Codie Sanchez06 July 2023

Unlock Financial Freedom: Secrets From A $50 Million Portfolio - Codie Sanchez

7Frameworks

15Insights

Episode overview

Ali Abdaal speaks with Codie Sanchez about her nonlinear transition from human-trafficking journalism into finance, private equity, and acquiring small businesses. They examine skill stacking, persistence, workplace dynamics, purposeful struggle, leadership, relationships, and the tension between achievement and a well-lived life. Sanchez argues that young people should invest first in their earning ability and skills, while business ownership can create cash flow, agency, and broader participation in wealth.

Key ideas

Nonlinear careers can create rare combinations of skills that become a durable professional advantage.
Learning inside an established company can provide valuable training, but the culture must fit the person.
Struggle is productive when it supplies meaningful challenge and growth rather than an endless, low-level grind.
Purpose and ambition should be balanced with health, relationships, adventure, and enjoyment of the journey.
Relentless, highly tailored outreach works best when it offers specific value before making an ask.
Strong leadership means creating a compelling mission and reinforcing culture through consistently executed details.
Relationships, trust, access, and attention can become more powerful forms of leverage than capital alone.
Young people can often earn higher returns by building skills and earning power before emphasizing passive investments.

Transcript available · source text is retained privately and is not published

Frameworks in this episode

Finance3 steps

Earn, Learn, Invest

Get rich in the right order: earn first, then learn, then invest

Read →

Sales5 steps

Get in the Game

Break into any field by going where it's actually played

Read →

Influence6 steps

Sniper, Not Shotgun

Win a mentor by prepping the environment and giving before you ask

Read →

Entrepreneurship5 steps

The Boring Business Cash-Flow Path

Buy boring mom-and-pop businesses for cash flow, not startups or index funds

Read →

Sales5 steps

The Grand Slam Ask

Land the role by pairing relentless persistence with a win-win offer

Read →

Self-Mastery4 steps

The Third Degree Human

Grow on three fronts: civilise the mind, savage the body, build the bank

Read →

Mindset4 steps

The Tombstone Test

Find your purpose by asking what legacy you'd be ashamed of

Read →

People & resources mentioned

Attributed to the moment in the episode. Timestamps are approximate.

