August 1, 2022 Today, a friend of mine passed away. I think people use the term “mentor” too loosely, but Leon did indeed play this role in my life. I think it’s because his remarkable character was impossible to ignore. He was a childhood friend of my father’s and I…

I was at dinner with some investors and founders last night in Copenhagen. One of them — who will not be named although he was a delightful man — was born in Denmark but lived in San Francisco for several years. He’s now moved back to Copenhagen and was very…

I started off with many advantages, and yet — as is the case for most — I had less leverage at the beginning for my career than I have now and now still less than I hope to have in the future. Less resources, less of a network, less know-how…

I’ve noticed over and over that while you’re working on building your company, the much more valuable opportunity often is to solve the problem(s) you encounter along the way. Maybe you want to sell something online and realize that there’s no good lightweight online store out there… or easy way…

WHY GOODY? A few weeks ago, just in time for the holidays, we launched Goody. In one sentence, Goody is an app that makes it easy to send gifts and warmth to the people in your life. Why are we building this? I have many ideas. I keep a long list that…

“A man should learn to detect and watch that gleam of light which flashes across his mind from within, more than the lustre of the firmament of bards and sages. Yet he dismisses without notice his thought, because it is his. In every work of genius we recognize our own…

I increasingly believe that your performance when you interact with someone on a particular occasion won’t really move the needle in affecting their impression of you. This is an idea that’s been brewing inside of me for a while. When you have a job interview, when you go on a…

As I sat in a cab on Saturday evening being zoomed through some blurry part of Chelsea in the recklessly competent style of the New York cab driver, my friend texted me and asked how I would define a life well-lived. I assumed correctly that she was drunk. This question…

There are very few places as beautiful as the Great Lawn of Central Park on a warm late June Sunday. Washington Square Park isn’t bad either. There is no happy calmness like that instilled by good sleep, sunlight, exercise, clean food and the company of a few good friends. …