Share results (financial and key metrics) with the company every month. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
Firing people is one of the worst parts of running a company. Actually in my own experience, I think it is the… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
... if you talk to say any of the first 40 or 50 employees, they all feel like they were a part… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
People that are really smart and that can learn new things can almost always find a role in the company as time… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
Why now, why is this the perfect time for this particular idea, and to start this particular company? — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
You have to be intense. This only comes from the CEO, this only comes from the founders. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
... you can think about that for everyone you hire: will I bet the future of this company on this single hire?… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
If you're not in college and you don't know a cofounder, the next best thing I think is to go work at… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
Many of the best YC companies have had phenomenally small number of employees for their first year, sometimes none besides the founders. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
The role of the board is advice and consent. If the CEO does not lay out a clear strategy and tries to… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
You can create value with breakthrough innovation, incremental refinement, or complex coordination. Great companies often do two of these. The very best… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
I really believe that the single hardest thing in business is building a company that does repeatable innovation... and just has this… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
We've seen a lot of data at YC now, and the most successful companies and the ones where the investors do the… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
The most common post YC failure case for the companies we fund, is they're incredibly focussed during YC on their company... and… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
If you compromise in the first five, ten hires it might kill the company. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
A third advantage of mission oriented companies, is that people outside the company are more willing to help you. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
You have to save the vision speeches for when the company is winning. When you're not winning, you just have to get… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
Later, you should learn to hire fast and scale up the company, but in the early days the goal should be not… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
Don't let the company get distracted or excited about other things. A common mistake is that companies get excited by their own… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
Whatever the founder cares about, whatever the founders think are the key goals, that's going to be what the whole company focusses… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
You need to have a culture where people have very high quality standards in everything the company does, but still move quickly. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
The company just needs to see you as like this maniacal execution machine. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
Companies that I've been very involved with, that have had a very bad first hire in the first 3 or so employees… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
As long as you keep doing the right thing and have the best product, you can beat the bigger company. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
Most good founders that I know at any given time have a set of small overarching goals for the company that everybody… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
... fire fast when it's not working. It's better for the company, it's also better for the employee. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
I prefer to invest in a company that's going after a small but rapidly growing market than a big but slow growing… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
We talk to a team they've gotten new things done, that's the best predictor we have that a company will be successful. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
Cofounder relationships are among the most important in the entire company. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
As the company grows and about this 25 or so employee size, your main job shifts from building a great product to… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
Before 20 or 25 employees, most companies are structured with everyone reporting to the founder. It's totally flat. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
Most great companies in tech have been built by personal referrals for the first...at least 100 employees and often many more. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
... for the top twenty most valuable YC companies, all of them have at least two founders. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
Founders need to figure out what the message of the company is going to be. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
In the beginning of a company, there is no management and this actually works really well. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
In general though, if you look at the track record of pivots, they don't become big companies. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
You want to think about what is the path for my first 10 or 15 employees going to be as the company grows. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
M&A negotiations feel really fun. This is one of the biggest killers of companies, is they entertain acquisition conversations. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
One thing I tell startups all the time is that the best way to grow is to make their product better. — Sam Altman Copy Share
A winning team feels good and keeps winning. A team that hasn't won in a while gets demotivated and keeps losing. — Sam Altman Copy Share
You're either not hiring at all or it's probably your single biggest block of time. — Sam Altman Copy Share
Execution gets divided into two key questions: 1) can you figure out what to do and 2) can you get it done. — Sam Altman Copy Share
I prefer to invest in a company that's going after a small but rapidly growing market than a big but slow growing one. — Sam Altman Copy Share
Startups are not the best choice for work-life balance, and that's sort of just the sad reality. — Sam Altman Copy Share
One of the biggest advantages that start ups have is execution speed and you have to have this relentless operating rhythm. — Sam Altman Copy Share
One of the keys to focus, and why I said cofounders that aren't friends really struggle, is that you can't be focused without good… — Sam Altman Copy Share
Startups are very hard no matter what you do; you may as well go after a big opportunity. — Sam Altman Copy Share
