May 2012
1 post
“Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a...”
– Ralph Waldo Emerson
April 2012
2 posts
The Good Kind of Discrimination
dis·crim·i·na·tion /disˌkriməˈnāSHən/ L. discriminatus
Due to undertones of the other, adverse meaning - prejudging based on attributes (c. 1866) - we tend to miss the crucially important and original definition (c. 1620) of discrimination:
Recognition and understanding of the difference between one thing and another.
To truly value the team member who’s going the extra mile,...
Peter Thiel on Commoditization →
Peter Thiel and Seth Godin are two people who really get commoditization. I wrote about this in July: “If you’re in a marketplace, you’ve already lost”
December 2011
2 posts
It's amazing how far a couple of words can go....
“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving.”
– Albert Einstein
November 2011
1 post
October 2011
1 post
“One of the best pieces of advice I ever got, back when I was 23 and newly out of...”
– John Lily
September 2011
1 post
“Liberty means responsibility. That is why most men dread it.”
– George Bernard Shaw
August 2011
3 posts
WatchTry Something New for 30 Days
2 tags
“Management is the most noble of professions if it’s practiced well. No other...”
– Prof. Clayton Christensen
July 2011
4 posts
“How will you use your gifts? What choices will you make?
Will inertia be your...”
– Jeff Bezos
7-day Experiment: (Delta Y / Delta X)
If you're in a marketplace, you've already lost
June 2011
9 posts
“There is no such thing as working on something small. It is always good to...”
– Asifawosen Alemseged, who drove me in his LA Yellow Cab; also an Ethiopian singer
“I cannot imagine the future, but I care about it. I know I am a part of a story...”
– Daniel Hillis
2 tags
“Seek meaning, focus on your dreams and begin to live them today, not someday… If...”
– Jeff Skoll at Stanford GSB in 2010
“There comes a time in every life when the past recedes and the future opens....”
– Phil Knight
MIT Sloan MBA Convocation Video →
Speech from 10:45 to 27:15
3 tags
MIT Sloan MBA Class of 2011, What's our higher...
Speech delivered as student speaker at the MIT Sloan MBA Class of 2011 Convocation Dean David Schmittlein, Dr. Victor Fung, faculty, administration, family, friends & the MIT Sloan MBA Class of 2011!
Thank you for the privilege of speaking with you today.
We’re so lucky. Every one of us has had our heroes who have believed in us way before we did. Inspired us, from our smallest wins, all the...
May 2011
5 posts
“Stanley has something most people will never have. Stanley has dignity.”
– That’s What I Am (2011)
Which startup job do I pick?
A student is picking between a job at our startup and another option - he aspires to be a successful technology entrepreneur. Instead of giving a laborious pitch, I offered him this framework.
If your goal is to work on cutting-edge technologies and to learn how to build a valuable venture, I’d consider the following:
Team: What’s the pedigree of the founders, and will I get a...
“There’s no sense in being precise when you don’t even know what...”
– John von Neumann
2 tags
Pausing Leveraged Dabbler
When I launched Leveraged Dabbler, I promised myself, I’d write for me, not you. Well, I didn’t. So I’m pausing this, to be more candid with myself and move on with a bunch of stuff. I may occasionally come here and post stuff. Thanks for reading, e-mail me anytime (nitin.rao@sloan.mit.edu) and good luck.
April 2011
4 posts
2 tags
Self-deprecatory humor is a bad idea. 7+ years...
“I am not good at tech matters but I have got a lot of people who are. I don’t...”
– Warren Buffet (via brycedotvc)
“Everyone of you is Clark Kent. You’re Superman and don’t even know it. You all...”
– Shai Agassi to attendees at Summit Series
When stuck, just pick something and move on. So...
March 2011
8 posts
Fun interview with Zurich-based Sandbox Network on... →
Breadth vs Depth?
In many ways, that’s the audacious essence of Leveraged Dabbler: achieving breadth AND depth - in steady state. But what does that mean Monday morning?
There is a time for breadth: - Building new learning. Collecting new enablers. Meeting new people. For novelty. - But breadth-only serial starters earn a poor reputation. There are only so many Founder roles and fellowships you can hold...
2 tags
Haven't been this busy in several years - or had...
Repeat learning across ventures: Any team member...
Dabblers! Which of your projects will get really...
2 tags
Your MBA-ness is a distraction, and I'm waiting...
It should have been obvious. Only, it wasn’t.
At a business plan competition, the few ideas that the audience seemed to love and remember were from passionate entrepreneurs with a story worth listening, and ideas worth spreading. The most annoying pitches, ironically, were filled with 2X2 matrices and a string of MBA/consulting templates (we certainly fell in this camp). Competitive...
Poke the Box: If you're stuck at the starting... →
Great books can change your life. I hope you will grab Poke the Box by Seth Godin, don’t waste time feeling stuck, and start shipping now.
Several years ago, I stood in a bookstore at a local mall in Mangalore, reaching for an interesting new book, then withdrawing my hand. Picking it up, then withdrawing my hand. Unsure if I could pay the INR 500 ($10) cost. The book was “Fortune at...
February 2011
14 posts
Approach I've evolved to: any model that can be...
Social Enterprise litmus: Your venture is the type...
Sometimes coaching another person is the fastest...
2 tags
Nothing like a crisp, high-impact call with...
Chasing your passion? No reason not to do...
“You cannot tell from appearances how things will go. Sometimes imagination makes...”
– http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Never_Give_In,_Never,_Never,_Never (via anuram)
hey amber rae: Take initiative, trust your gut,... →
heyamberrae:
A year ago I set out on a journey to explore my passions and experience the answer of what was next for me.
I quit my stable and comfortable job, sold my car and apartment of furniture, and gave all but 12 outfits to charity. I packed my life into a suitcase and hopped on a plane from San…
“When two men in business always agree, one of them is unnecessary.”
– William Wrigley
“The world stands aside to let anyone pass who knows where he is going.”
– David Starr Jordan