Chapters
1. Spending time in the Hamptons2. The Jake Paul fight3. The local MMA fight4. Thrill-Seeking Insights5. The $75K happiness study6. Productivity and Happiness7. The future of maps8. Billy of the Week: Wayne Huizenga9. Picasso's Fractional Homeownership10. Small vs Big Ownership11. Ask for a raise today1. Spending time in the Hamptons
Sam and Shaan discuss the overrated appeal of the Hamptons, comparing it to Napa and Sonoma. They talk about the need for a Range Rover to fit in and how it's not their style.+
2. The Jake Paul fight
Shaan and Sam discuss the recent Jake Paul vs. Tyrone Woodley fight and how the Paul brothers have successfully transitioned from Vine to YouTube to becoming top pay-per-view sellers in boxing. They analyze the business model behind these fights and how it has helped the Paul brothers grow their brand and become more famous.+
3. The local MMA fight
Local MMA Fights:Shaan and Sam discuss their experience at a local MMA fight in San Francisco. Shaan shares his observations on the amateur fights and the intense atmosphere fueled by the fighters' friends and family in the crowd.+
Local Fight Night:Shaan and Sam discuss their experience at a local UFC fight night during COVID times. They were surprised by the atmosphere and energy of the crowd, and Shaan reflects on what motivates people to participate in such events.+
4. Thrill-Seeking Insights
Thrill-Seeking:Sam and Shaan discuss their experiences with thrill-seeking activities such as boxing and skydiving. They share how these activities make them feel alive and help them put things into perspective.+
Thrill-Seeking Experiences:Shaan and Sam discuss the appeal of high-risk experiences and how they can be packaged into products or services. They explore the idea of building virtual reality experiences that make people feel alive and suggest that there are more opportunities to create thrill-seeking experiences beyond traditional video games.+
5. The $75K happiness study
Happiness and Income:Sam and Shaan discuss a study that challenges the idea that after making $75,000 a year, your happiness doesn't increase. The study found that happiness levels continue to increase up to $500,000-$700,000 a year.+
Happiness and Money:Sam and Shaan discuss the correlation between money and happiness. They debunk the myth that making more money always leads to more happiness and question the validity of studies that claim otherwise. They also touch on the importance of questioning common beliefs and finding your own truth.+
6. Productivity and Happiness
Tracker Happiness:Shaan shares his experience using a happiness tracker app to manage his employees and how he interpreted the data to better understand their emotions and well-being. He found that different people have different ranges of emotions and that the reasons affecting their happiness were not always what he expected.+
Work Productivity:Shaan and Sam discuss different work productivity tools that they have used in the past, including a tool that helps identify small problems that affect productivity and a daily email that asks simple questions to help track progress. They also mention a successful work tool company that uses a similar approach.+
7. The future of maps
Mapping Software Giant:Sam introduces Shaan to ESRI, a mapping software company that generates over a billion dollars a year in subscription revenue. They discuss how the company provides loads of information on maps and how it's used by most cities, states, and Fortune 500 companies in America. The software is called Geographic Information System (GIS) and is almost like Google Maps on steroids.+
Mapping Monopolies:Sam and Shaan discuss ESRI, a family-owned software company that has a total monopoly on providing mapping software to governments for building roads and electricity. They explain how ESRI got its monopoly and why it's so difficult for other companies to compete. They also discuss the founder's personal fortune and the future of the company.+
New Map Business:Sam and Shaan discuss a new map business called Felt, which allows people to contribute to it. The company was started by Sam Hashimi, who previously sold his city transportation planning startup for $100 million. They compare Felt to ESRI and Google Maps and express excitement for new startups entering the market.+
Collaborative Mapping:Sam and Shaan discuss Felt, the world's first collaborative mapping tool that can be used for a variety of purposes, including reducing wildfires. They predict that Felt will follow the Waze model by allowing consumers to use it for mapping and then selling the data and mapping tools to businesses. Shaan shares his regret of not investing in Discard his Labs, the company that spun out of Los Alamos National Labs and does satellite imagery for various industries.+
