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If you compromise in the first five, ten hires it might kill the company.
Sam Altman
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Sam Altman
Age: 39
Born: 1985
Born: April 22
Entrepreneur
Chicago
Illinois
Samuel H. Altman
Samuel Altman
Kill
Team
Company
Five
Might
Firsts
Hires
First
Compromise
Ten
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... how much time you should be spending on hiring? The answer is 0 or 25 percent.
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A board member of mine used to say sales fix everything in a startup, and that is really true.
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The most important thing is that there is clear reporting structure and everyone knows what it is.
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One thing that founders always underestimate is how hard it is to recruit.
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A single mediocre hire in the first five will often in fact kill a startup.
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Most startups are not nearly focussed enough. They work hard...maybe, but they don't work hard on the right things.
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If you want something in a deal, just ask for it.
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So it's worth some real up front time to think through the long term value and the defensibility of the business.
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Founders are usually very stingy with equity to employees and very generous with equity to investors. I think this is totally backwards.
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Unpopular but right is what you're going for.
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Because so few people make an actual long term commitment to what they're building, the ones that do have a huge advantage.
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So always keep momentum, it's this prime directive for managing a startup.
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No matter what you choose, build stuff and be around smart people.
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One thing I tell startups all the time is that the best way to grow is to make their product better.
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