will show you how. https://lnkd.in/gfFQCwrb

1. 💡 "Mindset is the key! Vinod Khosla says high ambitions differentiate a zero million dollar company from a billion dollar one. Aim high, hire strategically, and plan for big success! #StartupMindset #Ambition" 2. 👥 "Your 'kitchen cabinet' or initial team shapes your company's future. Vinod Khosla emphasizes their crucial role in maintaining vision and adapting strategies. Choose wisely! #TeamBuilding #StartupSuccess" 3. 🏔️ "Be steadfast in vision but flexible in tactics. Khosla compares building a company to climbing Everest: adapt to changes but keep the ultimate goal in sight. #StartupJourney #Vision" 4. 🤔 "Not all investors add value. Vinod Khosla advises choosing those who support your long-term vision over immediate gains. Find partners who understand complex decisions. #SmartInvesting #StartupTips" 5. 🚀 "Balance short-term gains with long-term goals. Khosla highlights the importance of aligning decisions with your ultimate objective of creating impactful companies." #LongTermSuccess #StrategicPlanning https://lnkd.in/gQPHsDHw

What is a compound startup? In 2021, the term was coined by Parker Conrad, inspired by his own startup, Rippling. He made a bold move by investing significant capital into developing multiple products before even launching his company. This approach turned heads and got people talking, but only now is the concept starting to gain traction in the broader tech ecosystem . Just a few weeks ago, I had the chance to attend SaaStrAnnual, where Jack Altman discussed the same concept with respect to his startup, Lattice. Here’s some take aways: 1 - Compound startups are now becoming more popular because, although cloud spend is increasing, each SAAS category is also becoming more crowded. Therefore, having several products as a differentiator in some sense. 2 - It’s important to maintain the same buyer, especially early on. Companies can keep building more and more product, but if their GTM motion can’t support it, its wasted effort. Startups need to think hard about what to build next. 3 - Once you ship a new product, don’t forget about it. Just like the first MVP that your company built, you’ll never build it right the first time. The faster you can iterate on a new product in the market, the better. Speed = Happier Customers. Given that founders are starting to adopt the “compound startup” in company building more and more (highlight.io included), its awesome to see more content being shared here to educate! https://lnkd.in/d_iWQQq3

Insights from - Jessica Livingston, co-founder of YC on building the future. - Focus on Product and Users: The most successful founders are intensely focused on two things - building their product and making something people want. Focus helps avoid distractions that seem beneficial but aren't critical. - Avoiding Distractions: Founders often get distracted by partnerships, excessive PR, unnecessary investor meetings, and conferences. Successful startups concentrate on product development and user engagement. - Product-Market Fit: Recognizing when you have a product that people use and pay for is crucial. Growth metrics, user retention, and revenue generation are indicators of achieving such a fit. - Evolution of Ideas: Many successful startups don't get their idea right on the first try. Ability to iterate based on feedback and changing circumstances is essential. - Determination is the most critical trait, more so than intelligence or academic success. - Having a co-founder is crucial, preferably someone with whom the founder has a pre-existing relationship. This partnership helps in sharing the emotional and workload burden that comes with starting a venture. - Realize the importance of Silicon Valley and relationships with investors, which is crucial for their startups' growth. - Learn to code, building things (even small things), through technolog gives you the experience in early-stage startups. - Advice for Female Founders: Focus on building a product that people love and don’t get too caught up in the surrounding noise or challenges specific to gender. Being a founder first, irrespective of gender, is vital. More here: https://lnkd.in/ge3UHCrj

🔍 Unlocking the Untold Story of Entrepreneurship: Beyond Success, Embracing Failures 🔐 Ever wondered why we hear more about success stories in entrepreneurship and less about the journey through failures? 🤔 With over 8 years of navigating the highs and lows of building and scaling startups, I've discovered that the most profound lessons often come from understanding what not to do. 🚀 Join me on a raw and unfiltered journey where I share the painful truths of my entrepreneurial path. Having built and exited two startups and supported 7+ brands, my mission is clear—to shed light on the less glamorous side of entrepreneurship. 🌐 YouTube: https://lnkd.in/gbkTDsde 🎙 Spotify: https://lnkd.in/gt4xERip 🙏 Follow: Shurya Rajendran Note Content record in the regional language Tamil Let's rewrite the narrative together, embracing both successes and failures in the pursuit of true success. Your insights matter; let's start a conversation. #EntrepreneurshipRevealed #SuccessVsFailures #StartupRealities #UntoldJourney #ScaleCast #JoinTheConversation StartupTN #startupindia#startupindia#startupindia#startupindia IIT Madras Research Park (IITMRP) MANAGE-CIA Premananth (Pitch Deck Expert) Jayasurya Thangavel Sriram Selvan Tamilpreneur Villgro SBI Start-Up Branch, Chennai PSG-STEP (PSG-Science & Technology Entrepreneurial Park) ABIS-TBI TNAU SRM University SASTRA UNIVERSITY KonguTBI NATIVELEAD NABARD MABIF Simon Sinek Simon Sinek's The Optimism Company Accel

https://lnkd.in/gegJaA3t How to Build the Future, by Sam Altman (founder of OpenAI/ChatGPT) 7 years ago (as they say in the comments, “this aged well”), but evergreen advice. Somewhat paraphrased closing remarks: “…it’s really important to actually think hard about where you think you can make the biggest contribution… what you’re good at, and what you enjoy… and then go meet people to work with, learn as much about the field as you can, and have the courage of your convictions to actually take a risk and focus on it and make some amount of sacrifice to be able to try to impact the world in some way that you actually care about.” #entreprenuership #startups #ycombinator

I completely agree with the points raised in this article. Trust is not only the foundation for growth but also for speed, which is a prerequisite for growth. In organizations that truly understand this principle, everything moves faster. Decisions are made swiftly without the need for constant approvals and small steps, allowing the team to focus on innovation and execution. This trust-based environment fosters a culture of agility and responsiveness, ultimately driving sustainable growth and success.