From turning down $3 billion from Facebook to building a $100 billion empire, Evan Spiegel reveals the blueprint behind Snapchat.

Evan Spiegel, co-founder & CEO of Snapchat (now Snap Inc.), founded the app while at Stanford and became the youngest billionaire at 25.

In this conversation, Evan and Steven cover how Snapchat almost didn’t exist, Evan’s ‘T-Shaped’ leadership style, getting bullied before founding Snapchat, and the harshest day of his CEO journey.

Chapters:00:00 Intro02:29 The Dots That Got You Here03:33 Did You Feel Like You Fitted In?03:46 When Did Computers First Come In?05:02 Things Aren’t as Complicated as They Seem05:28 You Got Bullied06:09 What Were You Like as a Kid07:33 Why CEOs Don’t Do Many Podcasts08:55 Why Did You Choose Product Design?10:30 Your Class in Entrepreneurship11:00 Key Lesson From Entrepreneurship Class12:02 Big Ambitions13:26 Entrepreneurship in Europe16:00 Your First Failure18:00 How to Know When to Quit18:50 Why Love & Passion Matter19:19 Launching Early & Getting Feedback Fast20:39 How Initial Ideas Can Be Wrong21:37 How You Started Snapchat27:03 Customer Feedback to Implement28:36 Raising Capital29:46 Investor Feedback30:17 Building a Social Network Sounds Delusional31:51 Doubting Snapchat's Success36:19 Quitting University for Snapchat37:33 Advice for Young Entrepreneurs39:27 Are Job Titles Limiting Creativity?40:34 Hierarchy Issues in Companies42:22 Innovating at Snapchat47:59 Importance of Hiring49:00 Hiring Mistakes to Avoid51:06 Leadership Traits of a Perfect Hire52:25 Being Nice vs. Being Kind53:52 T-Shaped Leadership56:44 Advice to Younger Evan59:39 Embedding Company Culture Early01:01:51 When Company Culture Dilutes01:03:35 Company Incentives01:04:25 Worst Early Advice01:05:47 How Mark Zuckerberg Approached You01:10:04 Saying No to That Offer01:13:13 Youngest Billionaire at 2501:14:19 Managing Romantic Relationships01:19:23 Ads01:20:21 Your LinkedIn Bio Joke01:22:45 Messaging Zuckerberg When They Copied Features01:26:57 Should Big Tech Monopolies Be Stopped?01:29:25 Hardest Day When Copied01:30:30 Leading in Tough Times01:31:48 Content Moderation Challenges01:36:28 Why Meta Rolled Back Moderation Policies01:39:20 Optimism About America01:40:08 Social Media & Your Kids01:42:51 Is TikTok's Ban Good for Snapchat?01:46:07 Snapchat Going Public01:48:28 Killing Projects You Loved01:50:15 How Do You Prioritize?01:52:23 Ray-Ban Spectacles Launch Reaction01:53:37 Will Kids Learn From AI?01:56:34 Tradeoffs With AI01:58:22 Ads02:00:35 Snapchat in 202502:02:14 Importance of Counsels at Work02:05:34 When to Listen to Your Team02:06:22 Work-From-Home Policies02:08:42 Principles of a Successful Entrepreneur02:10:18 Managing Stress02:13:10 Worst Days of Snapchat02:13:50 Do You Have Imposter Syndrome?02:15:08 Would You Start Another Tech Company?02:17:23 Hardest Thing You’ve Overcome02:18:17 Self-Awareness02:20:45 Do You Feel Impatient as a Leader?02:21:35 What Would Your Team Say About You?02:22:12 What Are You Really Good At?02:26:55 Biggest Question Entrepreneurs Should Ask

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