People · 18

Ali AbdaalMentionsthe ongoing podcast where every week I get the chance to sit down with inspiring authors, entrepreneurs, creators, and other inspiring people.
“what you're about to hear is an interview between me and the wonderful Cody Sanchez”
▶ Watch at ~0:00approx.
Codie SanchezMentionsshe's become a partner at a private Equity Firm and she's the founder of contrarian thinking and unconventional Acquisitions
“Cody welcome to the show”
▶ Watch at ~1:30approx.
Jeffrey KentMentionsthis guy Jeffrey Kent who started Abercrombie in Kent
“this guy Jeffrey Kent who started Abercrombie in Kent”
▶ Watch at ~2:00approx.
J. R. R. TolkienMentionsmentioned
“kind of like that line in Tolkien right”
▶ Watch at ~9:00approx.
Daniel PriestleyMentionshis name's Dan Priestley he written a bunch of business books and this sort of does business coaching and stuff
“I was interviewing someone else on the Pod Dan Priestley”
▶ Watch at ~11:00approx.
Gary VaynerchukMentionsas people like gary vaynerchuk would say it's all about patience in the long term
“Gary your V garyvee your way to success I don't think you have to even though I like the guy”
▶ Watch at ~12:00approx.
Sheryl SandbergMentionsmentioned
“I recently read lean in by show us handbook which I thought was really good”
▶ Watch at ~19:00approx.
Alex HormoziMentionshe's a business owner I guess who's just he's also absolutely jacked and just produces loads and loads of content
“does it change your approach compared to if you were let's say hormuzy for example”
▶ Watch at ~22:00approx.
Julian HearnMentionswe have the founder of huel Julian Hearn who was on the very first season of the podcast
“we had the founder of huel Julian Hearn who was on the very first season of the podcast”
▶ Watch at ~28:30approx.
Muhammad AliMentionsmentioned
“there's that quote from Muhammad Ali”
▶ Watch at ~33:00approx.
Jocko WillinkMentionsmentioned
“I'll share a quote from Like A Book Like Jocko willinks about the honor of leadership”
▶ Watch at ~44:30approx.
David BrooksCoinedmentioned
“it's called the road to character um where by David Brooks I think”
▶ Watch at ~45:30approx.
Ernest ShackletonMentionsmentioned
“some of my favorite stories to write or or read about are like Ernest Shackleton”
▶ Watch at ~47:30approx.
Tim FerrissMentionsramit sethi or tim ferriss guy kawasaki a lot of these guys i just helped promote them and connect with them really early on
“if I could have the sort of impact on someone that Tim Ferriss had on me through his stuff”
▶ Watch at ~49:00approx.
Bill PerkinsMentionshe wrote die with zero
“his name is Bill Perkins and he's a sort of a well he wrote die with zero”
▶ Watch at ~1:08:00approx.
Bob IgerMentionsDisney CEO right Bob Iger
“you think about Disney CEO right Bob Iger famously what did he do every time he walked into a park”
▶ Watch at ~1:15:00approx.
Warren BuffettMentionsthe thing that Warren Buffett and basically everyone who sensible in the space recommends
“we want to have assets that are so good that you think like Warren Buffett”
▶ Watch at ~1:26:00approx.
Jeff BezosMentionswho's a freak of nature whose first business becomes the most valuable business in the world
“could you imagine if you could get a supply chain class from Jeff Bezos”
▶ Watch at ~1:32:30approx.

