Career things I'd tell my younger self
I get asked for career advice a lot. In all honesty, I don’t really know what I’m doing, but people seem to like it when I share these things:
Brand names (Stripe, Anthropic, Goldman Sachs, McKinsey) are optional, but they do imply positive traits that people will take you seriously for. If you don’t get a brand name, you can still imply your capabilities in a permissionless way through the internet. Create content. Create apps. Build things people want. Apprentice under someone impressive by sending them a cold email.
Work insanely hard in your 20’s. Weekends are a social construct popularised by Henry Ford in the early 20th century to encourage people to travel more (so they would use his cars). Do with this information what you will.
The Matthew Effect (aka the law of cumulative advantage) really matters in a career. “For to every one who has will more be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who has not, even what he has will be taken away.” Hence, the earlier you start the more you will have early, making it easier to compound in crazy unexpected ways.
Don’t worry about finding your ‘purpose’ or ‘passion’ in your 20’s or even 30’s, just focus on building ‘career force multipliers’ (see below). The mean age at founding for the 1-in-1,000 fastest growing new ventures is 45.0. Middle age is when men (note: we need this data for females, too!) tend to do their best work. For example, across disciplines, a clear pattern emerges for achievement among scientists. The corollary is to keep your head down and don’t let others’ early success influence your thinking.
Find ambitious peers that will push you to grow. This might be one of the most important. Do whatever you can to find ambitious friends. Ambitious people are not evenly distributed, so you’ll need to hustle to find them.
Earn the right to worry about what your ‘purpose’ or ‘passion’ is by reaching financial independence first. At this point, read How to Do Great Work by Paul Graham. And ask these questions.
Compounding matters more than anything else. I've developed a firm conviction that the most important principle to learn in the context of career success is the law of compounding. Here's a visual from one of my favourite podcasts, Art Of Investing, hosted by Rick Buhrman and Paul Buser:
The whole premise is to find your "P", improve your "R", and nurture your "T"
P = Principal = Passion/Purpose/The thing you choose to work on
R = Growth Rate = How quickly you can compound.
In the career sense, I think the critical factors (let’s call these, ‘career force multipliers’) that determine growth rate are:
Career force multipliers
(1) Status/credibility/brand.
(2) Personal relationships.
(3) Skills. These can be:
Domain-specific—e.g., machine learning, general-business—e.g., marketing, sales, finance, or,
Meta-—such as how fast you can learn, decision-making, effective communication, writing, etc.
(4) Knowledge.
(5) Beliefs.
(6) Traits (E.g., Confidence, Tenacity, Discipline).
T = Time period
What's critical to appreciate is that whenever you change career direction, you're fiercely interrupting compounding. You're not only changing "P," you're also reducing "R" and, of course ", T" on whatever it is you're switching to.
Hence, the range vs. specialist conversation is mostly people talking past each other. Range is essential when you're young in helping cultivate broad interests, skills, and knowledge, etc. However, to maximise the growth rate and compounding in the long-term, specialising is essential.
Question mimetic desire. Mimetic desire is our tendency to inherit desires from other people—such as family or celebrities. Simply put, we want what other people want. To find your ideal career, start with honestly asking yourself whether your current role was a mimetic choice.
Inversion. Next, ask, “what do I want my career/life to look like in 20 years?” When you determine what you want in the end, it's easier to see the set of possibilities that can get you there. Ask what you value most. Ask what careers will enable that.
Use everything you have. Everyone has different advantages in life, not using them is a failure mode. People also start at different times. Sometimes they start on third base, but you don’t know that from the outside. “Comparison is the thief of joy” is often misinterpreted. Comparison shows you what’s possible, but don’t feel behind. 99 times out of 100, the most likely explanation is that someone started before you or had advantages you can’t see from the outside. Only compare yourself to your starting point. If your Auntie owns a great business, work there. If you have access to leading scientists, ask them questions. If you can raise capital, raise it.
Think of your career like a video game maze. You enter a pitch black room and know nothing about the territory. You have to explore it to light up areas of the territory and actually understand what lies behind each turn. These are like opportunities in your career. There is no substitute for direct exeprience with something. Explore and then exploit.
Local vs. Global Maxima. Once you’ve explored, what to exploit? Find your global maximum and take the path that leads there—even if it means taking a backward step. This is the path that you’re excited to get out of bed for in the morning—something that feels like play.
Finding what you love to do is not just a cliche. If you’re not curious, you’ll never be great. The path that makes you excited is your global maximum because when you love something, you’re naturally motivated to do more of it. When this is true, you’ll put in more hours and outperform over a long.
Be solid on vision, flexible on details. Once you’ve got clarity on what you want in the future, have an open mind to how you get there. Long-term goals are great, but you also want to account for randomness—the spontaneous opportunities life throws. Don’t be wedded to one path.
How you do anything is how you do everything. Your early career efforts stick with you for the rest of your life. The greatest shame isn't in trying and failing; it's in reaching the end of our lives knowing we didn't leave everything on the field.
Focus. Constantly self-reflect. And improve your systems.
Realise that the whole world is insecure. When you meet someone impressive, just try imagine that they’re still a child in an adults body. Tim Ferriss put this best:
“If you are insecure, guess what? The rest of the world is, too. Do not overestimate the competition and underestimate yourself. You are better than you think. The fishing is best where the fewest go, and the collective insecurity of the world makes it easy for people to hit home runs while everyone else is aiming for base hits. There is just less competition for bigger goals.”
Remember the spotlight effect. No one is thinking about you as much as you think they are. Even if they are, you’re going to die one day and none of it matters. Do not allow yourself to succumb to the expectations of others or societal norms. Great things are possible if you believe they’re possible.
Realise that most advice sucks. Yes, this is ironic. For every piece of advice there is equal and opposite advice. Trust in your ability to absorb knowledge, reflect, and learn. There are no prescriptions. If you have your mind, access to the internet, the ability to self-reflect, and the will to win, you can accomplish anything with time.
Remember that preparation kills anxiety. In life, it’s rarely about the the outcome. It’s about your relationship with yourself. Keeping promises to yourself. And knowing that you left it all on the field.
When you’re working for someone else, do these things to be a 10x employee.
When you start managing other people, follow Wes Kao’s advice.
On mentors
Mentors can be highly expedient to your progress. Try and find them early. When interacting with mentors:
(1) Ask specific questions relating to their career. Avoid general questions.
(2) Act on the advice and follow-up.
All mentor relationships start with a specific ask and take ~1 year to build through regular communication. Mentorships don’t have a, “Will you be my mentor?” moment. They happen organically when you show you’re capable and evolve into friendships over time.
People want to help people who have first helped themselves. Show agency. Show ability. Show curiosity. Show thoughtfulness.
If you don’t find a mentor, it’s not the end of the world. One of the wealthiest people in Australia told me that they never had a mentor and everything they’ve done, they’ve done on their own back.
On cold DM’s
Do what Andrew says.
Send many.
Be casual. Be specific. Be non-transactional.
On networking
The thing no one tells you about networking is that impressive people will want to know you once you start doing impressive things. Don’t prematurely optimise your network. Become someone of value and you will have the network you want.
The best opportunities will almost always come through your network. People want to work with people they trust/know. It is wise to build your network and build it widely
Don’t go to networking events
Read widely so you can connect with anyone in conversation
Other people who have said interesting things on Career:
Runnin' Down a Dream: How to Succeed and Thrive in a Career You Love - Bill Gurley
I've also been on a bunch of podcasts talking about career views