Naval Ravikant: Try to be one of the people who creates things

In the clip below, Naval shares that one of his favorite Peter Thiel-isms is that you should have a “definite view of the future.”

“You should actually go out and build the thing you want to see exist—not just say ‘oh, that’s gonna happen. I’m just going to sit back and wait for somebody else to do it.’”

Because things don’t work that way.

“Things don’t just automatically show up. There are great men and women who go out there and create these things. So try to be one of those people who creates these things.”

And if you’re going to be an investor:

“At least bet on things that you think may not exist without you betting on them.”

Sure you can make money by trying to be first to the hottest deals that are going to get funding anyway. But Naval argues:

“You will not make the most money because the greatest winners of the last few decades have been unexpected winners… Their dreams were written off because it was believed that their dream was impossible and too expensive.”

He gives SpacEx, Tesla, OpenAI, and Apple Computer as examples.

“When you see these impossible dreams come true, not only is it the most fulfilling thing, it’s also where you make the most money.”

Full video: AngelList “Fireside Chat with Avlok & Naval | AngelList Confidential 2023” (Dec 2023)

P.S. We’ve put together a YouTube playlist with every Naval Ravikant insight we’ve ever shared. You can watch it here: "Best startup advice from Naval Ravikant"