Every Entrepreneur Should Read This Guide From A Facebook Co-Founder

dustin moskovitz startup entrepreneurship launch advice deck

Dustin Moskovitz via Startupclass.samaltman.com

Moskovitz reminds people that building Facebook was a lot of work.

Dustin Moskovitz co-founded Facebook with Mark Zuckerberg and it made him a billionaire. Now he's working on another company, Asana.

Moskovitz created a startup deck that's full of advice about how to launch a successful company and explains what it takes to be an entrepreneur. It's not as glamorous as Hollywood and the media make it look.

It's important to know [why you want to start a company]," Moskovitz explained to a Stanford class. "You may have been mislead by the way that Hollywood or the press likes to romanticize entrepreneurship.

It's important to know [why you want to start a company]," Moskovitz explained to a Stanford class. "You may have been mislead by the way that Hollywood or the press likes to romanticize entrepreneurship.

The 4 common reasons people want to start companies are: It's glamorous, you'll get to be the boss, you'll have flexibility, especially over your schedule, and you'll have the chance to have bigger impact and make more money.

The 4 common reasons people want to start companies are: It's glamorous, you'll get to be the boss, you'll have flexibility, especially over your schedule, and you'll have the chance to have bigger impact and make more money.
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The reality is just not quite so glamorous, there's an ugly side to being an entrepreneur, and more importantly, what you're actually spending your time on is just a lot of hard work.

The reality is just not quite so glamorous, there's an ugly side to being an entrepreneur, and more importantly, what you're actually spending your time on is just a lot of hard work.

So a scene from 'The Social Network.' This is us partying and working at the same time—somebody's spraying champagne everywhere...

So a scene from 'The Social Network.' This is us partying and working at the same time—somebody's spraying champagne everywhere...
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This is an actual scene from Palo Alto, [Mark Zuckerberg] spent a lot of time at this desk, head down and focused...this is just him signaling his intention to be focused and keep working, not be social.

This is an actual scene from Palo Alto, [Mark Zuckerberg] spent a lot of time at this desk, head down and focused...this is just him signaling his intention to be focused and keep working, not be social.

Then there's the scene demonstrating the insight moment. It's kind of out of 'A Beautiful Mind.'

Then there's the scene demonstrating the insight moment. It's kind of out of 'A Beautiful Mind.'
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Really, we were just at that table the whole time. So if you compare this photo, Mark is in the exact same position but he's wearing different clothes, so this is definitely a different day.

Really, we were just at that table the whole time. So if you compare this photo, Mark is in the exact same position but he's wearing different clothes, so this is definitely a different day.

Why is [a startup] so stressful? You've got a lot of responsibility. You have fear of failure on behalf of yourself and all of the people who decided to follow you... Ben Horowitz likes to say the number one role of a CEO is managing your own psychology. It's absolutely true; make sure you do it.

Why is [a startup] so stressful? You've got a lot of responsibility. You have fear of failure on behalf of yourself and all of the people who decided to follow you... Ben Horowitz likes to say the number one role of a CEO is managing your own psychology. It's absolutely true; make sure you do it.
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Another reason [people start companies] is you start to develop this narrative [at a job], like the people running this company are idiots.. I'm gonna start a company and I'm going to do it better. I'm going to set all the rules.

Another reason [people start companies] is you start to develop this narrative [at a job], like the people running this company are idiots.. I'm gonna start a company and I'm going to do it better. I'm going to set all the rules.

But being a CEO is really like this...

But being a CEO is really like this...
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A subset of You're the Boss is you have flexibility, you have control over your own schedule. This is a really attractive idea.

A subset of You're the Boss is you have flexibility, you have control over your own schedule. This is a really attractive idea.

Here's the reality...

Here's the reality...
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This is the [reason to start a company] I hear most...People tell me, 'You know, I'd really like to work for much smaller companies or start my own because then I have a much bigger slice of the pie.'

This is the [reason to start a company] I hear most...People tell me, 'You know, I'd really like to work for much smaller companies or start my own because then I have a much bigger slice of the pie.'

If you're [not] extremely confident in building a $100M company, it should go without saying that you should have a lot more confidence [working for] Facebook in 2009 or Dropbox...If you think you're the right entrepreneur to build "Uber for Space Travel", a really huge $2B idea, you're actually going to have a pretty good return for that, you should definitely do that.

If you're [not] extremely confident in building a $100M company, it should go without saying that you should have a lot more confidence [working for] Facebook in 2009 or Dropbox...If you think you're the right entrepreneur to build "Uber for Space Travel", a really huge $2B idea, you're actually going to have a pretty good return for that, you should definitely do that.
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I really think that financial reward is very strongly correlated with the impact we have on the world...It's important to keep in mind the context what kind of company you're trying to start and where you will actually be able to make it happen.

I really think that financial reward is very strongly correlated with the impact we have on the world...It's important to keep in mind the context what kind of company you're trying to start and where you will actually be able to make it happen.

So, what's the best reason to start a company?

So, what's the best reason to start a company?
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You can't NOT do it.

You can't NOT do it.

You can't not do it in two ways. One is you're so passionate about it that you have to do it and you're going to do it anyways. This is really important because you'll need that passion to get through all of those hard parts of being an entrepreneur...The other way to interpret this is the world needs you to do it.

You can't not do it in two ways. One is you're so passionate about it that you have to do it and you're going to do it anyways. This is really important because you'll need that passion to get through all of those hard parts of being an entrepreneur...The other way to interpret this is the world needs you to do it.
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Here's Moskovitz's recommended reading list for aspiring entrepreneurs:

Here's Moskovitz's recommended reading list for aspiring entrepreneurs:

For more early-stage startup advice, check out:

For more early-stage startup advice, check out:

The Pitch Deck That Helped A Startup Land $6 Million From The CEOs Of Dropbox, Yelp, Box And Yammer >>

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