Neil Blumenthal

“For better or worse, cash is the oxygen of your business, and you can't last long in any environment without it.”

“Brands are only powerful if they're real and authentic.”

“The key to an ideal workplace, in one hyphenated word, is this: self-awareness.”

“Businesses should focus on solving problems, putting the customer first, delivering value - not gimmicks - and growing in a sustainable manner.”

“Venture capital is an inherently optimistic form of investment - which is both its primary strength and its primary weakness.”

“I wanted to open up a stand to sell dried fruit and beef jerky where we lived in Greenwich Village. I was 8 years old. I had been flipping through TV channels and got mesmerized by this infomercial for a food dehydrator.”

“For any collaboration to work, each partner must have a strong sense of identity. If one overpowers the other, it's like mixing lemonade with water - you wind up diluting the brew.”

“If you peek behind the curtain at any type of company, you'll see that things are far less organized than you'd expect.”

“If you're entitled, you likely think you know more than you do.”

“When we were creating Warby Parker, for us it was about having a positive impact on the world and having a strong social mission.”

“Asking for money can be especially intimidating.”

“Every day, write down a few frustrations. And then at the end of the week, you'll have maybe 10 problems. By the end of the month, maybe you have 40 to 50 problems. And then you can spend time thinking about, Is there a viable business in solving any of these everyday frustrations?”

“It may seem premature, but you need to be thinking of your exit from the moment you accept capital, because at that moment, you've made an explicit agreement with an investor that he or she will eventually be able to gain liquidity.”

“Just as a company needs a strategy to capture market share, a company needs a strategy to encourage actions that reflect their core values.”

“If you don't plan to dive in and dedicate all of your time to your startup, you probably shouldn't be looking for funding. It's hard enough asking for money when you believe in an idea; asking for money to fund something you're iffy about is ten times more strenuous.”

“Be personable to everyone you interact with.”

“In general, obsolete technology is obsolete for a reason. Monocles are no exception.”

“Avoid the 'squeaky wheel gets the grease' habit of overreacting to the loudest feedback. The first time you hear a particular piece of feedback, treat it like a clue and do some investigating. Find out how deep it goes - maybe it stops at the surface and won't be an issue, maybe not.”

“Young people entering the job market seek employment at companies with values that match theirs.”

“The basic idea of a hackathon is to erase all routine obligations for the day so that employees can clear a mental space for creativity.”