It's important to recognize talent within two standard deviations of your own abilities to appreciate and harness it effectively.

In tech, we can identify exceptional talent, while larger institutions often fail to do so, leading to a preference for mediocrity.

The very best engineers have different brain structures and problem-solving approaches, which is often underestimated by institutions.

Great software companies are built by great software engineers, and this is a crucial truth that many business people overlook.

To be exceptional in software engineering, you need to engage in deliberate practice and understand the systems deeply, rather than just relying on tools.

The best products come from small teams of 4 to 6 people, rather than large teams, which can dilute focus and creativity.

Identifying great talent involves understanding what makes someone good at their job and consulting with experts in that field to learn about key traits and characteristics to look for during the hiring process.

As we grew, I learned the importance of hiring, developing a standard algorithm to assess candidates against the average to ensure we brought in top talent. We focused on continuous improvement in our hiring process, asking if each candidate was better than the average, which helped us grow our team and improve our startup.

You need to build a top engineering culture to attract the best talent, which is crucial for success.