Understanding Human Psychology: Key Trait of Great Leaders

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Great leaders like Napoleon had a deep understanding of human psychology, which was a key trait that set them apart. This insight highlights that operational excellence and vision are important, but the ability to comprehend human psychology is crucial for achieving remarkable success in a short period. Napoleon's profound insight into human nature is a quality shared by many successful founders and leaders throughout history.

Founders aren’t superheroes, says Sam Altman.They may play extreme sports, respond to emails within seconds, and start billion-dollar companies, but they are rarely the product of extraordinary circumstance. In fact, they tend to be solidly upper-middle class, reasonably smart, and with loving parents.

So would Sam fund Peter Parker? What about Bruce Wayne?

Tyler and Sam discuss these burning questions and more, including what’s wrong with San Francisco, Napoleon’s underrated skill, nuclear energy, the greatest invention of the Industrial Revolution, his rant against coworking spaces, UBI and AGI, risk and regret, optimism and beauty, and why venture capitalists don’t have superpowers either.

Read a full transcript enhanced with helpful links.

Recorded January 28th, 2019 Other ways to connect

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