Resources · 35

Deep Dive with Ali AbdaalMentionspodcast · Ali Abdaal
“hey friends and welcome back to Deep dive the weekly podcast”
▶ Watch at ~0:00approx.
Unconventional AcquisitionsCoinedcompany · Codie Sanchez
“she's the founder of contrarian thinking and unconventional Acquisitions”
▶ Watch at ~0:30approx.
Contrarian ThinkingCoinedcompany · Codie Sanchez
“she's the founder of contrarian thinking and unconventional Acquisitions”
▶ Watch at ~0:30approx.
Abercrombie & KentMentionscompany · Jeffrey Kent
“this guy Jeffrey Kent who started Abercrombie in Kent”
▶ Watch at ~2:00approx.
Goldman SachsMentionscompany
“I wouldn't have wanted to work you know 70 hour weeks at Goldman”
▶ Watch at ~4:30approx.
Los AbandonadosCoinedother · Codie Sanchez
“I covered her in a project called um Los abandonados the abandoned”
▶ Watch at ~5:00approx.
Howard G. Buffett Award for Print JournalismMentionsevent
“we won the Howard F Buffett award for print journalism”
▶ Watch at ~5:30approx.
Arizona State UniversityMentionsplace
“I went to Arizona State University huge school”
▶ Watch at ~7:00approx.
The HobbitMentionsbook · J. R. R. Tolkien
“that was from The Hobbit for you nerds like me”
▶ Watch at ~9:00approx.
Harry PotterMentionsbook · J. K. Rowling
“Ollie and I were talking Harry Potter”
▶ Watch at ~9:00approx.
VanguardMentionscompany
“a recruiter for a company called Vanguard which is one of the largest investors investment firms in the world”
▶ Watch at ~9:30approx.
Lean InRecommendsbook · Sheryl Sandberg
“I recently read lean in by show us handbook which I thought was really good”
▶ Watch at ~19:00approx.
HuelUsesproduct · Julian Hearn
“I've been a pain customer of huel since 2017 since my fifth year of medical school”
▶ Watch at ~27:30approx.
Huel Black EditionUsesproduct · Huel
“my favorite version is the heel black edition”
▶ Watch at ~27:30approx.
HuelRecommendsproduct · Julian Hearn
“if you're interested in trying out huel then head over to huel.com forward slash Deep dive”
▶ Watch at ~28:30approx.
Apple PayUsessoftware · Apple
“you can use Apple pay like I do initially or you can use a direct bank transfer”
▶ Watch at ~29:30approx.
Trading 212Recommendssoftware · Trading 212
“you can download the app on the App Store and if you use the coupon code Ali Ali”
▶ Watch at ~30:30approx.
Horizon Zero DawnUsesother · Guerrilla Games
“during lockdown I got a PS5 I started to play Horizon zero Dawn”
▶ Watch at ~38:00approx.
PlayStation 5Usesproduct · Sony Interactive Entertainment
“during lockdown I got a PS5 I started to play Horizon zero Dawn”
▶ Watch at ~38:00approx.
The Men, the Mission, and MeRecommendsbook
“there's actually this great book called The Men the mission and me”
▶ Watch at ~40:30approx.
The Road to CharacterMentionsbook · David Brooks
“it's called the road to character um where by David Brooks I think”
▶ Watch at ~45:30approx.
National GeographicMentionscompany
“a friend of mine who does National Geographic whale shark tagging”
▶ Watch at ~46:30approx.
State StreetMentionscompany
“every single hiring manager at this company called State Street”
▶ Watch at ~56:00approx.
Credit SuisseMentionscompany
“I wanted to leave there to go to Credit Suisse”
▶ Watch at ~57:00approx.
First TrustMentionscompany
“I got another one at this company called First Trust”
▶ Watch at ~57:30approx.
DuneRecommendsbook · Frank Herbert
“there's this line in Dune have you read Dune oh Ollie you have to read it”
▶ Watch at ~1:06:30approx.
Die with ZeroCoinedbook · Bill Perkins
“his name is Bill Perkins and he's a sort of a well he wrote die with zero”
▶ Watch at ~1:08:00approx.
BlackstoneMentionscompany
“you should be bigger than Blackstone that should be how big your dream is”
▶ Watch at ~1:08:30approx.
Andreessen HorowitzMentionscompany
“one of my friends who is a general partner at Andresen Horowitz”
▶ Watch at ~1:10:30approx.
Sequoia CapitalMentionscompany
“do you know Sequoia only takes non-profit dollars now”
▶ Watch at ~1:11:00approx.
DisneyMentionscompany
“you think about Disney CEO right Bob Iger famously”
▶ Watch at ~1:15:00approx.
BitcoinMentionsproduct
“have a Robin Hood trade do well for them or a Bitcoin go up or down”
▶ Watch at ~1:19:30approx.
RobinhoodMentionssoftware
“have a Robin Hood trade do well for them or a Bitcoin go up or down”
▶ Watch at ~1:19:30approx.
S&P 500Recommendsother · S&P Dow Jones Indices
“the easy answer is S P 500”
▶ Watch at ~1:20:30approx.
YouTuber AcademyCoinedcourse · Ali Abdaal and team
“with my with my YouTuber Academy I'll have friends messaging being like hey can I can I get on this course”
▶ Watch at ~1:30:00approx.

Spot an error or want something removed? Request a correction or removal.

Insights & moments

The myth-busts, hot takes, explainers, and tools worth keeping.

Hot Take· 3

Hot Take31:30

Is struggle the key to happiness, or is balance?

Sanchez claims the key to happiness, wealth and success is struggle, that iron sharpens iron and periods of struggle make relaxation poignant. Ali pushes back, citing deathbed regrets about working too hard and Alexi's line about a millionaire who'd trade everything to be 20 again, arguing balance is happiness. They converge on a better definition: struggle isn't only work, it's voluntary challenge in mind, body and meaningful activity, and the deeper problem today is that people lack purpose entirely.

