Greg Larkin

A layoff is a gift. It's like a bad relationship reaching the end of its shelf-life. Yes, it will hurt. But your future self will thank you for getting out. This is an opportunity for you to think about what you need, what you want, and how you want to show up to work every day. The first, most important thing to do is to take stock of every great job you've ever had and meet with everyone you loved working with. They will help you find your next job. They will help you become the best version of yourself.

Authenticity is a product of vulnerability. Answer these 3 questions and ask them to other founders/ entrepreneurs: 1. What's your own biggest limitation that makes building your startup hard? 2. What is an adverse situation where you surprised yourself with your own tenacity? 3. What was the most anticlimactic victory of your career? A situation which was celebrated by everyone else, but amde you feel horrible?

Curiosity is essential, but it has to be coupled with an important business goal. For example, an emergency room can probably learn a lot from a Formula 1 pit crew, but only if they recognize that fatalities have spiked and must come down. Put another way - why you're innovating, and demonstrating curiosity is more important than how.

You can only give a team autonomy to achieve a goal that is a) essential and b) something the company is unable to achieve. Put differently, innovation only takes root when it's urgent. When the company is in crisis, and business as usual is not an option. If these two conditions aren't true then innovation can become a marketing gimmick or a decoy that has no impact on the company's performance

In my experience you earn authority by being (respectfully) contrarian. What is a widely held view in your industry that doesn’t gel with your experience? For example, I’ve noticed that the most successful entrepreneurs are over 40, but most founder press focuses on people <30.

Immerse yourself with people you love and trust, make time to be kind to yourself, and above all make peace with what you can’t control. These three mantras are always good advice. But during an exit they become more important than ever. Because you have less control over your circumstances than you did before. This can be a painful readjustment. More specifically, don’t try to force more control in the new company than you’re owed. In many situations the best thing to do is to keep a lower profile and allow other leaders to emerge.