Tap a claim on the ring to put it at the centre.
← Pick something hard and boring: fun problems are the crowded ones now that anybody can prompt a thing into existence.
17 connected korrents · 17 moments from 1 Sept 2003 to 6 Oct 2026.
Everything filed under startups
startups
Everything filed under taste
taste
Everything filed under design
design
Everything filed under product management
product management
Everything filed under motivation
motivation
Everything filed under mental models
mental models
Everything filed under mathematics
mathematics Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Read this korrent: Pick something hard and boring: fun problems are the crowded ones now that anybody can prompt a thing into existence. Pick something hard and boring: fun problems are the crowded ones now that anybody can prompt a thing into existence. Last stated 2 months ago
10 Aug 2026
PS
Peter Steinberger — holds since 2026-08-10 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Certain types of problems lead to interesting discoveries while others do not. — tap to centre the map on it Certain types of problems lead to interesting discoveries while others do not. Last stated 3 weeks ago
5 Oct 2026
PG
Paul Graham — holds since 2026-10-05 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Coming up with a good conjecture is harder than solving one, and that taste for the right question is what separates great scientists from good ones. — tap to centre the map on it Coming up with a good conjecture is harder than solving one, and that taste for the right question is what separates great scientists from good ones. Last stated a year ago
23 Jul 2025
DH
Demis Hassabis — holds since 2025-07-23 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Audience boredom is usually a content failure, not a decoration failure: if the numbers are boring you have the wrong numbers. — tap to centre the map on it Audience boredom is usually a content failure, not a decoration failure: if the numbers are boring you have the wrong numbers. Last stated 23 years ago
1 Sept 2003
ET
Edward Tufte — holds since 2003-09-01 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Generating a list of potential problems is worthless unless it is followed by validating and prioritizing them. — tap to centre the map on it Generating a list of potential problems is worthless unless it is followed by validating and prioritizing them. Last stated 2 years ago
9 Aug 2024
TS
Tobias Sjösten — holds since 2024-08-09 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Boredom is a missing skill rather than a property of the situation: there is infinity in every direction, including a blank wall. — tap to centre the map on it Boredom is a missing skill rather than a property of the situation: there is infinity in every direction, including a blank wall. Last stated a year ago
21 Sept 2025
JZ
Julie Zhuo — holds since 2025-09-21 — tap for who they are
Same subject: When engineers say they like working on “hard problems”, they actually don't; they like puzzle solving and pattern matching. — tap to centre the map on it When engineers say they like working on “hard problems”, they actually don't; they like puzzle solving and pattern matching. Last stated 3 weeks ago
6 Oct 2026
SP
Sunil Pai — holds since 2026-10-06 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A difficult problem is better thought through both forwards and backward than in one direction only. — tap to centre the map on it A difficult problem is better thought through both forwards and backward than in one direction only. Last stated 13 years ago
28 Oct 2013
SP
Shane Parrish — holds since 2013-10-28 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Work that matters requires tolerating discomfort and boredom rather than escaping into distraction. — tap to centre the map on it Work that matters requires tolerating discomfort and boredom rather than escaping into distraction. Last stated 5 years ago
by 18 Aug 2021
OB
Oliver Burkeman — holds since 2021-08-18 — tap for who they are
CN
Cal Newport — holds since 2009-02-04 — tap for who they are
Same subject: “Why now?” is the wrong question to make a founder answer — the honest answer can simply be that you started now. — tap to centre the map on it “Why now?” is the wrong question to make a founder answer — the honest answer can simply be that you started now. Last stated 3 months ago
28 Jul 2026
BS
Blake Scholl — holds since 2026-07-28 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A belief nobody else shares is a warning, and a belief everybody shares is also a warning; the right number of people who agree with you is small but not zero. — tap to centre the map on it A belief nobody else shares is a warning, and a belief everybody shares is also a warning; the right number of people who agree with you is small but not zero. Last stated 3 months ago
28 Jul 2026
SA
Sam Altman — holds since 2026-07-28 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A business can have market fit, real advantages, and sustained effort behind a hard product and still fail if it doesn't give customers a strong enough reason to switch from what they already use. — tap to centre the map on it A business can have market fit, real advantages, and sustained effort behind a hard product and still fail if it doesn't give customers a strong enough reason to switch from what they already use. Last stated 5 months ago
