Matthew Stafford
@mattman
Matthew Stafford
The deals I've avoided have contributed more to my success than the deals I've done.
Founders Notes
ACTION PATTERNS THAT WILL EMERGE AS AVOIDANCE
- Starting a new project instead of completing an old one.
- Seeking more information instead of taking aligned action.
- Calling someone to explain your insight instead of applying it silently.
- Making a to-do list.
- Trying to help someone else break through — so you don’t have to face your own threshold.
ChatGPT
Say it with me: If you feel anxiety, frustration, or sadness, it does not mean something is wrong with you, it means you are a human being. You are not alone in your experience of unpleasant feelings—they are common to all people. Even loneliness. Yes, that’s right—you are never alone in your loneliness. And sometimes for no reason at all, you feel... See more
Jeff Sullivan • Why I Am So Happy
Relational Hedging:
Keeping multiple projects, people, or goals active to avoid full exposure to any single point of failure.
Keeping multiple projects, people, or goals active to avoid full exposure to any single point of failure.
ChatGPT
When you're learning something new, spend 5 minutes trying to teach it to someone. Make a note of where the other person gets confused. You'll get an immediate sense for your level of understanding of the topic and where you need to dig in more.
The Most Powerful Asymmetries in Life | The Curiosity Chronicle
Sabotage Behavior:
You start planning instead of creating. You dilute it into a “safe” version. Or worse — you never begin.
You start planning instead of creating. You dilute it into a “safe” version. Or worse — you never begin.
ChatGPT
He pulled every ad that sold coins. A terrifying move shutting off his only source of leads. He replaced them with full-page ads in The Wall Street Journal and Barron’s that sold...
Nothing.
Instead, they offered free educational guides. He held nothing back, giving away his most valuable secrets.
Nothing.
Instead, they offered free educational guides. He held nothing back, giving away his most valuable secrets.
- “How To Grade Properly”
- “How To Spot Counterfeits”
- “Ho
How to Hear "When Can We Start?" Instead of "Can You Do Better on Price?"
YOU WITHHOLD YOUR TRUE SELF TO MAINTAIN CONTROL
You share vulnerability — but strategically.
You reveal pain — but only after it’s been reframed, packaged, or turned into insight.
Why?
Because full, unfiltered emotional expression would make you dependent on someone else’s safety, attunement, and care. And that feels like death.
So you:
You share vulnerability — but strategically.
You reveal pain — but only after it’s been reframed, packaged, or turned into insight.
Why?
Because full, unfiltered emotional expression would make you dependent on someone else’s safety, attunement, and care. And that feels like death.
So you:
- Offer
ChatGPT
The short-seller crisis had made our stock extremely cheap, and instead of fixating on that as bad, we focused on achieving a good outcome.
From that perspective, the share price was manna from heaven, and we decided to buy back $2 billion worth of our stock.
No one's ever done something like that.
Just because we were the first company to buy back... See more
From that perspective, the share price was manna from heaven, and we decided to buy back $2 billion worth of our stock.
No one's ever done something like that.
Just because we were the first company to buy back... See more