Share results (financial and key metrics) with the company every month. — Sam Altman Business Copy Share Image
In the early stage of a startup, hiring senior people is usually a mistake. You just want people that get stuff done. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
It's easy to move fast or be obsessed with quality, but the trick is you have to do both at a startup. — Sam Altman Customer Copy Share Image
No growth hack, brilliant marketing idea, or sales team can save you long term if you don't have a sufficiently good product. — Sam Altman Brilliant Copy Share Image
Facebook has this famous poster that says move fast and break things. But at the same time they manage to be obsessed… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
Long term thinking is so rare anywhere, but especially in startups. This is a huge advantage if you do it. — Sam Altman Advantage Copy Share Image
In the beginning of a company, there is no management and this actually works really well. — Sam Altman Birth Copy Share Image
In general though, if you look at the track record of pivots, they don't become big companies. — Sam Altman Big companies Copy Share Image
You can have a startup and one other thing, you can have a family, but you probably can't have many other things. — Sam Altman Entrepreneurship Copy Share Image
The thing that kills startups at some level, is the founders giving up. — Sam Altman Customer Copy Share Image
You need someone that behaves like James Bond more than you need someone that is an expert in some particular domain. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
By the way, that's my number one piece of advice if you're going to join a startup: pick a rocket ship. — Sam Altman Advice Copy Share Image
One of the great and terrible things about starting a start up is that you get no credit for trying. — Sam Altman Credit Copy Share Image
If you have several ideas that all seem pretty good, work on the one that you think about, when you're not trying… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
If you don't need it yourself, and you're building something that someone else needs, realize you're at a big disadvantage. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
Even though plans themselves are worthless, the exercise of planning is very valuable and totally missing in most startups today. — Sam Altman Entrepreneurship Copy Share Image
So it's worth some real up front time to think through the long term value and the defensibility of the business. — Sam Altman Business Copy Share Image
Press releases are easier to write than code, and that is still easier than making a great product. — Sam Altman Code Copy Share Image
It's better to have no cofounder than to have a bad cofounder, but it's still bad to be a solo founder. — Sam Altman Customer Copy Share Image
Some day everyone will find out everyone else's comp, if it's all over the place, it will be a complete meltdown disaster — Sam Altman Disaster Copy Share Image
Most of the best hires that I've made in my entire life have never done that thing before. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
You don't need to make the structure complicated, in fact you shouldn't. All you need is for every employee to know who… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
You need conviction in your own beliefs, and the willingness to ignore others naysaying. — Sam Altman Belief 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 Business Copy Share Image
Remember that you are more likely to die because you execute badly than get crushed by a competitor. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
In general don't start a startup you're not willing to work on for ten years. — Sam Altman Customer Copy Share Image
If it takes more than a sentence to explain what you are doing, it's almost always a sign that what you are… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
Founders are usually very stingy with equity to employees and very generous with equity to investors. I think this is totally backwards. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
Every first time founder waits too long, everyone hopes that an employee will turn around. But the right answer is to fire… — 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 Acquisition Copy Share Image
You need unstoppable people. You want people that are just going to get it done. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
... and you can only have 2 or 3 things everyday, because everything else will just come at you; you know fires in a day. — Sam Altman Everyday Copy Share Image
The best source by far for hiring is people that you already know and people that other employees in the company already… — Sam Altman Business Copy Share Image
Most investors are obsessed with the market size today and they don't think about how the market is going to evolve. — Sam Altman Customer Copy Share Image
There are exceptions of course, but most companies start with a great idea - not a pivot. — Sam Altman Companies Copy Share Image
You don't get to make their decisions but you do get to choose the decision makers. — Sam Altman Decision Copy Share Image
You can win with the best product, the best price, or the best experience. — Sam Altman Best experiences Copy Share Image
Aim to be the best in the world at whatever you do professionally. Even if you miss, you'll probably end up in… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
As you grow, it feels hopelessly corporate but it really is worth putting in place these compensation bands. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
... how much time you should be spending on hiring? The answer is 0 or 25 percent. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
