Inspired with Alexa von Tobel
00:44:43 · Alexa von Tobel, Brian Distelburger, Max Shaw
[00:44:43] S2: I've heard of it, but say more. Why do you love it? [00:44:45] S0: So it's a book on philosophy, dis... Sort of disguised as a motorcycle journey across The US. But some of the concepts he talks about in there around this was dated and it was more around just when computers were starting to be a thing, but the technological shift and how some people were adapting well and some people weren't, and some philosophies and skills and tools to manage and be successful through that transition. But I highly recommend everyone pick it up. [00:45:18] S2: You both are really, like, just energetic kind of... You can feel your momentum when you're with you. What's a mantra? And, you know, I believe that, like, people kinda have something running in the back of their head when they are an engine, which you both are. Max and Brian, what sort of a mantra you ascribe to? [00:45:36] S3: For me, I think it's... You're in control of of kind of how happy you feel. And I think being a founder is really hard, and there's a lot of things that go well. There's probably more things that don't go well. But, ultimately, I think it's just really important and something that I constantly remind myself is you're in control. You can decide how you're feeling that day, and being able to bounce back quickly from everything is something that I think is absolutely critical for what we're trying to do, and it's something that I try to instill in my kids. So the ability to bounce back quickly is definitely something.
00:45:36 · Max Shaw, Brian Distelburger, Alexa von Tobel
[00:45:36] S3: For me, I think it's... You're in control of of kind of how happy you feel. And I think being a founder is really hard, and there's a lot of things that go well. There's probably more things that don't go well. But, ultimately, I think it's just really important and something that I constantly remind myself is you're in control. You can decide how you're feeling that day, and being able to bounce back quickly from everything is something that I think is absolutely critical for what we're trying to do, and it's something that I try to instill in my kids. So the ability to bounce back quickly is definitely something. [00:46:08] S0: For me, it's really simple. People matter more. It is what we're doing. It is incredibly important. And so that to me, every single day is a huge source of motivation and energy. [00:46:22] S2: You guys have done a lot and seen a lot, and this isn't your first rodeo. Can you just like pay it forward to like something that you learned in the past? And it doesn't have to be like a failure per se. It's just sort of like a pretty real belief that you lean into as you're building Windmill that will help it be more successful because... Like, so just... It's your second time, probably fourth, fifth time, about their small things in x y z. But something you kind of hold as like a permanent truth to helping you be successful with this.
00:46:22 · Alexa von Tobel, Brian Distelburger
[00:46:22] S2: You guys have done a lot and seen a lot, and this isn't your first rodeo. Can you just like pay it forward to like something that you learned in the past? And it doesn't have to be like a failure per se. It's just sort of like a pretty real belief that you lean into as you're building Windmill that will help it be more successful because... Like, so just... It's your second time, probably fourth, fifth time, about their small things in x y z. But something you kind of hold as like a permanent truth to helping you be successful with this. [00:46:56] S0: Yeah. So for me, I mean, I spend a lot of time thinking about velocity. So speed plus direction. When I was younger, like, as... You know, you'd see different things, and I'd be running around like crazy and think everything is super important, and it was hard to prioritize. But I think all the time around the pace and the direction that we're building the business. [00:47:21] S2: I've never heard that, Brian, and I love that. Woah. Never? Speed plus direction. No. I mean, velocity, but, like, speed plus direction. It's great. Max?
00:47:21 · Alexa von Tobel, Max Shaw
[00:47:21] S2: I've never heard that, Brian, and I love that. Woah. Never? Speed plus direction. No. I mean, velocity, but, like, speed plus direction. It's great. Max? [00:47:33] S3: For me, it's... I think this is the thing I realized pretty early on, and I don't think it's a yext thing. But I... The thing that I constantly remind people is that no one really knows what they're doing. I think there's a lot of impostor syndrome. There's a lot of... I remember I got, like, some big assignment at Yext early on. I'm like, who do I talk to about this? Who's the expert? And it's like, there is no expert. You just gotta figure it And I think the... I guess the fancy way of saying that is, like, thinking from first principles. But no one really knows what to do. And everything's different, and everyone's trying to... And especially in a startup, you're trying to invent something that's never happened before, and there's not a playbook we can follow. There's not a book we can read that's gonna tell us what to do. We need to figure it out. And the people on our team, the people on your team are the most qualified people in the world to do it, and you're fully capable of it. I think it's it's easy to think, hey. I don't know what I'm doing. Everyone feels that way. You're figuring out something for the first time. It is hard, but that... That's where all the fun is.
00:47:33 · Max Shaw, Alexa von Tobel
[00:47:33] S3: For me, it's... I think this is the thing I realized pretty early on, and I don't think it's a yext thing. But I... The thing that I constantly remind people is that no one really knows what they're doing. I think there's a lot of impostor syndrome. There's a lot of... I remember I got, like, some big assignment at Yext early on. I'm like, who do I talk to about this? Who's the expert? And it's like, there is no expert. You just gotta figure it And I think the... I guess the fancy way of saying that is, like, thinking from first principles. But no one really knows what to do. And everything's different, and everyone's trying to... And especially in a startup, you're trying to invent something that's never happened before, and there's not a playbook we can follow. There's not a book we can read that's gonna tell us what to do. We need to figure it out. And the people on our team, the people on your team are the most qualified people in the world to do it, and you're fully capable of it. I think it's it's easy to think, hey. I don't know what I'm doing. Everyone feels that way. You're figuring out something for the first time. It is hard, but that... That's where all the fun is. [00:48:30] S2: I love it. I'm gonna end on a fun one that I love to ask people, which is... And I'll I'll give you the ten second heads up of, like, your most contrarian thought right now. Sort of your most original belief that I... Maybe it's nuts and crazy and very wrong. What would it be?
00:48:30 · Alexa von Tobel, Brian Distelburger, Max Shaw
[00:48:30] S2: I love it. I'm gonna end on a fun one that I love to ask people, which is... And I'll I'll give you the ten second heads up of, like, your most contrarian thought right now. Sort of your most original belief that I... Maybe it's nuts and crazy and very wrong. What would it be? [00:48:50] S0: I'm very... Man, this might be a hot take now. I'm I'm very optimistic about New York City, generally. I think there's a lot of angst around the political climate in the city and what is going on. I think we're gonna work through it as a city and be be stronger, and New York is gonna be very, very successful. I don't know if that totally qualifies as a hot take. [00:49:20] S3: But [00:49:20] S2: Listen. That... It's a it's a hot take that I double plus agree on, so I like it. Max?