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# Lessons from Ben Horowitz
- URL: https://www.antoinebuteau.com/lessons-from-ben-horowitz/
- Published: 2026-04-04T15:10:09.000Z
- Updated: 2026-07-18T22:05:09.000Z
- Description: Ben Horowitz is an Andreessen Horowitz co-founder, author, and former CEO of Loudcloud and Opsware whose operating insights emerged from the dot-com bust and the unforgiving realities of scaling technology companies through decisions with no easy answers.
- Author: Antoine Buteau
- Tags: Profile, Operations, Business Leaders & Executives Profiles

Ben Horowitz is a co-founder of the venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz and the author of the definitive business guides *The Hard Thing About Hard Things* and *What You Do Is Who You Are*. As a former CEO of Loudcloud and Opsware, his insights are forged in the fires of the dot-com bust and the relentless challenges of scaling technology companies.

![Infographic for "Lessons from Ben Horowitz".](https://www.antoinebuteau.com/content/images/2026/07/014bd5fd-da23-4788-88f5-bf79ec007c3c-91ad5d2f-f441-42e6-962b-a0ab3582bf59-optimized.webp)

### Part 1: The Struggle & Mental Resilience

1. **On Embracing the Struggle:** "The Struggle is when you wonder why you started the company in the first place and why you don’t just quit." — [*Source: Andreessen Horowitz Blog*](https://a16z.com/the-struggle/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
2. **On Perseverance:** "The only thing that prepares you to run a company is running a company." — [*Source: Goodreads*](https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/7311142.Ben%5FHorowitz?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
3. **On Statistical Odds:** "CEOs should not play the odds. When you are building a company, you must believe there is an answer and you cannot pay attention to your odds of finding it." — [*Source: Startup Archive*](https://www.startuparchive.org/quotes/ben-horowitz-ceos-should-not-play-the-odds?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
4. **On Managing Fear:** "The hard thing isn’t dreaming big. The hard thing is waking up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat when the dream turns into a nightmare." — [*Source: The Hard Thing About Hard Things*](https://www.amazon.com/Hard-Thing-About-Things-Building/dp/0062273205?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
5. **On Personal Accountability:** "Spend zero time on what you could have done, and devote all of your time on what you might do." — [*Source: Forbes*](https://www.forbes.com/sites/danschawbel/2014/03/04/ben-horowitz-how-to-manage-the-hard-things-in-business/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
6. **On Victim Mentality:** "Do not expect life to be fair. It will only defeat you. Instead, ask 'What should I do now?'" — [*Source: YouTube - Stanford GSB*](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9itTf9X-oU&ref=antoinebuteau.com)
7. **On the Complexity of Hard Things:** "Hard things are hard because there are no easy answers or recipes. They are hard because your emotions are at odds with your logic." — [*Source: Andreessen Horowitz*](https://a16z.com/hard-thing-about-hard-things/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
8. **On Quiet Strength:** "Most people who think they are strong are just loud. True strength is found in the Struggle." — [*Source: Medium*](https://medium.com/@benhorowitz/the-struggle-d3de17bad677?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
9. **On Luck:** "Every entrepreneur thinks they are unlucky when things go wrong, but luck is just the residue of design." — [*Source: PandoDaily Interview*](https://pando.com/2014/03/06/ben-horowitz-on-the-struggle/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
10. **On Self-Doubt:** "If you don't feel like you're failing every day, you're probably not trying hard enough." — [*Source: Masters of Scale Podcast*](https://mastersofscale.com/ben-horowitz-the-hard-thing-about-hard-things/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)

