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Dalton Caldwell

10/12/19

@ Y Combinator

Be cautious about consuming thought leadership content that suggests you need to replicate the exact actions of successful individuals to achieve success yourself.

Video

Consume Information That Encourages You To Do More - Dalton Caldwell

@ Y Combinator

Consume Information That Encourages You To Do More - Dalton Caldwell

10/12/19

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Blindly copying successful companies without understanding their strategies leads to failure.

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It's important to seek out inspiring advice that encourages building and creating, rather than getting bogged down in corporate strategies that may not resonate with your goals.

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If thought leadership can be proven to improve your bottom line, then it makes sense to pursue it. However, if it doesn't relate to your core business, it may not be a good use of your time.

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Be cautious about taking advice from biased individuals, as many young people fail to recognize the biases in the advice they receive.

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Founders should focus on creating valuable products rather than superficially copying successful companies.

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Startups often make the mistake of trying to emulate other companies; instead, they should do the opposite of what competitors are doing.

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In classic cargo culting, the act of copying is based on the assumption that if you replicate successful elements, you will achieve the same success, without grasping the deeper reasons behind those elements.

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Investors often respond to ideas that are popular or trending, which can mislead founders into thinking they should follow the crowd rather than pursue their own insights.

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Founders should prioritize understanding what users want and learn from successful companies, rather than just copying their surface-level traits.