2 Jun 2026
JJ
Justin Jackson — holds since 2026-06-02 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A first-time founder has an advantage over a repeat winner, because past success makes it too easy to raise money and hire against a big vision before there is product-market fit. — tap to centre the map on it A first-time founder has an advantage over a repeat winner, because past success makes it too easy to raise money and hire against a big vision before there is product-market fit. Last stated 4 months ago
14 Jun 2026
MP
Mark Pincus — holds since 2026-06-14 — tap for who they are
Same subject: About 5% is the most common final ownership stake for the founder of a VC-funded startup that works out. — tap to centre the map on it About 5% is the most common final ownership stake for the founder of a VC-funded startup that works out. Last stated 3 months ago
18 Jul 2026
PL
Pieter Levels — holds since 2026-07-18 — tap for who they are
Same subject: An investor who passes on a pitch they find truly novel will often still refer it to another investor, to get credit for having found it. — tap to centre the map on it An investor who passes on a pitch they find truly novel will often still refer it to another investor, to get credit for having found it. Last stated 3 months ago
5 Aug 2026
ZH
Zach Holman — holds since 2026-08-05 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A founder who does not know their own goal dies by a thousand compromises and ends up running a company they do not want to work at. — tap to centre the map on it A founder who does not know their own goal dies by a thousand compromises and ends up running a company they do not want to work at. Last stated 5 months ago
2 Jun 2026
MP
Mark Pincus — holds since 2026-06-02 — tap for who they are
Same subject: AI research follows a power law, as startup investing does: the best bet outperforms all the others put together. — tap to centre the map on it AI research follows a power law, as startup investing does: the best bet outperforms all the others put together. Last stated 2 months ago
23 Aug 2026
SA
Sam Altman — holds since 2026-08-23 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Applying scale-first, profit-later to every business is a cookbook that turns small failures into big ones. — tap to centre the map on it Applying scale-first, profit-later to every business is a cookbook that turns small failures into big ones. Last stated 2 months ago
2 Sept 2026
AD
Aswath Damodaran — holds since 2026-09-02 — tap for who they are
At the centre
Pick something hard and boring: fun problems are the crowded ones now that anybody can prompt a thing into existence.
Holds Read this korrent →
Certain types of problems lead to interesting discoveries while others do not.
Holds
Coming up with a good conjecture is harder than solving one, and that taste for the right question is what separates great scientists from good ones.
Holds
Audience boredom is usually a content failure, not a decoration failure: if the numbers are boring you have the wrong numbers.
Holds
Generating a list of potential problems is worthless unless it is followed by validating and prioritizing them.
Holds
Boredom is a missing skill rather than a property of the situation: there is infinity in every direction, including a blank wall.
Holds
When engineers say they like working on “hard problems”, they actually don't; they like puzzle solving and pattern matching.
Holds
A difficult problem is better thought through both forwards and backward than in one direction only.
Holds
Work that matters requires tolerating discomfort and boredom rather than escaping into distraction.
Holds
“Why now?” is the wrong question to make a founder answer — the honest answer can simply be that you started now.
Holds
A belief nobody else shares is a warning, and a belief everybody shares is also a warning; the right number of people who agree with you is small but not zero.
Holds
A business can have market fit, real advantages, and sustained effort behind a hard product and still fail if it doesn't give customers a strong enough reason to switch from what they already use.
Holds
A first-time founder has an advantage over a repeat winner, because past success makes it too easy to raise money and hire against a big vision before there is product-market fit.
Holds
About 5% is the most common final ownership stake for the founder of a VC-funded startup that works out.
Holds
An investor who passes on a pitch they find truly novel will often still refer it to another investor, to get credit for having found it.
Holds
A founder who does not know their own goal dies by a thousand compromises and ends up running a company they do not want to work at.
Holds
AI research follows a power law, as startup investing does: the best bet outperforms all the others put together.
Holds
Applying scale-first, profit-later to every business is a cookbook that turns small failures into big ones.
Holds