Chapter Content
Okay, so, like, you know how people always talk about investing? Well, I think investing in relationships is just as important, maybe even more so, and it's all about playing the long game.
Someone once said that, uh, everything you get in life โ wealth, relationships, knowledge โ it all comes from compound interest, right? So, how do you even know if you're actually getting that compounding effect?
The thing is, compound interest is way more than just about money. It starts with capital, sure, but it goes way beyond that. Itโs not just about finance.
Think about business relationships. It's super important there. You see these top-level people, CEOs of huge companies, managing billions of dollars... Why are they there? It's because people trust them. And they've built that trust because their relationships and their work have had this compounding effect. They've shown the world they're honest and reliable, you know, by really putting themselves into their work.
And it's the same with your reputation. If you've got a solid reputation, built up over years and years, people are going to notice and value you. Even if someone's super talented but doesn't build that reputation, someone with a good reputation will be worth, like, thousands of times more.
Working with people is the same deal. If youโve worked with someone for, say, five or ten years and you still enjoy it, you trust them, right? Even if theyโve got little quirks, it doesn't really matter. In business, that trust simplifies everything. You know you can make things work.
For example, there's this angel investor in Silicon Valley, Elad Gil. I really like working with him.
The reason is, I know he'll always go the extra mile for me in any deal. If there's an extra benefit, he'll give it to me. If there are extra costs, he'll cover them himself without even mentioning it. Because he's so generous with me, I try to involve him in pretty much everything I do. And I try to be just as good to him. That kind of mutual trust is where you really see the value of compound interest.
It's not so much about intentions, it's about actions. That's why it's not easy to always do the right thing, to follow those ethical standards.
So, once you find the right path and the right people to work with, really commit to it. Keep getting better over the decades, and you'll see huge returns, both in your relationships and financially. That compounding effect is just so vital.
Now, here's something to think about: a lot of people say that 99% of your effort is wasted.
Look, no effort is ever *completely* wasted, because you always learn something. Every experience is a chance to learn. Think back to school. Ninety-nine percent of those essays you wrote, the books you read, the exercises you did... they're not useful in the real world, right? You learned some geography or history that you never use. You might've learned a language you don't speak anymore. You probably forgot a lot of math.
Of course, school taught you something. You understood the importance of hard work, and some of those ideas stuck with you and drive you today, or maybe they pushed you towards your current career, whatever. But, from a purely goal-oriented, real-world perspective, only 1% of the effort you put in at school actually paid off, right?
Or, think about dating. Before you find "the one," you're going to date a bunch of people. And from a goal perspective โ finding your life partner โ those dates are kind of a waste of time (even if they're good for personal growth and learning).
I'm not trying to say that 99% of your life is wasted and only 1% is worthwhile. I'm saying you should be thoughtful and really think about the relationships, jobs, learning, whatever, that you can really put your heart into, so you can get that full compound interest effect.
If you realize a date isn't going to lead to anything long-term, you should probably end it sooner rather than later and move on. If you're studying geography or history and you realize you're never going to use that knowledge, maybe drop the class, you know? It's a waste of time and brainpower to focus on something useless.
I'm not saying you should skip that other 99%, because it's hard to know which is that 1%. I'm saying try to find that 1% that *won't* be wasted. The one that means something to you, that you want to spend the rest of your life pursuing. And once you find it, really go all in, you know?