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20VC: Justin Kan on Why We Have To Normalize Vulnerability in Startups Today, Why Attaching Happiness To Future Outcomes Will Only Lead To Suffering & Why It Is Total BS That You Have To "Suffer" When Doing A Startup

Jun 21, 2019

Justin Kan, Founder and CEO of Atrium and co-founder of Twitch, dives into the essentiality of normalizing vulnerability in startups. He discusses how attaching happiness to future outcomes breeds suffering and shares his transformative a-ha moments that shaped his career. Kan emphasizes the need for mental health awareness, self-improvement habits, and fostering a supportive company culture. He advocates for a customer-centric approach and highlights the importance of transparency in tech, debunking the myth that struggle is a prerequisite for success.

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ANECDOTE

Journey to Atrium

Justin Kan's entrepreneurial journey began in 2004 with Kiko, an online calendar similar to Google Calendar.
This led him to Y Combinator, then Justin.TV/Twitch, and eventually Atrium, a corporate law firm for startups.

INSIGHT

Learning Through Founding

Justin Kan realized that being a full-time investor wasn't fulfilling his need for continuous learning.
He found that founding startups forced him to learn and grow, even though it could be painful.

INSIGHT

Burnout and Self-Improvement

Justin Kan experienced burnout multiple times during his career, often feeling a desire to quit during stressful periods.
He realized the need for self-improvement and cultural changes to create a less stressful environment.

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Justin Kan is the Founder and CEO @ Atrium, the startup providing a full-service corporate law firm that uses modern technology to give startups a legal experience that is fast, transparent, and price-predictable. To date, Justin has raised over $75m in funding from some of the best in the business including Founders Fund, a16z, First Round, General Catalyst, Thrive, Initialized and more. Prior to founding Atrium, Justin was a Partner @ Y Combinator, the globally renowned accelerator and the birthplace of some of today's largest startups. Before that Justin was the Co-Founder @ Twitch, the world’s leading video platform and community for gamers which was acquired by Amazon for $970m. If that was not enough, Justin is also a prolific angel investor with investments in the likes of Cruise Automation, Rippling, Zenefits, Triplebyte and more.

In Today’s Episode You Will Learn:

1.) How Justin made his way into the world of startups and YC? How that led to the founding of Justin.TV, later Twitch? What was that a-ha moment for Atrium?

2.) Why did Justin feel that being an investor full time was not for him? How does Justin think about and approach the learning process as a founder? What advice does Justin give to those who want to quit? What was it that made Justin embrace the series of self-improvement habits he now practices?

3.) What does Justin mean when he says, "attaching yourself to outcomes will only cause your own suffering”? How does Justin think about and advise founders when it comes to burnout? How does Justin feel about the "crushing it" culture in tech? What can we do to normalise vulnerability? What were Justin's biggest takeaways from "The Score takes Care of Itself"?

4.) What have been Justin's experiences with therapy? How does he advise founders thinking of engaging with therapists? What have been his biggest lessons that drive success in therapy? How does Justin look to show authenticity through positivity? What does that really mean?

5.) What have been Justin's biggest takeaways from "The 15 Commitments of Conscious Leadership"? What are the core principles? What is required to roll out these values and principles within an organisation? What are the fundamental challenges to successfully roll this out on a large scale within your company?

Items Mentioned In Today’s Show:

Justin’s Fave Book: The 15 Commitments of Conscious Leadership

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