Build what customers actually want

Episode 210: Noah Kagan - How To Start A Business

Noah Kagan was the #30 employee at Facebook (started there in 2005), and the #4 employee at Mint.com. He came up with the idea of real-time updates and executed with one engineer (Mark Slee) at Facebook. He is now the Chief Sumo at Sumo.com (A domain in which he paid $1.5m to own. We discussed why on this episode).

This episode is different than most in that it was more conversational, and less interview. There was real-time coaching, and off the cuff conversation about how I should progress The Learning Leader. If you are uncomfortable with creative use of the English Language (re: use of curse words), then skip this episode. If not, I think you'll really like it.

"You shouldn't get a job... You should get a career."

Show Notes:

• Sustained Excellence = Getting feedback from professionals
  • Noah hired pros from NPR to review his interview transcripts.
  • "Most of the time we have too much. Need to edit it down."
• How to create a narrative -- The NPA producer changed his life
• Employees -- "They are not my people. They are people I work with. I don't like the word employee."
• How do you hold others accountable? -- Autonomy, coaching, help when needed. Hire correctly.
• "What I'm great at is starting..."
• How the quest to India changed Noah's life
• "You'll almost always push hard on the last lap."
• The impact Mark Zuckerberg had on him when he worked for him at Facebook
• "When I was at Facebook, there was a singular focus: Growth."
• "You shouldn't get a job, get a career." -- "I was a cubicle monkey at Intel"
• Using a journal to plan your day/week/month
• "Here is a story I've never shared before..."
• Why you should always ask yourself..."What's exciting for me?"
• Why you should go on walks with your spouse/significant other
• Instead of building something in a month, why not build it by Monday? -- Do it quicker than you think possible
  • You need to constantly try and test it out... Don't overthink it. Will people pay me for this? Keep evolving
• Keys to building your audience
• "Art of The Deal" is a helpful book
• Noah's salary? Low 6 figures
• "Good people don't work for cheap rates"
• The two ways to scale a business
  • Technology
  • People
• What Noah learned about vision --
  • Initially didn't believe in it... But he has matured and fully believes in it. "As I've gotten older..."
  • "It's much easier to get what you want when you know what you want."
• The impact of Noah's Dad dying had on him
  • "I'm much more protective of my time"

"Good people don't ask for cheap rates."

Social Media:

• Follow Noah on Twitter: @noahkagan
• Go to: Sumo.com
• Connect with me on LinkedIn
• Join our Facebook Group: The Learning Leader Community
• To Follow Me on Twitter: @RyanHawk12

More Learning:

Episode 078: Kat Cole – From Hooters Waitress To President of Cinnabon

Episode 071: NateBoyer - Green Beret, Texas Football, The NFL

Episode 179: How To Sustain Excellence - The Best Answers From 178 Questions

Episode 107: Simon Sinek – Leadership: It Starts With Why

Episode edited by the great J Scott Donnell

The Learning Leader Show is supported by Rhone. Use the code "Hawk" for 15% off. Rhone... premium activewear engineered with principle, performance and progress for the modern man. Rhone builds clothing around 3 main tenants: Cutting-edge Performance, Premium Comfort, and Simplistic Style.