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One of my big career disappointments was having a meeting with Marc Andreessen with regard to a project he needed us for, not as an "investee". I didn't idolize

One of my big career disappointments was having a meeting with Marc Andreessen with regard to a project he needed us for, not as an "investee". I didn't idolize him or anything before that but I had it in mind that he would at least have something to offer. In our conversation I realized almost immediately he was a total buffoon and had just been in the right place at the right time.

wombatmobile 5y ago
> In our conversation I realized almost immediately he was a total buffoon and had just been in the right place at the right time. Sometimes it takes a while, and some deep context, and then some more context, ideally in a different set of circumstances, before you can assess someone's capabilities fairly. Some people shine in their specialty domain, and flail outside of it. Others are good in fair weather, but fragile in a crisis. Others are kind of the opposite, losing steam day to day, but rising to the occasion when shit happens. Seasoned salespeople know all this. They do well consistently in spite of it all by presenting themselves credibly irrespective of their competency in any domain. They dress right for their audience, and they speak persuasively, always mindful of what their audience wants and needs to hear. But listen to Andreesen talk! He sounds like he's never had to learn how to persuade anybody of anything. Well, not any regular people. https://audioboom.com/posts/7923122-flying-x-wings-into-the-death-star-andreessen-on-investing-and-tech https://audioboom.com/posts/7923122-flying-x-wings-into-the-...
- jereees 5y ago
  He sounds like he had too many Adderall mixed with coffee. I would know.
- hamburgerwah 5y ago
  And some people are just dolts. It's just my opinion but I believe he falls into that camp based on first hand interactions.
  - wombatmobile 5y ago
    Is he wealthy? Oh, I just googled it, and the answer is yes. It's a curious thing, wealth accumulation.
dang 5y ago
Ok, but please let's not go into unsubstantive personal attack in HN threads. Maybe you don't owe that person better but you owe this community better if you're participating here. https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html Your story is interesting, of course; but you're not actually telling us the story. Also, "total buffoon and had just been in the right place at the right time" is a pretty sweeping conclusion to say you realized "almost immediately".
- HNPoliticalBias 5y ago
  What a dream, spending your days carrying water for Billionaires.
  - dang 5y ago
    Who cares about billionaires? I'm concerned with HN.

wombatmobile 5y ago

> In our conversation I realized almost immediately he was a total buffoon and had just been in the right place at the right time. Sometimes it takes a while, and some deep context, and then some more context, ideally in a different set of circumstances, before you can assess someone's capabilities fairly. Some people shine in their specialty domain, and flail outside of it. Others are good in fair weather, but fragile in a crisis. Others are kind of the opposite, losing steam day to day, but rising to the occasion when shit happens. Seasoned salespeople know all this. They do well consistently in spite of it all by presenting themselves credibly irrespective of their competency in any domain. They dress right for their audience, and they speak persuasively, always mindful of what their audience wants and needs to hear. But listen to Andreesen talk! He sounds like he's never had to learn how to persuade anybody of anything. Well, not any regular people. https://audioboom.com/posts/7923122-flying-x-wings-into-the-death-star-andreessen-on-investing-and-tech https://audioboom.com/posts/7923122-flying-x-wings-into-the-...

jereees 5y ago
He sounds like he had too many Adderall mixed with coffee. I would know.
hamburgerwah 5y ago
And some people are just dolts. It's just my opinion but I believe he falls into that camp based on first hand interactions.
- wombatmobile 5y ago
  Is he wealthy? Oh, I just googled it, and the answer is yes. It's a curious thing, wealth accumulation.

dang 5y ago

Ok, but please let's not go into unsubstantive personal attack in HN threads. Maybe you don't owe that person better but you owe this community better if you're participating here. https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html Your story is interesting, of course; but you're not actually telling us the story. Also, "total buffoon and had just been in the right place at the right time" is a pretty sweeping conclusion to say you realized "almost immediately".

HNPoliticalBias 5y ago
What a dream, spending your days carrying water for Billionaires.
- dang 5y ago
  Who cares about billionaires? I'm concerned with HN.