Satellite Imagery Insights:Shaan and Sam discuss the potential of using satellite imagery to generate actionable data insights, citing a company that bets on futures of corn crop yields as an example. They also touch on the idea of investing in such companies and the value of pursuing more interesting and valuable ventures.+
8. Billy of the Week: Wayne Huizenga
Wayne Huizenga's Success:Sam shares the inspiring story of Wayne Huizenga, who started with one truck and built a waste management empire worth billions of dollars by acquiring smaller players in the industry.+
Wayne Huizenga's Business Ventures:Wayne Huizenga, a financial arbitrage machine, started Blockbuster, Auto Nation, Extended Stay America, and several golf clubs. He also bought the Miami Dolphins and the Florida Marlins. Huizenga's ventures expanded rapidly and he had a good track record of raising money and deploying capital.+
Acquisition Strategies:Sam and Shaan discuss the acquisition strategies of successful business people and how they have used small acquisitions to grow their businesses. They explore the potential for consolidation in various industries and discuss the benefits of buying out established businesses for internal growth.+
Roll Up Strategy:Shaan and Sam discuss the roll up strategy for business expansion, citing examples like Rupert Murdoch's local media companies and Xpo Logistics. They explain how buying and aggregating smaller companies can create a larger, more valuable entity, and how this strategy can be a lower risk way to build a billion-dollar empire.+
Billionaire's Net Worth:Sam and Shaan discuss the net worth of Bradley Jacobs, the founder of Waste Management, and how owning a smaller piece of a massive pie affected his net worth. They also touch on his other successful ventures and his ownership of the Miami Dolphins.+
9. Picasso's Fractional Homeownership
Picasso's Fractional Homeownership:Shaan introduces Picasso, a company that buys homes and sells fractions of the property to investors. The company takes 12% of the purchase price upfront and charges a monthly management fee. The fractional homeownership is meant for second homes, and investors can use or rent out their 44 nights of stay in the property.+
Real Estate Unicorn:Shaan and Sam discuss the recent unicorn valuation of real estate startup Picasso, led by former Zillow CEO Spencer Raskoff. They speculate that the high valuation is due to Raskoff's impressive track record and the team's reputation, rather than traction alone.+
10. Small vs Big Ownership
Small vs Big Ownership:Shaan and Sam discuss the pros and cons of owning a small piece of a big company versus owning a larger piece of a smaller company. Shaan believes that owning a smaller thing is more fulfilling and economically beneficial, while Sam argues that owning a bigger piece of a smaller company gives you more control and options.+
Big Vision:Sam and Shaan discuss the benefits of having a big vision and the importance of capital in achieving it. They also touch on the idea of optimizing for freedom and the difference between playing small and playing big in the world of entrepreneurship.+
Big Projects:Shaan shares how he transitioned from a food startup to a biotech company and how he realized that big projects are more rewarding than small ones. He also talks about his ideal work situation and how the internet has made it possible.+
Pricing Courage:Sam and Shaan discuss the courage it takes to price a product high, especially when you're young and inexperienced. Sam admits to being fearful and not having the knowledge or courage to price his event higher when he was younger. They discuss the pricing of other successful events and how young entrepreneurs are able to charge high prices for their products.+
Charge More:Shaan and Sam discuss the common mistake of undercharging for products or services in startups due to insecurity and how charging more can actually be more appealing to larger companies. They reference a quote from Mark Andreessen advising startups to simply "charge more."+
11. Ask for a raise today
Ask for a Raise:Shaan and Sam discuss the importance of asking for a raise, even without a promotion, and how there is often wiggle room in a company's compensation band. They also explain the concept of a soft hell no and how it can provide valuable feedback for future negotiations.+
Salary Negotiation:Sam and Shaan discuss how to handle salary negotiations with employees. They emphasize the importance of creating value and understanding the input-output relationship in a business. They suggest having an honest conversation with employees about their value and how they can create more value in the company.+