The Grand Finale
Newsletter 7 | Day 5 of Fellowship | Silicon Valley Fellowship Tour Newsletter
“Leadership is never about tearing people down, it's all about helping people become the very best version of themselves.”
LEADERSHIP FIRST
Today was a day like no other, I never knew I would meet such amazing top-quality mentors and get so much spectacular advice. Even though it was the last day of the fellowship, It was not the last day of my exploring, networking, and learning in Silicon Valley.
Talks from Mentors
Pancrazio Auteri:
Product executive. Investor and Advisor. Operating partner. Helping venture-backed founders accelerate product, market fit, sales and fundraising. Co-founded several startups (TiVo acquired by Xperi, Fing acquired by LanSweeper, Tvblob acquired by Minerva, Vendini acquired by AudienceView).
Founder & Managing Partner @ Product Expanse
form. Chief Technology Officer @ ContentWise
The talk from Pancrazio was one of the best talks. He gave us so many useful insights and help. It was all meant to help my future but actually, so much of the info is relevant for the now.
Remember the lessons that you have learnt, otherwise, they are useless
The most important part of a decision is what you choose not to do
The Opportunity Cost Rule (opportunities come at a cost, you have to balance what is more important)
It makes you understand your life better.
Realisation takes place
You can be fully committed and live more in the present
Boredom is Natural (explore it)
It means you are wasting your time
No value is being given
you are not growing
So do mindfulness to explore those thoughts and realise what creates problems, boredom and agitation.
Out of 10 new startups, eg $10 million invested
3 will return only $10 million each
2 will return more than $10 million each
5 Will die
The startup realm is a tough world, you need to be fully committed and hard-working
He gave us some amazing information on how to provide a good convincing speech to try and sell or get a point across. This info is his, I can't share it but the fact that he shared it with us is incredible and I can't wait to try this strategy on my English teachers and future project demos.
Frank Hysa:
Corporate innovation director with 10+ years of experience in strategic planning, systems and processes, operating models, and strategic business development.
Director of Innovation @ Capgemini
Advisor @ Berkeley SkyDeck
form. Principal Innovation Manager @ Volvo Group
We had a great talk with Frank who spoke to us about creating a network, and that being set in 1 job too long is only destroying yourself, you need to be constantly creating a network and refreshing it. Get out your comfort zone and do what's difficult, it's only going to take you to better places.
Your Network is your Networth
Giuliano Iacobelli:
Software engineer turned entrepreneur. Founded Stamplay and then sold it to Apple.
Director of Product Management @ Apple
form. Limited Partner @ Firsthand Alliance
form. CEO, Co-Founder @ Stamplay (Acquired by Apple)
This was probably the best mentors, his talk was so informative and kept your attention the whole time.
His slide deck was just memes, we asked why. He answered that the memes kept you interested and I got the attention and gave you the information. This was really good feedback as you want the attention because you have the vital information, but you also always want maximum focus from the audience.
He also spoke about how life is not easy and you have lots of ups and downs but it is how far you are willing to go which makes up who you will become. You also need to make sure your goals are desirable, feasible, and Viable to make the best-fit goals for you.
Book Suggestions:
Karandeep Johar:
Senior Software Engineer and Manijor at Amplitude
form. Software Engineer at Dropbox
In this session we spoke mostly about the company Amplitude, we explored the office and got some nice snacks. He was a nice guy. He mentioned he moved from Dropbox to Amplitude because of the team culture and working environment, it was nice to hear from him that this was something he prioritised when working. One of the other tips he gave us was to make sure you always pay attention to the fine details as it could be the most important details and information.
Lunchtime walk
We managed to get in some American action to see a live game of baseball happening from the outside of the stadium you could see the game from the office where we had our last speakers. Offices around San Francisco have such amazing views.
All the Lessons
Get to the point, you lose people with fluffy information
A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step
1 Day or Day 1
You pay a price for every decision, so take advice carefully
Develop as little as possible before testing the market
Get people to help you assess situations that you are emotional about.
Don't worry about failures, you only have to be correct once
This was the last day of the fellowship, but I still have 2 more days of exploring and networking. Stay tuned for more updates and information.
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Twitter: https://twitter.com/Guy_Henwood_Fox
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Thanks again!
Guy