Rushika J Pattni

Tanzanian // Yale '15 // Coffee Lover // Mirchi Virgo // Lifelong Learner

~~ always two steps ahead.

[Patrick Collison @patrickc]

Was chatting with a well-known founder yesterday about the "founder mode" discussion.

We were both wondering if people would misinterpret it, and undervalue the importance of hiring great leaders. Steve Jobs, the canonical example of "founder mode", was also gifted at identifying stellar leaders, without whom no great organization gets built. (And we're lucky to have many at Stripe.)

To the extent that there's an ostensible tension here (founder-mode micromanagement vs the classic view that one should focus on enablement), this founder pointed out that the lens of domain-specific judgment helps reconcile the dichotomy.

• You need to have excellent judgment in your problem area.
• You need to recognize the importance of good judgment as a phenomenon.
• You need to demand it in others.

He argued that many companies and founders fail at (2) and (3). That is, individuals can be effective "people managers", or have strong resumes, or whatever, but just not be deep enough in their domains to be right on the substantive merits of questions within their purview (and unable to recursively detect/insist on that correctness in others, or to elevate and prize it when they see people who do it well).

In this conception of things, leaders in "founder mode" naturally enable others when those others have great judgment in their areas.

Interestingly, this HBR piece describes how Apple differs from the mainstream by doing exactly this: "Its fundamental belief is that those with the most expertise and experience in a domain should have decision rights for that domain. [...] Apple is not a company where general managers oversee managers; rather, it is a company where experts lead experts." https://t.co/KRzcwP8F9r. It's clear from discussions with leaders at SpaceX and Tesla that @elonmusk's companies do this as well.

So, anyway, I wonder if some substantial part of "founder mode" hinges on "building an org around good judgment".

[Many obligatory disclaimers apply to this tweet: no single attribute is enough to make for a good leader, no single framework is fully explanatory, etc., but the margins of this tweet are too small to contain them.]

[Danielle Strachman 💗 🐈 💃 🪴 🎸 🎨 🐕 @DStrachman]

Office hours last week with students wanting to open a boba shop:

“Ok, where’s the boba?”

“We haven’t sold any but we have these spreadshe…”

“You haven’t sold any boba?!”

“No”

“Y’all are too smart for your own good. You need a table and boba. Not a spreadsheet!”

Today:

[Smart Lab @SmartLab255]

#TechHerStory

Meet @RushikaJP - a principle-driven leader with over 8 years of experience in healthcare, financial services, and technology - gained while working in India, Mauritius, Rwanda, Kenya, and China before coming back to Tanzania.

[Andrew Gazdecki @agazdecki]

Shamelessly market your startup every day.

Don’t follow other’s playbooks.

Do things differently. Think creatively.

Do the opposite of your competitors.

Create your own playbook.

Create a brand that stands out.

Create a distribution moat.

This is how you win today.

[Rushika J Pattni @RushikaJP]

Out of sight, out of mind

[Rushika J Pattni @RushikaJP]

Use cognitive technologies carefully. ChatGPT is a tool, but it shouldn't take away or replace creativity, empathy and understanding. Those are the most fun elements of working with a team, challenging your own standards and upskilling!

[Daniella Kwayu @DaniellaKwayu]

The Tanzania Startup Policy is underway!! Huge congratulations to @TanzaniaSA for moving the needle forward for all of us!!

Shout out to @ZMuhaji @PraygodJaphet and team!! Really proud of you guys!!

[Recroot Africa @RecrootAfrica]

Future-of-work has to define who does the work, how the work is done & where the work is done. A question we often get for the gig space: How can I be productive as a gig worker handling multiple projects? Below are our faves - comment below if you have others for our community!

[Andrew Gazdecki @agazdecki]

A day in the life of running a startup...

Sales: "we need one more feature"

Product: "just sell what we've built"

Sales: "the leads aren't good"

Marketing: “you haven’t called the leads”

Founder: "hey just closed our biggest deal"

All of the above is the same person.

[Andrew Gazdecki @agazdecki]

Your job as CEO of a startup is to find ways to innovate on distribution strategy as much as you innovate on product strategy.

[Andrew Gazdecki @agazdecki]

Almost every successful startup founder goes through times when they want to give up but they keep going anyways. Please be that founder.

[Rushika J Pattni @RushikaJP]

When business school teaches you the fundamentals of coaching as an executive or a founder, don't forget even as co-founders you can be each other's coaches. It doesn't just have to always be about work and deliverables. Think beyond your shareholder/founder agreement :)

[Andrew Gazdecki @agazdecki]

Startups and entrepreneurship is a game of grit not intelligence.

[kalebu Gwalugano @j_kalebu]

"Success hinges less on getting everything right than on how you handle getting things wrong." —Michelle Russel via @momentumdash

[Navalism @NavalismHQ]

"At the end of the day, you are a combination of your habits and the people who you spend the most time with."

@naval

[Rushika J Pattni @RushikaJP]

@KQSupport @KenyaAirways Do you read tickets through the grievances channel you have online? What's the point of having it if you don't care to respond for 10+ days... Well you have lost one more customer to Emirates. Good luck! Better to pay 2x more than deal with KQ's speed 🤦

[Rushika J Pattni @RushikaJP]

@omoklin @shokojr_ Worse in December haha

[Navalism @NavalismHQ]

"It’s becoming easier and easier to be social, but exceptional people are built in solitude."

@naval

[Navalism @NavalismHQ]

"At the end of the day, you are a combination of your habits and the people who you spend the most time with."

@naval

[Mufti Menk @muftimenk]

Learn to rejoice and celebrate the victories of others. It will open doors of goodness in your own life in return. Be gracious enough to accord even your enemy their due place. Such positive actions will lift you even during your worst days.