Niparko: Sharper decisions come from understanding mental models, not debating opinions
Kevin Niparko · Kevin Niparko: Big Mistakes Founders Make When Hiring Product Teams | E1066 · 20VC with Harry Stebbings · Sep 29, 2023 · at 3:10
Kevin Niparko, VP of Product at Twilio and former Bridgewater Management Associate, discusses key decision-making principles learned during his time at hedge fund Bridgewater Associates.
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“In the workplace, people are often talking about and debating opinions, right? So, like, Harry believes option A is the best option, I believe option B, and we're going to debate option A versus option B to figure out which one is superior, but I actually think there's something more valuable and the approach that is often taken at Bridgewater is really trying to understand how Harry got to option A, right? What is the data that Harry is seeing? What is the mental model that Harry has of the world that is leading to that perspective? It's through understanding that way of thinking and processing that you can actually refine and sharpen your own decisions by really understanding those around you and debating and openly understanding how people are approaching Their decisions.”
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