Insight: Scale yourself in 3 ways: delegation, amplification, improving yourself.
Insight: Letting tasks go is one of the most important yet challenging aspects of leadership for founders.
Insight: An alternative to delegating is to hire someone for amplification: to make what you do more impactful.
Definition: The number of individuals with whom any person can maintain stable relationships.
Insight: As leaders of larger organisations, it can be important to broadcast communication to all employees through channels like email, so that they feel more of a personal connection.
Insight: It is impossible to build strong relationships with many people - we simply do not have the time.
Principle: Maintain regular emails to all employees.
Definition: When a product or service becomes more valuable to other users with increased usage or user base.
Example: AirBnb - each host makes the service a bit more valuable for each guest, and vice versa.
Insight: The importance of network effects has growth with technology and internet based companies.
Insight: Network effects create powerful feedback loops that can give first movers that reach critical scale a significant competitive advantage.
Insight: Network effects are examples of what economists call "demand-side economies of scale", or "positive externalities."
Insight: Five categories of network effects: (1) Direct Network Effects: increases in usage increases value; (2) Indirect Network Effects: increases of usage encourage consumption of complementary goods, increasing the value of the product; (3) Two-Sided Network Effects: increases in usage by one set of users increases the value to a different set of complementary users, and vice versa; (4) Local Network Effects: increases in usage by a small subset of users increases the value for a connected user; (5) Compatibility and Standards: the use of technology that encourages the use of compatible products.
Insight: Most entrepreneurs are likely to raise too little money.
Insight: When we plan, we tend to assume that everything will go according to a best-case scenario.
Insight: First time entrepreneurs are particularly susceptible to the planning fallacy.
Principle: Act as though you have half the money in the bank.
Reference: Ancient philosopher Plutarch: coined the term in reference to the ship which hero Theseus sailed on after slaying the Minotaur. The Athenians preserved the ship for many years, by replacing the old rotting wood with new pieces, until eventually none of the original wood remained. The question then became: was this ship was still the Ship of Theseus?
Insight: We can use the Ship of Theseus paradox to relate to organisational culture. Organisations change their shape all the time with new hires, people leaving and getting fired. But if an organisation can build a strong culture and identity, when personnel changes happen, the organisation can retain its identity.
Insight: The strongest influences on organisational culture are often who you hire, promote and fire. HR management has a big influence on organisational culture.
Insight: When people hiring is quick, with rapid growth and start ups, there is the risk that the people you hire are mercenaries (incentivised by money) rather than missionaries (committed to the organisational mission).
Principle: When building a business, build a Ship of Theseus.