Sanchez: struggle is the key to happiness, wealth and success
Ali: deathbed regrets and lost youth suggest balance is happiness
Both agree growth comes from struggle, but not only at work
Approaching work in the spirit of play with a sprinkle of challenge is the sweet spot
The bigger crisis is that many people have no purpose at all

“if you want to know what the key to happiness is it's struggle”
Codie Sanchez · 32:00

“I would venture that balance is happiness and there are periods of struggle certainly because growth comes from struggle”
Ali Abdaal · 35:00

#struggle#happiness#balance#purpose

Hot Take1:07:30

If no one thinks you're crazy, you're too late

Riffing on one of her own 21 finance truths, Sanchez says if sharing what you're doing doesn't make someone roll their eyes, you're aiming too low. Her mentor Bill Perkins challenged her that spending so long around small businesses had let 'small' infect her thinking, and that with her reach she should aim to be bigger than Blackstone. She observes that time with billionaires widens your aperture because they've bent the world to their will and know far more is possible.

If nobody thinks your plan is crazy, you're too late
Bill Perkins warned that 'small' had infected her thinking
With enough reach, aim bigger than Blackstone
Billionaires have a wider aperture for what's possible
Related truth: the market isn't saturated, your business just sucks

“if you're sharing what you're doing and somebody doesn't roll their eyes or think you're crazy you're doing it wrong”
Codie Sanchez · 1:09:00

“do you think that you have been around small for so long that small has infected your thinking”
Codie Sanchez · 1:08:30

#ambition#mindset#scale#mentorship

Hot Take1:25:30

Own great assets, don't speculate on the greater fool

Sanchez draws a hard line between investors and speculators, warning that a generation has been taught speculation via crypto, NFTs and hot stocks. Speculation relies on the last-man fallacy, betting a dumber buyer takes the bag, whereas real investing means owning assets so good you'd hold them 30 years like Warren Buffett. She adds that genuine trading edges live in firewalled 'black boxes' that pros never share, so anyone teaching trading secrets online is, in her view, full of it.

Speculators bet on a greater fool; investors own great assets for decades
The last-man fallacy means you might be the one holding the bag
Fast-money runs in NFTs, Bitcoin and stocks confused people about investing
Real trading edges are firewalled black boxes pros never reveal
Anyone teaching trading secrets online is likely full of it

“you should know that you should run away from that because you're the last man”
Codie Sanchez · 1:25:30

“anybody that teaches trading online is totally full of it in my opinion because if they had great secrets they would never share them”
Codie Sanchez · 1:26:30

#investing#speculation#crypto#ownership

Explainer· 2

Explainer09:30

Learn on someone else's dime before you go it alone

Rather than rushing to be an entrepreneur or YouTube star, Sanchez advises starting inside a company that trains you, since a salary means you can't bankrupt yourself while learning. Big corporations invest heavily in training (Vanguard averaged around $100k per new hire) and give you a buffer to level up, while startups offer no training and grow so fast that non-self-growers get outrun. Neither path is uniquely right, but learning on other people's money is a powerful safeguard.

A salary is a safeguard: you can't bankrupt yourself while learning
Vanguard invested roughly $100k of training per new hire
Corporations suit people who need more time before leveling up
Startups have no training and demand you 3x yourself yearly or get outgrown
Ignore 'hustle porn'; most people have under two weeks of cash on hand

“I think you should go learn on somebody else's dime because Vanguard puts in it on average a hundred thousand dollars worth of training into…”
Codie Sanchez · 10:00

“if you go to a startup and you think I'm just going to like learn a little bit as I go uh-uh this is like…”
Codie Sanchez · 13:00

#career#corporate#startups#training

Explainer1:10:30

Why access and relationships beat money as leverage

Sanchez argues that past a base level of cash, money becomes a commodity and access becomes the real currency. She recounts an Andreessen Horowitz partner saying he couldn't be paid to take her money, and that Sequoia now takes only non-profit dollars because what matters is access and ideas. As attention becomes the scarce asset, being in the right rooms with creators can convert into millions in effective ad spend, and declining institutional trust makes one-on-one human relationships worth more than ever.

