I kind of think of engineering like the chefs at a restaurant. Nobody’s going to deny chefs are integrally important, but there’s also so many other people who contribute to a great meal.
BEN SILBERMANNI kind of think of engineering like the chefs at a restaurant. Nobody’s going to deny chefs are integrally important, but there’s also so many other people who contribute to a great meal.
BEN SILBERMANNI thought Google was the coolest place. People there were so smart and they were all doing these really interesting things. I just felt really lucky to be a part of it even in a small way.
BEN SILBERMANNThe companies that I really admire the most are the ones that have a deep visceral understanding of why people use their service, and they figure out ways of making money that are completely consistent with how people are feeling and what they are doing at the time.
BEN SILBERMANNWe’re trying to do something so that when the average person uses Pinterest, it has to make the service better.
BEN SILBERMANNAs a kid, I always idolized entrepreneurs. I thought they were cool people in the way that I thought basketball players were cool people. It’s cool that some people get paid to dunk basketballs, but I’m not one of those people.
BEN SILBERMANNWe want the average person to use it and think that it makes the experience of using Pinterest better.
BEN SILBERMANNI think the thing that I’ve learned is that really great people, they actually want to work on hard problems.
BEN SILBERMANNMost people generalize whatever they did, and say that was the strategy that made it work.
BEN SILBERMANNPeople say doing a startup is like a marathon. It’s actually a roadtrip at night with no headlights.
BEN SILBERMANNWhat you collect says so much about who you are.
BEN SILBERMANNI was obsessed with this idea that these things that you collect, they just say so much about who you are. I can’t say it came from hard-nosed business analysis… It was just something I really want to see built.
BEN SILBERMANNIf Google teaches you anything, it’s that small ideas can be big.
BEN SILBERMANNThere’s a lot of pressure to look like the last company that was successful.
BEN SILBERMANNI look around my neighborhood, and I see people hailing a cab or ordering their food and then paying for it all with their phone. I’ve read about that stuff for a really long time, and now it’s starting to become commonplace.
BEN SILBERMANNI used to wake up and look at our analytics and think, “What if yesterday was the last day anyone used Pinterest?” Like, everyone collectively decided, “We’re done!” Over time I got more confidence.
BEN SILBERMANNYou think you’re going to Toledo but you’re actually going to Miami and you might not have enough gas so you might need to buy gas from someone who might take you out if you aren’t driving well
BEN SILBERMANN