Getting the Most Out of Harvard B-School

Stanford Graduate School of Business

Stanford Graduate School of Business

Successful Career Advice From Stanford GSB Professors

Matt Wyndowe made the most of his MBA experience. A 2007 Stanford graduate who was a co-President of the High Tech Club, Wyndowne spent his early years with Facebook, helping to launch the “Like” button, building partnerships with Microsoft, Google, and Apple, and growing the company’s sales and engineering teams. Ever aware of emerging opportunities, he jumped from Facebook to Uber Technologies last year, where he now oversees their product partnerships.

So what’s the secret behind his success? According to Wyndowe, he listened to advice from his teachers. In an October post on Quora, Wyndowe laid out the best advice he received from his “favorite teachers and lecturers, including Andy Rachleff, Mark Leslie, Irv Grousbeck, Joel Peterson, Eric Schmidt, and many others.” Here is a sampling of the 21 points that Wyndowe laid out in his post:

Pareto principle: Always look for the 80/20. 80 percent of the value is delivered by 20 percent of the product/service. Focus on that 20 percent. 

Just when you think you’ve got it 100% right, you can be taken down.

Put on “the cloak” of leadership. A large part of your role is to inspire and motivate your employees, and people will look to you for confidence. If you were on a plane with engine problems, you don’t want the pilot to say “I am exploring a number of options and hope that…”, you want him to say, “I will do whatever it takes to land this plane.”

The best scientists can explain complex issues in simple terms. Pretty good scientists can explain complex issues in complex terms.

A’s hire A’s. B’s hire C’s. Always strive to hire people better than you are.

When considering a business opportunity, look for change. What inflection point are you taking advantage of? Without change, there is rarely opportunity.

Learn to relax. Often overachievers are passionate about many things. Yet it’s important to learn not to always care so much. Try being indifferent to things that aren’t that important.

Shoot for the moon. To be successful, don’t follow the pack. If you want to win, don’t hedge.

To read the full post, along with additional insights from readers, click on the Quora link below.

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Source: Quora

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