Past a base level of cash, money is a commodity and access is the prize
Sequoia reportedly takes only non-profit money; access matters more than capital
Spend to grow your skill set and get into valuable rooms
Attention, not capital, is becoming the real commodity
Declining trust in institutions makes individual relationships more valuable

“money is such a commodity you couldn't pay me to take yours”
Codie Sanchez · 1:10:30

“increasingly money is going to become more commoditized and attention will be the commodity”
Codie Sanchez · 1:12:00

#access#relationships#leverage#attention

Story· 4

Story04:30

From covering human trafficking to chasing money and power

Codie Sanchez began her career as a journalist covering human trafficking on the US-Mexico border, confronted daily by violence and despair. Writing about an abandoned elderly woman named Carmelita, who believed the press coverage would reunite her with family, made Sanchez realise journalism could tell stories but rarely change them. A late-night talk with a professor convinced her that money, not politics, pulls the strings, so she pivoted to finance to understand power and protect herself.

Started in journalism covering trafficking and 'real death and despair' in college
Carmelita's false hope that press would fix her life was the breaking point
A professor's stress-test showed money, not nationality, separates lives
Concluded the people with money rule the world and back politicians
Chose finance to understand power, help others get it, and protect herself

“I wanted to understand money I didn't come from it... but I thought maybe if I understand money then I could understand this thing called…”
Codie Sanchez · 04:00

“if you have money you're a lot harder to kill you're a lot harder to push around because you have options”
Codie Sanchez · 07:30

#career-pivot#journalism#purpose#money

Story15:30

The Vanguard lesson: perception is reality in big companies

A year into Vanguard, Sanchez pitched an idea to break into Latin America and was told she'd get the job, only to have her boss reveal that peers thought she'd 'leave dead bodies behind her to get ahead.' She was actually just treading water, focused and quiet like a duck gliding while paddling frantically underneath. The job was handed to someone else, teaching her that in a big corporation perception is reality and politics is gamified, and that she never again wanted others' perceptions to hold her back.

Her focused, heads-down style was read as cold and selfish
She was 'treading water', not scheming, but perception won
Her boss gave her idea and the role to a peer
In big corporations perception is reality and politics is gamified
The experience pushed her toward the meritocracy of Goldman Sachs

“your peers think you would leave dead bodies behind you to get ahead”
Codie Sanchez · 16:00

“if you're in a big Corporation perception is reality it is politics gamified”
Codie Sanchez · 17:00

#corporate-politics#perception#career#vanguard

Story26:00

The one-line Goldman advice that got her promoted fastest

As a new Goldman analyst with no elite pedigree, Sanchez asked an intense, former-military boss for two or three things she could do to differentiate herself in her first 30 days. His answer was one thing: be here earlier, stay later. She did exactly that for a year, arriving before everyone and leaving after everyone, and was promoted and paid faster than anyone. Goldman's culture made the deal explicit: tolerate intense pain up front and earn a lifetime of not having to.

Goldman analysts have 'no' erased from their vocabulary
The differentiator was simply arriving first and leaving last
One year of that led to the fastest promotion and pay rises
Goldman repels the wrong people as deliberately as it attracts the right ones
Front-loading pain buys a lifetime of tolerating little

“he's like be here earlier stay later that's it”
Codie Sanchez · 26:30

“tolerating pain for a period up front led to a lifetime of now I don't have to tolerate much pain at all”
Codie Sanchez · 27:00

#goldman-sachs#work-ethic#career#discipline

Story1:13:30

How you do anything is how you do everything

Watching low-level employees at a friend's company wipe down the sink and counter after washing their hands, Sanchez learned their creed: how you do anything is how you do everything. She ties it to Bob Iger picking up trash on Disney park visits, a signal in a world of noise that says 'we clean up around here.' The nuance, taught to her by Bill Perkins, is that you needn't do everything yourself, but the things you do, and the culture you build, must be done well.