### Part 2: Peacetime vs. Wartime Leadership

1. **On Peacetime CEOs:** "Peacetime CEO focuses on the big picture and empowers people to make detailed decisions." — [*Source: a16z Blog*](https://a16z.com/peacetime-ceo-wartime-ceo/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
2. **On Wartime CEOs:** "Wartime CEO is so completely focused on the enemy that he becomes invisible to his friends." — [*Source: The Hard Thing About Hard Things*](https://www.amazon.com/Hard-Thing-About-Things-Building/dp/0062273205?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
3. **On Rules and Protocols:** "Peacetime CEO sets big, hairy, audacious goals. Wartime CEO is too busy fighting the enemy to read management books." — [*Source: First Round Review*](https://review.firstround.com/peacetime-ceo-wartime-ceo/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
4. **On Deviations:** "Peacetime CEO tolerates deviations from the plan in the name of creativity. Wartime CEO does not tolerate backtalk." — [*Source: Business Insider*](https://www.businessinsider.com/ben-horowitz-peacetime-vs-wartime-ceo-2011-4?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
5. **On Communication Styles:** "Peacetime CEO uses 'we' and 'us'. Wartime CEO uses 'I' and 'you' when things are on the line." — [*Source: Andreessen Horowitz*](https://a16z.com/peacetime-ceo-wartime-ceo/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
6. **On Market Dominance:** "Peacetime means you have a large advantage over the competition in a growing market." — [*Source: Medium*](https://medium.com/@benhorowitz/peacetime-ceo-wartime-ceo-7b56f2e867b3?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
7. **On Survival:** "In wartime, the company is facing an imminent existential threat." — [*Source: YouTube*](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9itTf9X-oU&ref=antoinebuteau.com)
8. **On Training in Wartime:** "Peacetime CEO trains his employees to ensure they grow. Wartime CEO trains his employees so they don't get shot." — [*Source: High Output Management Intro*](https://a16z.com/2015/07/21/high-output-management-introduction/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
9. **On Hierarchy:** "Wartime CEOs are often very directive. They have to be because time is the enemy." — [*Source: VentureBeat*](https://venturebeat.com/2011/04/15/ben-horowitz-wartime-ceo/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
10. **On Switching Modes:** "The hardest thing is knowing when the peace has ended and the war has begun." — [*Source: a16z Podcast*](https://a16z.com/podcasts/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)

### Part 3: Company Culture & Identity

1. **On Defining Culture:** "Culture is how your company makes decisions when you’re not there." — [*Source: What You Do Is Who You Are*](https://www.amazon.com/What-You-Who-Are-Business/dp/0062871331?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
2. **On Behavior vs. Values:** "Culture is not like a mission statement; you can't just set it up and have it last forever. It is the actual behavior of people." — [*Source: Goodreads*](https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/64510008-what-you-do-is-who-you-are-how-to-create-your-business-culture?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
3. **On Cultural Integrity:** "If you see something below standard and do nothing, then you’ve set a new standard." — [*Source: Andreessen Horowitz*](https://a16z.com/culture-and-the-survival-of-the-fastest/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
4. **On Virtues:** "A value is something you believe. A virtue is something you do." — [*Source: YouTube - Ben Horowitz at Stanford*](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y%5F19v%5Fo0Usc&ref=antoinebuteau.com)
5. **On Shaping Assumptions:** "Culture is the set of assumptions your employees use to resolve the problems they face every day." — [*Source: Bookey*](https://www.bookey.app/quote-book/what-you-do-is-who-you-are?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
6. **On Accidental Culture:** "If you don't methodically set your culture, then two-thirds of it will end up being accidental." — [*Source: Fast Company*](https://www.fastcompany.com/90418384/ben-horowitz-explains-the-secret-to-a-great-company-culture?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
7. **On Learning from Prisoners:** "Toussaint Louverture took a slave army and turned them into a world-class military by changing their culture first." — [*Source: What You Do Is Who You Are*](https://a16z.com/book/what-you-do-is-who-you-are/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
8. **On Cultural Conflict:** "You can’t have a culture that’s at odds with your strategy." — [*Source: a16z Blog*](https://a16z.com/programming-culture/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
9. **On Symbols:** "Symbols are the most powerful way to communicate what’s important in a culture." — [*Source: YouTube*](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9itTf9X-oU&ref=antoinebuteau.com)
10. **On the 'Why':** "Leaders must emphasize the 'why' behind their values because the 'why' is what gets remembered." — [*Source: Sajith Pai*](https://sajithpai.com/what-you-do-is-who-you-are-by-ben-horowitz/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)

