Silicon Valley is NOT about Money

A Journey Through Equity and Silicon Valley: Observations and Reflections

I just recorded everything I have seen in Silicon Valley. Here is an AI summary:

Introduction

This is my first attempt at sharing everything I've learned about getting equity in Silicon Valley. I aim to provide a thought stream about learning, understanding, and earning equity in Silicon Valley. From the outside looking in, many focus on how expensive and intense Silicon Valley can be. From the inside, these things can be true, but an important component often overlooked is equity. Equity, especially in political discourse, can refer to many things, but here I want to share how Silicon Valley divides up companies among employees and how these shares represent equity in the company.

Understanding Equity in Silicon Valley

In Silicon Valley, terms like stock options, restricted stock units (RSUs), founding team members, employee equity, and employee stock options (ESOPs) are common. Essentially, these terms mean that you own a part of what you work on, which can be a tiny piece or a significant portion.

My Personal Journey

I engaged in learning about Silicon Valley, visiting it, and trying to earn equity in various ways. One of my first experiences was interviewing at Stripe, a payments company. When I met them, they were a small team processing about a million dollars a day. As part of my offer, I was given stock options representing a small percentage of the company, which could have been worth hundreds of millions today. However, I failed to be a great employee and didn't earn them due to something called a cliff.

Key Terms and Concepts

Cliff: A term used where you're put through a "gauntlet" for a year. If you're fired before the cliff period ends, you get no stock options, meaning no equity or extra money beyond your salary.

Understanding equity involves calibrating numbers and knowing where you stand. Shares in a company can be thought of as divisions of a pizza, but as more capital is added, your ownership percentage can decrease even if the company grows. This complexity leads many to refer to the equity system as a "Silicon Valley Equity Lottery," where a few do fantastically well, but most do not.

Learning from Experience

Over a decade, I've learned through painful lessons. Massive credit card debt, failed startups, bad business decisions, and strained personal relationships are all part of the journey. However, over time, these experiences teach valuable lessons. Everyone I know who has been honest with themselves over a ten-year period in Silicon Valley has made extraordinary amounts of money from owning equity.

The Alien, the Jedi, and the Cult

Silicon Valley has the highest density of cult-like companies. It creates an environment for "Jedi" who have mastered their skills to support visionary "alien" leaders. Finding these people before they're well-known has been my career's preoccupation. I've never lasted long in large organizations, but I've contributed to early-stage projects, helping founders and creators in significant ways.

Helping and Being Rewarded

Helping others before something becomes obvious to everyone else can lead to fantastic rewards in Silicon Valley. Whether through shares, investment opportunities, tokens, or cash, gratitude flows in the Bay Area. Intellectual engagement happens online and in-person, creating a vibrant, intense environment that can be both exhilarating and disorienting.

Silicon Valley's Duality

Silicon Valley is a paradox of magical creativity and tragic depression. Extreme wealth and poverty exist side by side, stretching and tearing at your sense of self. Yet, this extremity also acts as a portal to either great success or failure.

Conclusion

Reflecting on my journey, my main message to young people arriving in Silicon Valley is this: don't get distracted by money or status. Focus on creation, creators, and the community. If you can center yourself on what you are creating and who will benefit, you'll experience Silicon Valley at warp speed. This is a distillation of my experiences and observations, which I hope will be useful to those starting their journey today.