Lessons from Erik Torenberg

On Startups and Entrepreneurship

On the changing landscape of value creation: "Pre-internet, you captured profits by controlling supply. Now, post-internet, you capture profits by aggregating demand." [1]
The opportunity in user-owned platforms: "For startups today, the opportunity is massive: platforms that are built, operated, and owned by their users can grow to be much bigger, much faster than their institutionally owned counterparts." [1]
On the future of capitalism: "Maybe the ownership economy is what will make capitalism more palatable to a wider audience." [1]
The evolution of middlemen: "The “death of the middlemen” however, is the idea that whoever generates the demand captures the value, and middlemen get commoditized as markets become more efficient." [1]
The power of startups in problem-solving: "Startups are the most effective organizations for solving our biggest problems." [2]
The economic impact of startups: "Startups disproportionately contribute to economic growth." [2]
On the risk of starting a company: "Failing at a startup isn't a blemish on your resume. On the contrary, in some circles, it's a badge of honor that you carry for the rest of your life—You've been in the arena." [3]
The learning experience of a failed startup: The downside of a failed startup is that "you learn probably way more than you would learn from getting an MBA." [4]
On generating startup ideas: "Don't think about startup ideas... You're just supposed to be seized by it one day, like a bolt of lighting —It should be a problem you've personally faced, and thus you should have the requisite customer empathy to deliver a solution." [5]
A methodical approach to startup ideas: Contrary to the "bolt of lightning" theory, "you can, in fact, methodically come up with startup ideas and systematically work your way through them until you find the one you should pursue." [5]

On Career Strategy

The importance of a 'career moat': "Like company moats, your personal moat should be specific to you and not only durable, but compounds over time." [6]
Finding your unique advantage: "Discover what's easy for you but hard for others, then get so good they can't ignore you, and then leverage that to accrue social and financial capital." [1]
The 'Career as a Product' metaphor: "Every great product should have a moat, and careers are no different." [7]
Prioritizing skills over networking: "You want to Get So Good They Can't Ignore You (10x better product) before doubling down on networking (marketing & PR)." [7]
The danger of optimizing for optionality: "When you focus on pursuing optionality, you are less likely to look dumb... and that you know if your end goal let's say is to be a Founder to start a company the the biggest risk is not that you won't get the you know the right training... it's that you don't take enough shots on goal." [8]
Asymmetric upside as a career framework: "My career kind of replacement... framework instead of pursuing optionality is to pursue asymmetric upside... which is this idea that pursuing opportunity that has the uh the chance of being a mega outcome for you but if it doesn't work out is actually a pretty great experience." [8]
The power of your environment: "It's far easier to change your environment than your insides." [8]
On taking risks: "If you're young, take asymmetric business risks." [9]
The long-term view on looking smart: "Your goal should be to look smart at the end of your journey, you don't have to look smart at every step of your journey." [9]
The value of commitment: "Making commitments actually expands optionality in in some ways... what you chain yourself to sets you free." [4]

On Venture Capital and Investing

The human element in early-stage investing: "Early stage venture investing is always a bet on a small team or individual founder." [10]
The essence of venture capital: Erik explains that a venture capitalist's role is crucial for those wanting to enter the startup world, as VCs provide the necessary capital for growth. [11]
The underrated value of media companies: "Media companies are tremendously underrated—they're not only distribution machines, they are also data-aggregators and reputation-generators." [12]
The future of venture: In a crowded venture environment, having assets like strong communities and media platforms is "the price of entry to compete with the best." [12]
On the mindset of an investor: A key aspect is having a positive-sum mindset, which is essential for being an effective startup founder and investor. [13]
Learning from missed investments: Erik openly discusses his investment misses as valuable learning experiences. [13]
The importance of conviction: Judging the worth of an early-stage investment means judging the likelihood that the founders can make their vision a reality. [10]
The role of a VC firm: It's not just about capital, but also about providing a network and support system for founders. [11]

On Media

The shift to direct distribution: "People want to hear from individuals more than they want to hear from institutions." [14]
The impact of the internet on media: "When you give everyone a voice, don't be surprised if some people use the voice to say 'F--- you.'" [14]
The future of niche media: "Instead of create the next tech crunch for everything, create the next tech crunch for a specific category." [15]
The power of podcasts: "Podcasts are underrated for a few reasons... they're the only media that that you can create that allows you to create every other form of media from a podcast." [15]
The producer vs. creator mindset: "Not everyone needs to be a creator... I wouldn't be surprised if the producer role becomes more prestigious than the creator role." [15]
The under-monetization of media: "Most people who create media don't think who is the most valuable customer I should sell this to and what is the actual job to be done here or value prop that I that I could sell them that I could thus charge a lot more perhaps." [15]
The decline of trust in legacy media: The combination of increased transparency through the internet and the institutions' failure to innovate has led to declining trust. [14]
The retreat to private conversations: "The saddest part is we'll never know what we're losing... so many more people would be learning if [conversations] were in public but just the the cost doesn't make sense for him anymore." [18]

On Personal Growth and Happiness

The practice of solitude: "When I am alone for extended periods of time, I feel closer to others. When I am offline, away from devices, I feel like I am connected to something bigger than myself." [19]
The importance of taking responsibility: "Take responsibility (the ability to respond). This doesn't mean that everything that has happened to you is a result of your actions. It means that you develop an ability to respond to whatever happens to you." [7]
On rewiring your patterns: "A pattern that's run through your family for generations can stop with you." [7]
The power of gratitude: "Feel grateful for the day. Be grateful for the wonderful people in your life." [20]
On being easy to work with: Torenberg emphasizes reducing "friction" in professional relationships by being reliable and positive. [20]
The illusion of the self: "The true self is an illusion... The idea of one singular self... is a myth." [3]
On failure in sports and life: "There's no failure in sports. You know, there are good days, bad days, some days you are able to be successful. Some days you're not." [21]
The value of a growth mindset: When you win, you should zoom in and focus on what made you successful. When you lose, you should zoom out and remember it's just one game. [21]
On building community: "Go into any kind of community building with a radical sense of openness and love and it's like stand back like really amazing things can happen." [22]
On the importance of in-person connection: "It will never replace in real life." [22]

Learn more:

Lessons from Erik Torenberg

On Startups and Entrepreneurship

On Career Strategy

On Venture Capital and Investing

On Media

On Personal Growth and Happiness

Written by Antoine Buteau

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