How to hire low experience, high potential people

The page argues that high-growth startups need some low-experience, high-potential people, even if they are harder to evaluate than experienced candidates. It says the goal is to find people who can do novel, difficult work, have enough judgment to avoid destructive mistakes, and will benefit from strong mentorship.

Reading notes

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• Look for candidates whose contribution clearly changed the outcome, with creativity, resourcefulness, and follow-through that mattered beyond the team or circumstances.
• Ask for their best example and use strong qualifiers to test whether their strongest work is actually strong.
• Pay attention to whether they can explain an unconventional path in a coherent way, with specific life choices that suggest originality and a future vision.
• Look for a chip on their shoulder only if it comes with security and optimism, not insecurity or paralysis.
• Value high EQ and persuasion by watching whether they read the room, adapt their language, and handle multiple people well.
• Treat excellence as transferable across domains, and look for past examples of real excellence, not popularity.
• Check whether they understand their own strengths and weaknesses, and whether they have clear spike potential in a role.
• Prefer people who are open to feedback, can disagree and still commit, and respond well in scenarios, group exercises, or role-plays.
• Favor people who do not take themselves too seriously and can laugh at themselves.