### Part 4: Management Excellence & "Management Debt"

1. **On Management Debt:** "Management debt is incurred when you make an expedient, short-term management decision with an expensive, long-term consequence." — [*Source: a16z Blog*](https://a16z.com/management-debt/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
2. **On Expiring Debts:** "If you incur management debt without accounting for it, you will eventually go management bankrupt." — [*Source: Medium*](https://medium.com/@benhorowitz/management-debt-450f6120464f?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
3. **On Putting Two in a Box:** "Putting two people in the same role is a classic form of management debt that leads to confusion and stagnation." — [*Source: Andreessen Horowitz*](https://a16z.com/2011/03/24/management-debt/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
4. **On Overcompensating:** "Overcompensating a key employee because they got another offer creates a toxic debt that destroys your pay scale." — [*Source: Business Insider*](https://www.businessinsider.com/ben-horowitz-management-debt-2011-3?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
5. **On Performance Management:** "Skipping performance reviews is a debt that leads to a company full of people who don't know how to improve." — [*Source: a16z Podcast*](https://a16z.com/podcasts/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
6. **On the Hard Answer:** "Every really good CEO shares one characteristic: they tend to opt for the hard answer to organizational issues." — [*Source: Russell Hobby*](https://www.russellhobby.com/management-debt-horowitz/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
7. **On Short-termism:** "Your compromises will return to haunt you. Make sure you only incur debt in life or death situations." — [*Source: QuoteFancy*](https://quotefancy.com/quote/1547492/Ben-Horowitz-Your-compromises-will-return-to-haunt-you-Make-sure-you-only-incur-such-debt?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
8. **On Process:** "Process is a way to scale a culture, but it can also be a way to kill it if it's too rigid." — [*Source: First Round*](https://review.firstround.com/the-hard-thing-about-hard-things-book-summary/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
9. **On Accountability:** "No credit will be given for predicting rain, only credit for building an ark." — [*Source: Lenny's Vault*](https://www.lennysvault.com/ben-horowitz-quotes/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
10. **On Titles:** "Titles don't make the leader; the leader makes the titles meaningful." — [*Source: Andreessen Horowitz*](https://a16z.com/2011/04/18/peacetime-ceo-wartime-ceo/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)

### Part 5: The Art of Hiring & Executive Quality

1. **On Executive Specificity:** "There is no such thing as a great executive. There is only a great executive for a specific company at a specific point in time." — [*Source: QuoteFancy*](https://quotefancy.com/quote/1614945/Ben-Horowitz-There-is-no-such-thing-as-a-great-executive-There-is-only-a-great-executive?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
2. **On Hiring for Strength:** "Hire for strength, not lack of weakness. A lack of weakness is common; great strength is rare." — [*Source: a16z Blog*](https://a16z.com/hiring-executives-if-youve-never-done-the-job-before/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
3. **On Firing with Dignity:** "You can take somebody's job, but you don't have to take their dignity." — [*Source: Medium*](https://medium.com/@benhorowitz/how-to-fire-an-executive-756187760773?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
4. **On Mis-Hires:** "When an executive fails, it’s usually because the CEO didn't define the job correctly." — [*Source: Andreessen Horowitz*](https://a16z.com/how-to-hire-the-right-executive-for-your-startup/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
5. **On Scaling Talent:** "The people who get you from 1 to 10 are rarely the same people who get you from 10 to 100." — [*Source: VentureBeat*](https://venturebeat.com/2014/03/04/ben-horowitzs-top-10-tips-for-entrepreneurs/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
6. **On Hiring Big Company Execs:** "Big company executives are used to managing people. Startup executives need to be used to building things." — [*Source: a16z Blog*](https://a16z.com/why-startups-shouldnt-hire-big-company-execs/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
7. **On Reference Checking:** "The most important part of the interview happens when the candidate is not in the room." — [*Source: First Round Review*](https://review.firstround.com/the-art-of-the-reference-check/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
8. **On Executive Integration:** "If you don't integrate a new executive into the culture, they will be rejected like a foreign organ." — [*Source: Masters of Scale*](https://mastersofscale.com/ben-horowitz/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
9. **On Technical vs. Cultural Fit:** "You can't hire a brilliant jerk if the 'jerk' part destroys the brilliance of everyone else." — [*Source: YouTube*](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9itTf9X-oU&ref=antoinebuteau.com)
10. **On Promoting from Within:** "Promoting from within is the best way to preserve your culture, but sometimes you need outside blood to change the game." — [*Source: a16z Podcast*](https://a16z.com/podcasts/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)

