How To Do Long Term & Not Disappearing
Hello friends. I’m writing this from Ohio (visiting family). I flew back to the US from Mexico last weekend. Traveling while working is a privilege. Traveling has expanded my context, increased my confidence, and given me experiences I’ll fondly reflect on in old age. If you’re working remotely, I highly recommend taking advantage and going somewhere new.
Things that recently caught my attention 🔗
Tweet thread on Community Designers by Greg Isenberg
Community has been a rising trend in the startup world, manifesting as a business model, go-to-market strategy, and retention tactic. Greg argues that community designers functioning as the “Chief Product Officer of the community” is a brand new role that will become increasingly important for startups. Based on my experiences at On Deck, a highly community-driven company, I believe the previously niche community-builder skillset will continue to rise in demand going forward.
“Your belief in the long run isn’t enough. Your investors, coworkers, spouses, and friends have to sign up for the ride.”
Most ambitious people intellectually understand the importance of long-term thinking. However, translating your long-term strategy into every day reality is harder than it looks. You have to get buy-in on your long-term view from your other stakeholders. The investment thesis is irrelevant if your investors bail. You can’t build the company if your employees aren’t alined or quit. It’s tough to build a breakout career if your partner doesn’t buy in.
Why the Canadian Tech Scene Doesn’t Work
This isn’t a new article, but I was reminded of it after a conversation with an investor I respect this week. While it may be specific to Canada, Alex Danco does an excellent job of articulating the challenges I’ve witnessed in many emerging startup communities, especially Columbus, Ohio and the broader Midwest. You need great founders, non-founder operators, and early-stage investors (both VCs and angels) that are playing positive-sum, long-term games. Sadly, far too many zero-sum players stunt the growth of otherwise potential-filled ecosystems.
I’m repeatedly struck by how much of success is simply staying in the game long-enough to figure it out. So many people disappear just as quickly as they arrived. If you want to succeed at anything, do whatever it takes to not disappear.
Last year, I bought Bitcoin as a hedge against inflation and governments. However, it wasn’t until earlier this year that I fully fell down the Crypto rabit hole. Own the internet does a better job than anything else I’ve read at articulating the bull-case for Ethereum to a broad audience. Buying ETH right now could be the trade of a lifetime. It’s worth your time to learn more.
Interesting funding rounds, deals, and market moves 💰
With a growing population of 1.2 billion people, increasing smart phone penetration, and spreading internet infrastructure, Africa has massive potential. Including M&A, African Fintech saw over $1.35 billion in capital inflows in 2020 with Kenya, Nigeria, and South Africa leading the way. Visa, Stripe, and Network International Holdings have all made recent acquisitions in Africa. This will be a region to watch for the coming decades.
One of the more interesting pieces of news regarding crypto this past week was Ray Dalio deciding to purchase Bitcoin after years of resistance. He stated, “I’d rather have Bitcoin than the bond.” I’ve been expecting this to happen for some time. Surprised it took Ray this long, but then again, who knows how long ago he bought.
In case you care, despite being down from previous highs and heavy volatility, I continue to both hodl and buy the dip.
Books I'm reading 📚
Rabit Holes 🐇
The CommonCog Blog - I’ve recently been into Cedric Chen’s blog CommonCog. Over the years, he’s written rather prolifically on career moats and career strategy as well as several other topics related to startups and entrepreneurship. Many books or articles on careers are somewhat outdated. Many strategies that would have yielded great careers in the 1980s won’t work in the 2020s. As I’ve reflected on my own career goals and strategies to achieve them, Cedric Chen’s articles have proven timely and relevant. I’ve read at least a dozen articles with dozens more saved to my Pocket for future reading.
Dan Rose’s Twitter - Dan is the chairman of Coatue Ventures. Before becoming an investor, he spent 20 years operating at Amazon and Facebook. His tweet threads sharing stories and lessons from his career are absolute gold.
I’m continuing to experiment with this newsletter format. This is far from a finished product. Any suggestions are welcome. I hope you’re all healthy, happy, and having a wonderful Memorial Day weekend!
To living an interesting life,
Andrew