Sam Hinkie

I tell founders this all the time.

Sorry, you might be working for the CTO.

The CTO might be the most valuable person here.

She might be.

And if you don't know that, better to get your head around it quick because she leaves.

This all falls apart.

Yes, you're the CEO.

Yes, you're out talking to the venture folks.

Yes, you're in the papers more.

Let's be real careful about what this might mean for the company if your seven-person engineering team, if the leader of that quits.

Your ability to influence her, influence is the right word.

You can't make her do anything.

Your ability to sort of influence her and influence her towards the kind of vectors you want the company to go towards is going to be everything.

So start investing in the quality of that relationship right now.

It's never too late, but you better get going.

Were there exceptions to that emphasis on relationships as sort of the fuel to great durable leadership that you saw at any point from players or coaches or staff?

I don't know what the right term for this is, like a hard ass or something.

I don't know.

I increasingly don't think those kind of

authoritarian sort of versions work very much in most environments.