Culture is about making tough choices, like deciding not to hire a highly skilled candidate if they don't fit well with the team.

The most important cultural decisions are made when hiring, as the culture becomes the people around you.

When hiring, it's important to identify the conscious decisions about the type of engineer you want, as different companies have varying needs based on their culture and goals.

To maintain cultural consistency as we scale, we hire people who already fit the culture we want, focusing on characteristics like intrinsic motivation and low ego.

The idea that some humans, particularly those with cognitive impairments, cannot perform basic tasks does not necessarily mean that their limitations are purely hardware-based; it could also be a matter of software or cognitive readiness.

Companies often look for different qualities in engineers, which can lead to confusion. It's crucial to clarify the specific skills and traits desired for the role being filled.

Cultural design is complex; it's about defining specific behaviors that create competitive advantages for your company, rather than just adopting general values.

Neuroscience provides new tools for hiring by measuring creativity and cognitive performance through engaging tasks rather than relying on self-reported assessments.

For example, Amazon's culture is defined by being cost-effective, while Apple's culture focuses on creating perfect products. Each company must decide which cultural behaviors align with its business strategy.