### Part 6: Good Product Manager / Bad Product Manager

1. **On the PM as CEO:** "A good product manager is the CEO of the product." — [*Source: Andreessen Horowitz*](https://a16z.com/good-product-manager-bad-product-manager/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
2. **On Responsibility:** "Good product managers take full responsibility and measure themselves by the success of the product." — [*Source: Medium*](https://medium.com/@benhorowitz/good-product-manager-bad-product-manager-c5a4d6541303?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
3. **On Market Knowledge:** "Bad product managers have a lot of excuses. Good product managers know the market better than anyone." — [*Source: Sriram Krishnan*](https://sriramk.com/good-pm-bad-pm/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
4. **On Product Definition:** "A good product manager crisply defines the 'what' and lets engineering handle the 'how'." — [*Source: Reddit*](https://www.reddit.com/r/ProductManagement/comments/m8k6k2/ben%5Fhorowitz%5Fgood%5Fproduct%5Fmanager%5Fbad%5Fproduct/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
5. **On Competition:** "Bad product managers don't know what the competition is doing until it's too late." — [*Source: UX Studio*](https://uxstudioteam.com/ux-blog/good-product-manager-bad-product-manager/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
6. **On Planning:** "Good product managers think about the product's 12-month roadmap, not just the next sprint." — [*Source: a16z Blog*](https://a16z.com/2012/06/15/good-product-manager-bad-product-manager/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
7. **On Communication:** "Good product managers communicate with engineering in their language, not just in marketing speak." — [*Source: YouTube*](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=%5FS0x5zP0y2U&ref=antoinebuteau.com)
8. **On Sales Alignment:** "A good product manager knows why the sales team is failing and fixes the product so they can win." — [*Source: Andreessen Horowitz*](https://a16z.com/good-product-manager-bad-product-manager/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
9. **On Focus:** "The product manager’s only job is to ensure the right product gets to market at the right time." — [*Source: Startup Archive*](https://www.startuparchive.org/essays/good-product-manager-bad-product-manager?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
10. **On Leading without Authority:** "Product management is the ultimate test of leading without having anyone actually report to you." — [*Source: a16z Podcast*](https://a16z.com/podcasts/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)