Employees cleaning the sink revealed a culture of doing small things well
Small details compound into the big outcomes
Bob Iger picking up park trash signals values louder than his time is worth
You don't have to do everything, but what you do should be done well
She fired someone whose sloppy customer email betrayed the culture

“how you do anything is how you do everything right and just kind of like looks at me like don't you know that”
Codie Sanchez · 1:14:30

“if you are focusing on All the Small Things you'll never do the big things”
Codie Sanchez · 1:16:30

#culture#standards#details#leadership

Takeaway· 6

Takeaway02:00

Why nobody interesting has a linear career

Sanchez argues that anyone with an interesting career has a divergent set of experiences rather than a straight line. Doing unusual things early skill-stacks you into a position where no one else can compete, because the specific combination of skills you hold is unique. She cites the Abercrombie & Kent founder who ran safaris and sold shoes, and her own blend of finance, Spanish and Latino identity.

Humans never really have linear paths
Divergent experiences stack into an uncopyable position
Skill stacking makes you the best at your particular combination
Sanchez's finance-plus-Spanish-plus-Latino mix became her edge
Ali's medicine-plus-YouTube-plus-Pakistani background is another example

“anyone who has had an interesting career in my opinion has had a complete Divergent set of experiences”
Codie Sanchez · 02:00

“all of these unique things that end up skill stacking you to some position where nobody else can be better at it than you”
Codie Sanchez · 02:30

#career#skill-stacking#differentiation

Takeaway19:30

Codie Sanchez's advice for women at work: Victor over victim

Sanchez urges women to choose being the Victor over the victim and to treat being different as a memorable advantage rather than a grievance. She rejects the idea of suppressing femininity, recalling how she wore boxy suits and cut her hair to seem more like a man early on, which was a mistake. A mentor taught her that male colleagues tend to want to father, friend or pursue you, and that reading which category someone falls into lets you engage authentically and to your advantage.

Choose being the Victor over being the victim, always
Being different in finance made her more memorable
Don't suppress femininity to imitate men
Male colleagues tend to father, friend or pursue you; read which
With older business owners, the 'father' dynamic and empathy win deals

“choose being the Victor over being the victim always”
Codie Sanchez · 19:30

“I thought that I had to like become a man to get into the workforce and it could have been more opposite”
Codie Sanchez · 21:30

#women-in-work#workplace#advantage#advice

Takeaway53:00

Don't uproot your life for a relationship into a life you don't want

Sanchez regrets leaving Goldman and international ambitions to follow a partner to Dallas, into a white-picket-fence life she never wanted, which bred resentment. Her lesson is not to avoid moving for love but to be careful about uprooting yourself into a life you don't want. With her current husband she screens for shared vision, not just compatibility, because two people who want fundamentally different futures will keep pulling at the seams no matter how in love they are.

Moving for a partner into a life you want can be incredible
Moving into a life you don't want breeds resentment
Compatibility isn't enough; shared big-picture vision matters most
Different desired futures pull a relationship apart regardless of love
She and her husband run in agreed multi-year cycles and avoid the word 'sacrifice'

“be really careful about uprooting yourself for another into a life you don't want to live”
Codie Sanchez · 53:30

“do we want the same big things because if you... want kids and to live in London and your person... wants no children then it…”
Codie Sanchez · 54:00

#relationships#vision#life-design#regret

Takeaway1:05:00

Great leaders sell a dream so big it replaces someone else's

Sanchez says learning to lead and build culture is what makes you limitless, and she only came to value leadership books after running a business. The essence of leadership is selling a dream so big it replaces someone else's current reality, echoing the line about teaching people to yearn for the vast and endless sea rather than to build a boat. Her mentor Jim at First Trust sold her a dream so large it pulled her into a role that, at the time, was nothing.

