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 Image
You want an idea that not many other people are working on, and it's okay if it doesn't sound big at first. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
You want to continue to be run by great products, not process for it's own sake. — 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 Advantage Copy Share Image
In addition to relentlessly resourceful, you want a tough and a calm cofounder. — Sam Altman Calm Copy Share Image
Most startups are not nearly focussed enough. They work hard...maybe, but they don't work hard on the right things. — Sam Altman Customer 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 Business Copy Share Image
A lot of people treat choosing their cofounder with even less importance than they put on hiring. Don't do this. — Sam Altman Customer Copy Share Image
The best ideas often look terrible at the beginning the truly good ideas, don't seem like they're worth stealing. — Sam Altman Good ideas Copy Share Image
As you grow, the productivity I think, goes down with the square of the number of employees if you don't make an… — Sam Altman Effort Copy Share Image
You also want to fire people who a) create office politics, and b) who are persistently negative. — Sam Altman Fire 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 Business Copy Share Image
You need to figure out what the 2 or 3 most important things are, and then just do those. — 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 Business Copy Share Image
You should be able to describe any employee as an animal at what they do. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
If you compromise and hire someone mediocre you will always regret it. — Sam Altman Compromise Copy Share Image
I care much more about the growth rate of the market than it's current size and I also care if there's any… — Sam Altman Care Copy Share Image
It's better to have a few users love your product than for a lot of users to sort of like it. — Sam Altman Inspirational Copy Share Image
... but the pendulum has swung way out of whack here. A bad idea is still bad, and the pivot happy world… — Sam Altman Bad idea Copy Share Image
Why now, why is this the perfect time for this particular idea, and to start this particular company? — Sam Altman Business Copy Share Image
The natural state of a start-up is to die; most start-ups require multiple miracles in their early days to escape this fate. — Sam Altman Customer Copy Share Image
The other piece besides focus for execution is intensity. Startups only work at a fairly intense level. — Sam Altman Customer Copy Share Image
Investors will sort of like write the check and then, despite a lot of promises, don't usually do that much; sometimes they… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
You should always know how you're doing against your metrics. You should always have a weekly review meeting every week. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
Before product/market fit, your only job that matters is to build a great product. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
The way to have a company that executes well is you have to execute well yourself. — Sam Altman Business Copy Share Image
If you ever take your foot off the gas pedal, things will spiral out of control, snowball downwards. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
Another way of looking at this, is that the best companies are almost always mission oriented. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
Why couldn't it have been done 2 years ago, and why will 2 years in the future be too late? — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
1 of the hardest parts about being a founder, is that there are a 100 important things competing for your attention each day. — Sam Altman Attention Copy Share Image
One thing that often disrupts momentum and really shouldn't is competitors. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
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 Image
Developing a personal connection with anyone you're trying to do a big deal with is really important. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
We pretty much won't fund a company now where the founders don't have vested equity because it's just that hard to do. — Sam Altman Business Copy Share Image
So always keep momentum, it's this prime directive for managing a startup. — Sam Altman Entrepreneurship Copy Share Image
I myself used to believe ideas didn't matter that much, but I'm very sure that's wrong now. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
Ideas by themselves are not worth anything, only executing well is what creates value. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
For most of the early hires you make in a startup, experience doesn't matter very much, and you should go for aptitude. — Sam Altman Aptitude Copy Share Image
When it comes to starting startups, in many ways, it's easier to start a hard startup than an easy startup. — Sam Altman Customer Copy Share Image
