The Tim Ferriss Show #336: Scott Belsky — How to Conquer the Messy Middle
Persist Only With Conviction
- Decide to persist only if conviction in the problem exceeds doubt about the project.
- If you lose belief in the problem itself, consider quitting to avoid wasted time and capital.
Break The Journey Into Chapters
- Break long ventures into chapters (e.g., product-market fit, internationalization, monetization).
- Use chapter goals to prioritize resources and keep the team aligned year-to-year.
Shackleton's Tough Constraint
- Ernest Shackleton refused to fetch extra supplies from a sinking ship to protect crew morale.
- He artificially constrained resources to force focus and boost the team's will to survive.
Scott Belsky (@scottbelsky) is an entrepreneur, author, investor, Chief Product Officer of Adobe, and venture partner with venture capital firm Benchmark. Scott co-founded Behance in 2006 and served as CEO until Adobe acquired the company in 2012. Millions of people use Behance to display their portfolios, as well as track and find top talent across the creative industries.
Scott is an early investor and advisor in Pinterest, Uber, and Periscope among many other fast-growing startups, and his new book, The Messy Middle: Finding Your Way Through the Hardest and Most Crucial Part of Any Bold Venture, hits the shelves October 2nd.
I urge you to check it out, but until then, please enjoy this interview in the meantime!
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