1% Chance Seekers

Alex Chung shares his perspective on building teams that embrace ambitious goals and impossible challenges. He emphasizes the importance of finding people who see low-probability opportunities as exciting challenges rather than insurmountable obstacles.

• There are two types of people when presented with ambitious goals:

  • Those who immediately say "we can't do that"
  • Those who say "that's crazy, let's figure out how to get there"

• Embrace Low Odds:

  • 1% chances are exciting because they're not obvious
  • High probability ventures are boring and overcrowded
  • The challenge of beating odds motivates the right team

• Startup Team Characteristics:

  • Must embrace small chances of winning
  • Should be excited by being the underdog
  • Need to find ways to compete with giants (like competing with Google with 100 vs 30,000 employees)

• Wrong Team Warning Signs:

  • People who consistently say "we can't do this"
  • Those who avoid challenging the status quo
  • Team members who prefer safety over ambition

• Team Philosophy:

  • "If you give me 1% chance and it's possible, we will figure out a way"
  • People who give up should work at Google or Facebook
  • Success comes from embracing the challenge of being the underdog

• Practical Example:

  • GIPHY competes with Google despite having 100 employees vs Google's 30,000
  • They're winning in their space because they embrace the challenge
  • The team sees the 1% chance and figures out how to make it work