### Part 7: CEO Skills & Psychology

1. **On Managing Your Own Mind:** "The most difficult CEO skill is managing your own psychology." — [*Source: Andreessen Horowitz*](https://a16z.com/the-hard-thing-about-hard-things-chapter-one/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
2. **On Discipline:** "You have to discipline yourself to see the company through the eyes of the employees who are not in the room." — [*Source: AZ Quotes*](https://www.azquotes.com/quote/864079?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
3. **On Hard Decisions:** "The primary value a CEO adds is making difficult decisions that most people might not like." — [*Source: Lenny's Vault*](https://www.lennysvault.com/ben-horowitz-quotes/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
4. **On Isolation:** "The CEO role is inherently lonely because there are things you can't tell anyone until the decision is made." — [*Source: Forbes*](https://www.forbes.com/sites/danschawbel/2014/03/04/ben-horowitz-how-to-manage-the-hard-things-in-business/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
5. **On Focus under Stress:** "The one thing with stress is, you've got to keep your focus on what you can do, not what happened to you." — [*Source: Medium*](https://medium.com/@benhorowitz/how-to-manage-your-psychology-87c28d7a468d?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
6. **On Self-Correction:** "A key thing in being a leader is you've got to pause yourself before you react." — [*Source: YouTube*](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9itTf9X-oU&ref=antoinebuteau.com)
7. **On Learning to Lead:** "Nobody knows what they’re doing at the beginning. You develop competence through iteration." — [*Source: Wave.co*](https://www.wave.co/blog/ben-horowitz-on-leadership?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
8. **On Hesitation:** "Hesitation is the most destructive thing a leader can do; it locks up the entire company." — [*Source: Business Insider*](https://www.businessinsider.com/ben-horowitz-on-leadership-2014-3?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
9. **On Vulnerability:** "The best CEOs are the ones who are willing to admit what they don't know." — [*Source: Andreessen Horowitz Podcast*](https://a16z.com/podcasts/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
10. **On Vision:** "A CEO's job is to define the reality and give hope." — [*Source: Startup Archive*](https://www.startuparchive.org/quotes/ben-horowitz-ceo-job-define-reality?ref=antoinebuteau.com)

### Part 8: Communication & Hard Truths

1. **On Trust:** "In any human interaction, the required amount of communication is inversely proportional to the level of trust." — [*Source: Goodreads*](https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/1154673-in-any-human-interaction-the-required-amount-of-communication-is?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
2. **On Telling the Truth:** "You’ve got to be able to tell people the truth in a way that you probably don't tell most of your friends." — [*Source: YouTube*](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9itTf9X-oU&ref=antoinebuteau.com)
3. **On Constructive Confrontation:** "If you’re running away from the truth to preserve feelings, that’s a very dangerous thing in a tech company." — [*Source: Wave.co*](https://www.wave.co/blog/ben-horowitz-on-leadership?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
4. **On Clarity:** "A lot of what an organization needs often is clarity, not just correctness. If you have clarity, you can move." — [*Source: YouTube*](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9itTf9X-oU&ref=antoinebuteau.com)
5. **On Bad News:** "Bad news travels fast, but in a good company, the CEO hears it first." — [*Source: a16z Blog*](https://a16z.com/2010/05/20/the-importance-of-being-honest/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
6. **On Performance Feedback:** "If you don't give feedback, you are effectively stealing from the employee’s future." — [*Source: Andreessen Horowitz*](https://a16z.com/2012/10/30/how-to-give-feedback/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
7. **On Hard Conversations:** "The hard thing isn't being mean; it's being honest when being honest is hard." — [*Source: The Hard Thing About Hard Things*](https://www.amazon.com/Hard-Thing-About-Things-Building/dp/0062273205?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
8. **On Meetings:** "A meeting without an agenda is just a social gathering, not a business activity." — [*Source: a16z Podcast*](https://a16z.com/podcasts/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
9. **On Listening:** "You can't lead people if you don't understand the world through their eyes." — [*Source: Medium*](https://medium.com/@benhorowitz/how-to-listen-to-your-employees-7589d7b876a1?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
10. **On One-on-Ones:** "One-on-ones are the most important meeting you can have with your direct reports." — [*Source: Andreessen Horowitz*](https://a16z.com/2012/08/30/one-on-one/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)

