Making Better Decisions by Identifying Factors and Weighting Them | 3min snip from Lenny's Podcast: Product | Growth

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Zigging vs. zagging: How HubSpot built a $30B company | Dharmesh Shah (co-founder/CTO)

Lenny's Podcast: Product | Growth | Career

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Making Better Decisions by Identifying Factors and Weighting Them

When making decisions, it is crucial to identify the key factors that influence the decision-making process. It is not necessary to assign exact weights initially but rather to rank the factors in terms of importance. This process provides a closer approximation of the factors' significance. It is essential to allocate effort and consideration proportionally to the consequences of the decision, with more significant decisions warranting more thorough analysis. The principle of 'one way doors versus two way doors' underscores the importance of investing more energy into pivotal decisions. Additionally, assessing the opportunity cost of saying 'yes' to new endeavors is critical, as every affirmative decision entails a trade-off. By understanding the value and implications of decisions, individuals can make informed choices and create space in their lives for new opportunities by strategically balancing commitments.

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Dharmesh Shah is the co-founder and CTO of HubSpot (currently valued at $30 billion) and one of the most fascinating founders I’ve ever met. Dharmesh is the keeper of HubSpot’s Culture Code, built ChatSpot (an AI chatbot built on top of HubSpot CRM) and a game called WordPlay (which grew to 16 million users), and also founded and writes for OnStartups, a top-ranking startup blog and community with more than 1M members. He’s also invested in 100+ startups including OpenAI, AngelList, Coinbase, and Dropbox. In our conversation, we discuss:

• The biggest lessons he has learned from building HubSpot

• The importance of leaning into your strengths

• Dharmesh’s data-oriented approach to public speaking

• How he developed HubSpot’s culture code

• The decision-making process at HubSpot

• His contrarian approach to building products

• Why founders and product teams are all fighting the second law of thermodynamics

• How “flash tags” can save your teams time

• How to decide what ideas are worth investing in

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