In the past 3 years, I’ve run over 300 interviews. On average, I meet someone new every 3-4 days to understand if they’re the right fit for an early-stage startup.
I especially like capping interviews with an open-ended question that really lets great candidates shine. One of my favorite now-retired questions is, in Thielian fashion: “What’s something you’ve learned that you believe gives you an edge - something that you’re almost surprised more people don’t know about?”
One of the all-time best answers I heard was this:
When you’re starting something new, the most important thing is knowing what to learn.
Followed by unpacking an optimal learning flow:
- Very quickly identify what the foundational knowledge is.
- Build a personal curriculum to become an expert and avoid the trap of the expert beginner.
- Sprint hard the first 15-20 hours to impress initial memory, then decelerate to a more regular pace.
#1 and #2 are common structured approaches to learning, whereas #3 is a relatively novel interpretation of spaced repetition. But at a more meta level, the unexpected takeaway is the vast majority of people likely haven’t updated their mental model for learning in decades. (Stop and think for a moment on the last time you did this.)
Learning to learn is extremely high leverage. 40 hours at 25% efficiency is the same as 12.5 hours at 80% efficiency. And it turns out that being productively honest is one of the most effective and kindest things you can do for yourself.