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Mentor Wisdom: “No matter what you choose, build stuff and be around smart people.” - Sam Altman
Mentor Lesson: Build stuff with smart people
Sam Altman, who helped launch ChatGPT and ran Y Combinator, knows a thing or two about picking winners.
But here's what makes this advice genius: it's not about having the perfect plan or waiting for the stars to align.
Think about every breakthrough you've ever heard of.
The Wright brothers didn't just dream about flying, they built gliders, crashed them, and learned from smart engineers. Steve Jobs didn't just imagine the iPhone, he assembled a team of brilliant minds and they built prototype after prototype.
The magic happens when these two forces collide.
Building stuff teaches you what actually works versus what sounds good in your head.
Smart people challenge your assumptions and push you to think differently.
Together, they create this incredible feedback loop that accelerates your growth.
Most people get stuck picking between these two.
They either build alone in their garage or hang out with smart folks at networking events talking about ideas that never see daylight.
But the real winners do both at the same time.
The beauty is you don't need to be the smartest person in the room or build the next unicorn startup. You just need to start building something, anything, while surrounding yourself with people who make you uncomfortable with how much they know.
As promised, wisdom in under a minute.
Talk soon,
-Chris
P.S. Ready to start building?
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