Oracle's youngest VP chose wisdom over wealth.

Silicon Valley called him insane.

At 26, he walked away from everything he'd built.

Here's the spiritual secret that built Salesforce into a $200B giant: At 23, Benioff joined Oracle and became their youngest VP at 26.

He had everything society said would make him happy.

But something was missing. A deep emptiness gnawed at him.

I know that void - it's what made me walk away from my company after 15 years:

This therapist discovered his method in America's most dangerous prison.

Not through traditional therapy or medication.

But through a method so powerful, Hollywood's elite fought to learn it.

Here's the prison secret that's transforming minds in minutes:
His journey began in an unlikely place: Rikers Island prison.

As a young psychiatrist in the 1970s, Stutz worked with inmates facing severe mental health challenges.

He saw that traditional therapy's passive, past-focused approach wasn't working. These men needed immediate, practical tools.

But something unexpected was about to happen...

Meet Google's mindfulness pioneer:

He turned meditation into a corporate revolution.

His program reached 100,000 people across 150 cities.

But what he discovered about inner peace challenged everything: In 2000, Chade-Meng Tan joined Google as employee #107.

But he wasn't your typical engineer.

He discovered that mindfulness could transform depression into inner peace.

This revelation would reshape not just his life, but the future of corporate culture.

But here's where his journey takes an unexpected turn:

Kobe Bryant's biggest secret wasn't about basketball:

It was a 10-minute morning practice he never skipped.

As I sit here 5 weeks post-Achilles surgery, his story hits differently.

Here's the practice that changed everything: Most know about Kobe's legendary 4 AM workouts.

He'd train from 4 AM to 6 AM, before his competitors even started their day.

But what most don't know is the mental practice that preceded all of it.

A practice I'm learning to appreciate more than ever during my own recovery:

In 2017, Tiger Woods hit rock bottom.

His career was over. He could barely walk. His personal life was in shambles.

Until ONE ancient practice helped him find his way back.

Here's what the world never saw: 🧵 Since his first back surgery in 2014, he'd played just 19 worldwide events.

One top-10 finish. Seven missed cuts. Three withdrawals.

By April 2017, he underwent his fourth back surgery - a spinal fusion.

But his darkest moment was yet to come...

One way I remind myself of what I want is I send myself quotes.

Below is my favorite. I send myself this quote every month, to help me remember the life I want to live. 👣

Anyone else do this? What quotes are you sending yourself? I want to know! "The young man, who does not know the future, sees life as a kind of epic adventure, an Odyssey through strange seas and unknown islands, where he will test and prove his powers, and thereby discover his immortality.

I've raised $20m+ in VC.

I won what was the largest pitch competition in the world.

I've helped companies worth over $2bn raise capital, and run great board meetings.

In all that, one piece of presentation advice stands out above the rest: TL/DR: "Don't present excel-level data, if you want powerpoint-level questions."

That's it. That's the advice.

Want the whole messy ass story on how I learned this the hard way?

Here goes:

I raised VC 5x and grew a 100+ employee, market leading company.

And then I got fired from that company.

If I were talking to myself 10 years ago, here's what I'd say, to spare me some hard ass lessons. INVESTORS:
Admit that I don't know the future.

Obvious, maybe. But investors expect you to pretend to be certain.

Don't. Instead, be open about risk, even those you can't solve. Then show your work on why you're confident anyway.

More here:
leadinsideout.io/newsletter/how…

I’ve been feeling this weird sense of impending doom for the past while. Maybe a few months, maybe longer. I didn’t know what it was. I figured the economy, or my existential not-enoughness, or or or.

And today I figured it out. The feeling was one like “something bad is going to happen, and I need to somehow do something to change things or else.” Like it’s all up to me to do something unclear to solve an unclear problem, and if I don’t, the world will end or other such unpleasantness.

Overcoming Imposter Syndrome

You know that feeling when you're in a meeting and someone asks you a question and you have no idea how to answer it so you just sit there quietly hoping that someone else will jump in? Or when you're about to present your work and your heart is pounding so hard you're sure everyone can hear it and you just want to run out of the room?

Most of your behavior is governed by mental patterns that you may not even be aware of.

These can be helpful, guiding us through familiar tasks efficiently.

But they can also work against you, leading you to repeat past mistakes or act in ways that are no longer helpful. However, there are steps you can take to break free from negative mental patterns and create positive ones to replace them.

One of the first steps is to become aware of your thoughts and how they make you feel. Once you identify a negative thought pattern, you can challenge it.

I've spent thousands of hours teaching high achievers and CEOs of some of the fastest growing startups how to use their minds more effectively, and it all boils down to changing their mental patterns.

In this thread, I'll show you how you can do the same. Most people are creatures of habit. They like routine because it is comfortable and familiar.

However, there are moments when your habitual patterns no longer serve you well.

Over the years, I've had the opportunity to work with some amazing leaders. I've also had the opportunity to observe some not-so-amazing leaders.

Through these experiences, I've learned a lot about what it takes to be a good leader.

Here are the top 12 lessons I've learned. 1. A good leader is always learning.

The best leaders are always looking for ways to improve their skills and knowledge.

They're never content with just being "good enough."

If you’ve ever thought about becoming a leader, or if you’re already in a leadership position, it’s important to understand what leadership is really about. Too often, people think that leaders are all about gaining power. But the truth is that leaders are about empowering others. When you’re a leader, you have the ability to help others reach their full potential. You can inspire them, motivate them, and guide them. And when you do that, you bring out the best in them.

How to lead a 100-person company (Thread - 1/14):

A how-to guide in four parts and 14 tweets, based on my experiences building and scaling @OfficialVNN (much of it learned by doing the wrong thing, so you hopefully don't have to). Part 1: Know yourself (2/14)
Reflect on why you're leading a 100 person company.
--Why am I willing to sacrifice so much?
-- What do I believe this work says about me if I succeed? If I fail?
-- What is my purpose with this work? Why is it the work of my life?

This white dude chanting “kill the cops”. Black people chanting #BLACK_LIVES_MATTER over him, but he keeps trying to turn this.

White person inciting violence at a BLM protest in #GrandRapids, for the record. I read about white “plants” trying to cause chaos at #BLACK_LIVES_MATTER protests, so the media blames black protestors.

Grateful nobody bit on this clown’s act.