Big companies have trouble with innovation. Innovation is about bad ideas, or ideas that look like bad ideas. That's the fundamental thing.
Ben HorowitzRead
Nobody knows how to be a CEO. It's something you have to learn. It's a very lonely job.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Being a CEO involves a steep learning curve and can feel isolating.
The quote emphasizes that there is no definitive guide or manual for becoming a CEO; rather, it is a role that one learns to navigate through experience. It also highlights the solitude that often accompanies leadership positions, suggesting that despite the power and responsibility, CEOs may feel isolated in their decision-making and experiences.
Themes
CeoLeadershipLearningLonelinessExperience
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech addressing new managers, one might say, 'As Ben Horowitz pointed out, being a CEO is a learning journey filled with unique challenges.'
More from Ben Horowitz
All quotes βAs a company gets big, the information that informs decision-making gets massive. Depending upon the prism through which you view the business, your perspective will vary. If two people are in charge, this variance will cause conflict and delay.
Ben HorowitzRead
You read these management books that say, 'These are the hard things about running a company.' But those aren't really the hard things. The hard things are when you have to layoff half your company, or you have to fire your best friend. Or you have to figure out a way not to go bankrupt.
Ben HorowitzRead
Look - this is the terror of being a founder & CEO. It is all your fault. Every decision, every person you hire, every dumb thing you buy or do - ultimately, you're at the end.
Ben HorowitzRead
As long as people are clear on what they need to do and what's going on, you're very likely to succeed. When nobody is clear, then you're guaranteed to fail.
Ben HorowitzRead
I emphasize to C.E.O.s, you have to have a story in the minds of the employees. It's hard to memorize objectives, but it's easy to remember a story.
Ben HorowitzRead
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People thrive on positive reinforcement. They can take only a certain amount of criticism and you may lose them altogether if you criticize them in a personal way... you can make a point without being personal. Don't insult or belittle your people. Instead of getting more out of them you will get less
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Deliberation is the work of many men. Action, of one alone.
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Have convictions. Be friendly. Stick to your beliefs as they stick to theirs. Work as hard as they do.
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To me, a leader is someone who holds her- or himself accountable for finding potential in people and processes. And so what I think is really important is sustainability.
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I believe in a president whose religious views are his own private affair, neither imposed by him upon the nation or imposed by the nation upon him as a condition to holding that office.
John F. KennedyRead