Lenny Rachitsky@lennysan
How do you spot a top 1% startup before it's obvious?
@tmrohan and I were curious about a quiet class of employees who seem just as good as—if not better than—the most famous VCs at spotting generational companies before they blow up.
How do these rare folks keep joining world-changing companies before most of the world even notices them?
To find out, Terrence and I interviewed 5 people whose resumes include some of Silicon Valley’s most remarkable companies: @PalantirTech, @OpenAI, @Facebook, @Stripe, @Linear, @Figma, @NotionHQ, @SlackHQ, @Box, @Spotify, and @Dropbox.
Each joined at least two of these companies early—an extraordinary feat, especially since they committed as full-time employees, not diversified investors. Their “hit rate” is phenomenal.
We were curious: What did they see? How did they choose? Are there lessons to take from their experiences?
Across their stories, we saw three distinct factors that mattered most:
1. Ambition bordering on “ludicrous”
3. Judging today’s product is a trap
3. Founders, above everything
Though originally written for job seekers, these insights apply much more broadly—for founders, investors, or anyone trying to recognize greatness early.
Here’s what to look for: lennysnewsletter.com/p/how-to-spot-…
Huge thank you to @cjc @bobmcgrewai @soleio @rsms @seanrose for sharing your incredible insights with us 🙏