Published Feb 5, 2025

20VC: Affirm Max Levchin on Why Grading Talent by Letter (A or B) is Total BS | How to Create a Culture of Post Mortems and Writing | Why You Should Only Study Failure Not Success & The Biggest Surprises Scaling to $18.7BN Market Cap

Dive into a thought-provoking conversation with Max Levchin as he debunks traditional talent grading, underscores the power of learning from failure, and reveals how writing and postmortems drive innovation at Affirm, all while navigating leadership challenges and scaling a company to an $18.7BN market cap.

Episode Highlights

Topics covered

Leadership Challenges
01
Calculated Risks
02
Writing and Postmortems
03

Questions from this episode

- If we can't forget traumatic events but can modify our emotional response to past events, can the changes to a person's character following an event also be reversed or altered? For example, if someone who was once very positive and engaging returns from war or suffers the loss of a parent/spouse and becomes guarded and distant, how much of our "character" is malleable? Or can people truly become "stuck in their ways"? This question relates to the episode 365: Benjamin Hardy | How to Break Free from Self-Limiting Beliefs and the clip Personality and Passion.
  Asked by 57 people
- Why does motivation seem to be lacking in some people, and how can we bolster it as discussed in episode #400: How to Leverage Your Mind: A Podcast Masterclass with Jim Kwik and the clip Purpose-Driven Change?
  Asked by 40 people
- How do startup founders think as discussed in the episode The Art and Science of Biology's Future and the clip Contrarian Thinking?
  Asked by 23 people
- How do startup founders think, as discussed in the episode Interview Replay: Kara on Leadership Lab and the clip Embracing the Unknown?
  Asked by 22 people
- How do startups navigate change?
  Asked by 18 people
- What challenges do startups face?
  Asked by 18 people
- Why do companies go public? Referencing the episode Prof G Markets: Virgin Galactic is Going to Zero, Stock as Collateral + Instacart & the IPO Market and the clip IPO Insights.
  Asked by 17 people
- Why do companies go public?
  Asked by 17 people
- How do startup founders think, as discussed in the episode The Mark Zuckerberg Interview and the clip Entrepreneurial Reflections?
  Asked by 16 people
- What elements contribute to a scalable business model in software companies, as discussed in the episode How I Reverse Engineered A $100 Million Exit - Jason Lemkin and the clip Scaling Success?
  Asked by 14 people
- Why is it that certain people succeed while others do not?
  Asked by 14 people
- How can small businesses succeed based on the insights from the episode The Future of Entrepreneurship Part 1: What Makes a Good Entrepreneur? How Do I Raise Capital? Is Balance Ever Possible? and the clip Selling as Strategy?
  Asked by 11 people
- How is technology changing startups as discussed in the episode a16z Podcast | What Software Developers (and Therefore Every Company) Need and the clip Empowering Developers?
  Asked by 9 people
- How do startup founders think in the episode What Does It REALLY Mean To Do Things That Don't Scale? and the clip Startup Learning Curve?
  Asked by 8 people
- How do you hire talent based on the insights from the episode The Difference Between People Who Succeed and Those That Don't w/ Seth Godin and the clip Hiring for Humanity?
  Asked by 8 people

Episode Highlights

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20VC: Affirm Max Levchin on Why Grading Talent by Letter (A or B) is Total BS | How to Create a Culture of Post Mortems and Writing | Why You Should Only Study Failure Not Success & The Biggest Surprises Scaling to $18.7BN Market Cap

Topics covered

Popular Clips

Questions from this episode

Episode Highlights

Leadership ChallengesMax Levchin shares his insights on managing extreme personalities and navigating the challenges of leadership during layoffs. He emphasizes the importance of empathy and maintaining team morale in difficult times.

Leadership Challenges

Calculated RisksMax Levchin shares his insights on calculated risks and the importance of learning from failure. He discusses Affirm's strategic decisions, highlighting the role of postmortems in fostering a culture of continuous improvement.

Calculated Risks

Writing and PostmortemsMax Levchin discusses the significance of fostering a writing culture and learning from failures at Affirm. He highlights how these practices contribute to continuous improvement and innovation within the company.

Writing and Postmortems

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