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The Slow Hunch by Nick GrossmanThe Butter Thesis
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The Slow Hunch by Nick GrossmanThe Butter Thesis
At USV, we talk a lot about our investment thesis. The USV thesis is a set of ideas that has guided our investing over the years. It is a tool we u...
The Slow Hunch by Nick GrossmanFrom Crypto-Native to Crypto-Enabled
I’m not one to make big annual predictions, but one thing that seems likely to me is that 2024 will mark the emergence of mainstream apps powered by ...
The Slow Hunch by Nick GrossmanYou Never Know When You've Had a Good Day
Many years ago, when I had just started working at USV, I remember there was kind of a complicated situation that unfolded in a seemingly bad way, and I'll never forget what Brad said in response. He said:you never know when you've had a good dayI didn't really understand what that meant, so he told me a story that went something like: back around the year 2000 at the height of the dot-com boom, there was a guy who was a senior exec at a successful startup. That person had a falling out with ...
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In the last few weeks, I've found myself in the middle of several very complex negotiations. Getting something done in any negotiation requires leverage. But leverage is tricky. You need to have it to drive an outcome in your direction, but you want to be careful using it.
Brazenly using leverage can be effective, but it's somewhat distasteful, and can create bad blood / tarnish relationships. Leverage is also slippery and elusive. It may be that you have it, but sometimes it's not necessarily 100% clear, and things can change quickly.
Taking these two things together, I always find that it's wisest to try and understand what your leverage is, but also avoid wielding it too openly. Both because you may not actually have as much as you think, and if it turns out that you don't, you end up exposed as someone who's not afraid to use it.
But all that said: navigating real-time contentious situations is a good reminder that leverage is best built up over time, and planned ahead for as much as possible. That way, when it comes time you use it, you can a) be sure you actually have it and b) use what you have as modestly and comfortably as possible.
In the last few weeks, I've found myself in the middle of several very complex negotiations. Getting something done in any negotiation requires leverage. But leverage is tricky. You need to have it to drive an outcome in your direction, but you want to be careful using it.
Brazenly using leverage can be effective, but it's somewhat distasteful, and can create bad blood / tarnish relationships. Leverage is also slippery and elusive. It may be that you have it, but sometimes it's not necessarily 100% clear, and things can change quickly.
Taking these two things together, I always find that it's wisest to try and understand what your leverage is, but also avoid wielding it too openly. Both because you may not actually have as much as you think, and if it turns out that you don't, you end up exposed as someone who's not afraid to use it.
But all that said: navigating real-time contentious situations is a good reminder that leverage is best built up over time, and planned ahead for as much as possible. That way, when it comes time you use it, you can a) be sure you actually have it and b) use what you have as modestly and comfortably as possible.
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