How to Succeed: My Work in Progress Theory

#90 Angelinvesting.it - From idea to Series A - Weekly Newsletter

Dear Reader,

This isn't about a self-proclaimed guru's recipe for success. It's my work-in-progress theory on achieving goals. Take it for what it is, a theory I am daily trying to apply.

Spoiler alert, the keyword here is reputation.

"Your reputation is like a shadow. It can loom larger than you, or shrink away."

At Italian Tech Week, amid the buzz of conversations, an elegant gentleman in a pinstriped suit approached me - a stark contrast to the tech-casual crowd.

He leaned in close: "I supplied your father's company. When he heard my second child was on the way, he cleared all our outstanding invoices." His eyes lit up: "Your father was a force of nature."

This chance encounter lingered in my thoughts, a testament to how my father's reputation outlives him. What struck me most? This man remembered not my father's words, but his actions.

It's our deeds, not our rhetoric, that forge our reputation.

I see this truth with my daughters. While I ponder the right words to guide them, I realize it's my actions they'll truly absorb and emulate.

If actions sculpt our reputation, it's integrity that guides these actions. Not some lofty, abstract, moral-pregnant concept, but integrity in its Latin root - "unicum." The seamless unity of proclaimed goals, genuine aspirations, and the unwavering consistency of our efforts to achieve them.

My theory distilled: integrity steers actions, actions craft reputation, and reputation unlocks success. In three decades, I hope to look back and see this theory validated by life itself.

Have a great weekend (I am in Florence today!)

Simone