Learning to lead and build culture makes you limitless; failing to caps you
Leadership means selling a dream big enough to replace someone's current reality
Teach people to yearn for the sea, not to build the boat
A leader needs a 'hive of bees' spreading the mission, not solo effort
Jim at First Trust recruited her by selling a dream far bigger than the actual job

“can you sell a dream so big you replace somebody else's that's what it means for somebody to come work for you”
Codie Sanchez · 1:06:00

“teach them instead to yearn for the vast and Endless Sea”
Codie Sanchez · 1:05:30

#leadership#culture#vision#recruiting

Takeaway1:24:30

Take the biggest risks while you're young and have nothing to lose

Advising her teenage cousins and her younger self, Sanchez says take the biggest risk humanly possible while young, because responsibility, mortgages, kids and a big paycheck all make risk scarier later and failure barely matters when you're young. She would not put $1,000 into the stock market at 16; she'd invest it in yourself or in a big swing, like trying to turn it into a $100k business purchase. Treat that money as 'MBA money' for learning skills, not as seed capital for the S&P 500.

Take maximum risk while young; responsibilities make risk scarier later
Failure barely matters when you're young
Don't put a teenager's $1,000 into the S&P 500
Invest it in yourself or a big swing like a small business purchase
Treat early money as 'MBA money' for learning, not index investing

“take the big risk now while you have no responsibility the more responsibility you get the scarier the risk becomes”
Codie Sanchez · 1:24:30

“I would take the thousand bucks and I would consider it your little MBA money”
Codie Sanchez · 1:27:00

#risk#youth#investing#self-investment

Takeaway1:27:30

Charge for it: why skin in the game makes people follow through

Sanchez insists you should always charge for a product because people don't value what they get for free, and research and her own data show paid customers are far likelier to finish and act. Ali shares his own experiment: making YouTuber Academy applicants pay $5,000, refundable on completing the homework, so people actually show up. She and her husband even use money bets for fitness goals, and she argues you should pay premiums to friends and never ask them for discounts.

People don't value what they get for free; paying drives follow-through
Charging more made her customers more likely to finish and act
Ali's $5k refundable-on-completion course fee forced accountability
Money bets and paid coaches (trainer, nutritionist) buy speed via skin in the game
Pay premiums to friends' businesses; never ask them for discounts

“your likelihood to accomplish something if you put skin in the game is infinitely higher”
Codie Sanchez · 1:28:00

“now what I do is yeah I say pay the five thousand dollars and if you complete the homework I will refund you the five…”
Ali Abdaal · 1:30:30

#skin-in-the-game#pricing#accountability#value

Key ideas

Frameworks in this episode

Earn, Learn, Invest

Get in the Game

Sniper, Not Shotgun

The Boring Business Cash-Flow Path

The Grand Slam Ask

The Third Degree Human

The Tombstone Test

People & resources mentioned

People · 18

Resources · 35

Insights & moments

◆Hot Take· 3

Is struggle the key to happiness, or is balance?

If no one thinks you're crazy, you're too late

Own great assets, don't speculate on the greater fool

✶Explainer· 2

Learn on someone else's dime before you go it alone

Why access and relationships beat money as leverage

❝Story· 4

From covering human trafficking to chasing money and power

The Vanguard lesson: perception is reality in big companies

The one-line Goldman advice that got her promoted fastest

How you do anything is how you do everything

▲Takeaway· 6

Why nobody interesting has a linear career

Codie Sanchez's advice for women at work: Victor over victim

Don't uproot your life for a relationship into a life you don't want

Great leaders sell a dream so big it replaces someone else's

Take the biggest risks while you're young and have nothing to lose

Charge for it: why skin in the game makes people follow through

Hot Take· 3

Explainer· 2

Story· 4

Takeaway· 6