10 lessons I learned from working for Mark Zuckerberg
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Noah Kagan, founder of digital goods sales platform AppSumo and one of the original Facebook team members, reflects on his time working with Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and outlines 10 lessons he learned from Zuckerberg.
What I Learned Working For Mark Zuckerberg - Noah Kagan
https://noahkagan.com/what-i-learned-working-for-mark-zuckerberg/
01: Focus on one goal
Zuckerberg clearly defined Facebook's goal as '1 billion users.' To emphasize this goal, Zuckerberg wrote 'GROWTH' in large letters on the whiteboard.
When team members proposed ideas, Zuckerberg always asked, 'Will this contribute to growth?' If the proposal was not directly related to the goal of growth, it was not implemented. For example, when Kagan proposed selling tickets at Facebook events to improve profitability, Zuckerberg rejected it because he 'determined that it would not directly contribute to our primary goal of growth.'
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02: Act quickly
At Facebook, the emphasis was on moving quickly, and employees usually worked more than 12 hours a day. CEO Zuckerberg always asked employees to act with a sense of urgency. In addition, the company motto was 'Move fast and break things,' and CEO Zuckerberg said, 'If you're not breaking things, you're not moving fast enough.' Behind this mindset was an attitude of accepting some bugs and imperfections in order to learn more quickly what the community wanted.
Facebook updated its website multiple times a day, which contrasted with the approach of large companies like Microsoft, which spent months writing out product details, discussing them in many meetings, and then finally building them. Kagan emphasized that the biggest weapon a startup can have against a large company is speed.
03: Hire only the best people
Zuckerberg had a policy of only hiring people he himself would be happy to work for. For example, even Facebook's customer support team was made up of Harvard PhDs. In addition, early Facebook members have been involved in the founding of well-known companies such as Asana, Quora, AppSumo, and OpenAI, which is a testament to the high quality of the talent Facebook has gathered, Kagan said.
Kagan emphasizes that startups rely much more on talented people than larger companies, and that the first 10 hires are the most important.
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04: Value your employees
Zuckerberg recognized that providing an attractive work environment would attract potential employees and increase the pride of existing employees, motivating them to work longer hours. Facebook was ahead of its time in offering a variety of employee benefits that are now standard at many companies, including 'PowerBooks and BlackBerrys for everyone,' 'free catering for breakfast, lunch, and dinner,' 'a refrigerator stocked with a variety of drinks,' 'all-expenses paid employee trips to Las Vegas,' and 'subsidized housing.'
Kagan points out that people want to be recognized, so treating your employees well leads to better quality work and higher morale. These efforts also play a key role in shaping your company's culture and improving your brand image, and a good employee experience leads to a better customer experience, ultimately contributing to the success of your company overall.
05: Solving your own problems
Facebook was originally provided as a place for students at several universities, including Harvard University, to interact with each other. In other words, Zuckerberg and others created the Facebook product to solve problems that students had. Kagan said it is important to start a business not just because it is popular now, but in a field that you truly understand and are passionate about, arguing that 'making something you really want and sharing it with others' is likely to be the starting point of a successful business.
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06: Pay attention to details
According to Kagan, Zuckerberg sent an email at 3am to point out a missing period in a document. Zuckerberg also did not accept imperfections, and if he felt something did not meet his standards, he would frankly point it out and ask for it to be redone. For example, Zuckerberg was particular about always capitalizing the 'F' in 'Facebook,' and Kagan evaluated this as attention to detail to maintain brand consistency. Zuckerberg also set high quality standards and asked the entire team to follow them. Kagan recalled that Zuckerberg's demands were sometimes difficult, but at the same time very rewarding.
07: Give your team ownership
Rather than being deeply involved in the day-to-day operations, Zuckerberg focused on the big picture vision, set goals and boundaries for his team, and then gave them the freedom to move freely. He also coached from the sidelines and allowed team members to independently come up with and implement features. For example, when it came to developing Facebook's mobile app, he left the specific details up to the team.
Kagan points out that this approach empowers teams to take ownership of their projects, which leads to increased motivation, fosters creativity, develops skills, accelerates decision-making, and fosters leadership.
By Jakob Steinschaden
08: Treat users like humans
Zuckerberg literally yelled at team members when they used the word 'users.' Zuckerberg insisted that 'they are people,' emphasizing the importance of viewing the people who use the product as individual people, not just numbers or statistics. Zuckerberg believed that they could provide better service by imagining the real people behind the usernames and email addresses and empathizing with the problems and challenges they face.
In product development and customer service, by understanding and basing decisions on real user experiences and emotions rather than simply chasing numbers, companies can better serve their users' needs and build deeper relationships, Kagan said.
09: Retaining the right talent
According to Kagan, his boss was fired on the day he joined the company, his next boss was fired a month later, and Kagan himself was fired nine months later. Zuckerberg had a policy of quickly removing people who hindered Facebook's growth from the company, while quickly promoting people who contribute to the company's goals. In order to maintain the health and efficiency of an organization, it is important to continuously evaluate and appropriately assign talent.
Kagan has applied this experience to his own company, where he offers paid trial periods to assess suitability before officially hiring new team members. This approach ensures a good match for both parties and ensures he hires the right talent for long-term success, Kagan says.
By Anthony Quintano
10. Have a big vision
When Facebook was just starting out, CEO Zuckerberg was offered $1 billion (about 100 billion yen at the time). This was an enormous amount of money for CEO Zuckerberg and his team, who were in their 20s at the time, but CEO Zuckerberg turned down the offer because 'our goal is to connect everyone in the world.' Kagan said that this huge vision had a strong impact on the entire team, and that at Facebook during this period, work felt more than just work; they were always thinking, talking, and dreaming about Facebook.
'A big vision motivates employees to perform at their best, creates a sense of purpose that goes beyond just jobs and money, and draws out their dedication and effort,' said Kagan.
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