### Part 9: Training & Development

1. **On Training Responsibility:** "Training is the boss's job. It is the highest leverage activity a manager can perform." — [*Source: Topyx*](https://www.topyx.com/lms-blog/ben-horowitz-on-training?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
2. **On High Output Management:** "Andy Grove taught me that a manager's output is the output of the units under his supervision." — [*Source: a16z Blog*](https://a16z.com/2015/07/21/high-output-management-introduction/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
3. **On Productivity:** "Training is the only way to increase the individual productivity of your people consistently." — [*Source: Entrepreneur*](https://www.entrepreneur.com/growing-a-business/ben-horowitz-on-the-one-thing-every-ceo-needs-to-do/231945?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
4. **On Standards:** "If you don't train your people, you can't hold them to a high standard." — [*Source: Legal Evolution*](https://www.legalevolution.org/2018/02/training-is-the-bosss-job-043/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
5. **On Onboarding:** "Good onboarding is the difference between a new hire who thrives and one who quits in six months." — [*Source: a16z Podcast*](https://a16z.com/podcasts/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
6. **On Knowledge Transfer:** "Most knowledge in a company is trapped in the heads of the people who have been there the longest. Training unlocks it." — [*Source: Medium*](https://medium.com/@benhorowitz/why-startups-should-train-their-people-658f8b8e0e6c?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
7. **On Sales Training:** "If your sales team doesn't know the product better than the customer, you've already lost." — [*Source: Andreessen Horowitz*](https://a16z.com/sales-training/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
8. **On Management Training:** "Managers aren't born; they are made through specific, rigorous training." — [*Source: YouTube*](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9itTf9X-oU&ref=antoinebuteau.com)
9. **On Investing in People:** "When you invest in training, you are investing in the long-term success of the organization." — [*Source: Caseer Academy*](https://caseer.academy/courses/ben-horowitz-leadership/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
10. **On Learning from Failure:** "Failure is the best teacher, but only if you have a culture that allows people to learn from it." — [*Source: a16z Blog*](https://a16z.com/2011/04/18/peacetime-ceo-wartime-ceo/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)

### Part 10: Scaling, Strategy & Market Realities

1. **On Lead Bullets:** "There are no silver bullets for business problems, only lead bullets. You just have to do the hard work." — [*Source: Medium*](https://medium.com/@benhorowitz/the-lead-bullet-7589d7b876a1?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
2. **On Market Timing:** "The right product at the wrong time is the same as the wrong product." — [*Source: YouTube*](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=%5FS0x5zP0y2U&ref=antoinebuteau.com)
3. **On Competition:** "Don't worry about the competition until you've fixed your own product." — [*Source: a16z Blog*](https://a16z.com/2010/05/20/the-importance-of-being-honest/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
4. **On Venture Capital:** "Venture capital is a game of outliers. You are looking for the 1 in 10,000 company." — [*Source: Andreessen Horowitz*](https://a16z.com/about/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
5. **On Longevity:** "The best companies are the ones that can survive their own success." — [*Source: Masters of Scale*](https://mastersofscale.com/ben-horowitz/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
6. **On Pivoting:** "A pivot isn't a failure; it's a realization that the world is different than you thought." — [*Source: VentureBeat*](https://venturebeat.com/2014/03/04/ben-horowitz-on-the-pivot/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
7. **On the Importance of Sales:** "You can have the best product in the world, but if you can't sell it, you don't have a business." — [*Source: a16z Podcast*](https://a16z.com/podcasts/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
8. **On Scaling Culture:** "Scaling a culture is the hardest part of scaling a company." — [*Source: Fast Company*](https://www.fastcompany.com/90418384/ben-horowitz-explains-the-secret-to-a-great-company-culture?ref=antoinebuteau.com)
9. **On Long-term Thinking:** "The most successful founders are the ones who are thinking about 20 years from now, not just the next quarter." — [*Source: YouTube*](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9itTf9X-oU&ref=antoinebuteau.com)
10. **On the Final Goal:** "What you do is who you are. Make sure you like who you are becoming." — [*Source: What You Do Is Who You Are*](https://a16z.com/book/what-you-do-is-who-you-are/?ref=antoinebuteau.com)