#800: Ev Williams — The Art of Pivoting (e.g., Odeo to Twitter), Strategic Quitting, The Dangers of Premature Scaling, Must-Read Books, and More
Ev Williams is the co-founder of Mozi, a new social network that helps you connect in person with the people you care about. Over the past 25 years, Ev has co-founded several companies that have helped shape the modern internet—including Blogger, Medium, and Twitter. This episode was recorded live at Diggnation, where digg.com was relaunched. Go to digg.com and sign up to get early access when invites go out.
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Timestamps:
[00:00:00] Start
[00:05:35] Kevin Rose starts the party like it's 2004.
[00:07:27] Ev's first internet product.
[00:08:54] How technology became social for Ev.
[00:10:52] The simple idea behind Mozi.
[00:12:05] Strategic quitting vs. sunk-cost perseverance.
[00:18:36] How Odeo begat Twitter.
[00:22:01] Twitter's $11,000 SXSW 2007 inflection point.
[00:23:45] Ev's hopes for Mozi's evolution.
[00:25:02] Favorite books and information inputs.
[00:30:45] Raising a generation to co-exist with AI.
[00:33:12] Ev's billboard.
[00:35:56] How Ev learned to manage his feelings.
[00:37:16] Facing strangers as an introvert with the Hoffman Process.
[00:39:57] Recently adopted habits that have galvanized positive change.
[00:42:44] The silver lining of being fired from Twitter.
[00:45:18] Contemplating how the universe works with The One by Heinrich Päs.
[00:47:04] How Ev stocks his reading list arsenal.
[00:50:26] Big thoughts on a Medium regret.
[00:52:47] Resisting the urge to bloat Mozi with superfluous features.
[00:55:40] How Mozi balances privacy with utility.
[00:57:40] Parting thoughts.
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Twitter, Medium and Blogger: Ev Williams
As co-founder of Twitter and founder of Blogger and Medium, Evan Williams literally helped change the conversation: he understood that real-time connectivity—being able to write a post and have people read it seconds later—was the future of engagement online. A Nebraska farm boy who dropped out of college, Ev ran into several business failures before starting Blogger, and—after it sold to Google—launching Twitter with Jack Dorsey and others. Ev also came to learn that he understood product better than people, a trait that would contribute to his eventual ouster as Twitter CEO. After that crushing blow, he returned to his first love by starting Medium, a blogging site for posts that are neither too short or too long.
This episode was produced by Kerry Thompson with music by Ramtin Arablouei. It was edited by Neva Grant. Our audio engineers were Josh Newell and Gilly Moon.
You can follow HIBT on Twitter & Instagram, and email us at hibt@id.wondery.com.
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Recode Decode: Facebook’s former security boss Alex Stamos and Twitter co-founder Ev Williams (Live)
Alex Stamos, the former Chief Security Officer at Facebook, and Ev Williams, the co-founder of Twitter and CEO of Medium, talk with Recode's Kara Swisher in these live interviews from the 2019 Collision conference in Toronto, Canada.
In the Stamos interview: Is Facebook misunderstood?; Stamos’ proposed solutions; legitimate candidates vs. the Russians; how to protect ourselves from all election attackers; the weaponization of Facebook’s products; America’s reluctance to regulate; breaking up Facebook and Google; why big companies need to stop rewarding employees with stock; Stamos’ recommendations for Mark Zuckerberg; and is Facebook actually committed to change?
And in the Williams interview: Why he left the board of Twitter; where social media is right now; why his venture firm Obvious Ventures doesn’t invest in social; its investment in Beyond Meat; Williams’ theories of venture investing; the lack of diversity in what companies get venture funding; how techlash has changed Silicon Valley; the many iterations of Medium; would Williams buy established media companies?; and is he worried about the media?
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Never underestimate your first idea, w/Twitter/Medium's Ev Williams
Never put a limit on your first idea. It could span your entire career. Ev Williams, co-founder of Twitter and Medium (and before that: Blogger), shares what he learned in every iteration of his grand vision to connect the world’s brains. A reminder that passion and perseverance can be paths to scale. Cameos: "grit" expert Angela Duckworth and Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg.
Read Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance by Angela Duckworth
Read a transcript of this interview at: https://mastersofscale.com/ev-williams-never-underestimate-your-first-idea/
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Recode Decode: Ev Williams, Medium CEO
Medium CEO Ev Williams talks with Peter Kafka about founding his third company that makes it easier to "write on the Interwebs," and what makes Medium different from Blogger and Twitter. He also discusses why publishing on anything other than a platform doesn't make sense any more, and offers some insight into why Twitter's board seemingly changed its mind about Jack Dorsey's eligibility to be CEO again..
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