Why most founders do fake work
Sam Altman has time and again said that it’s surprisingly common for founders to shy away from challenging decisions, opting instead for “fake work” – tasks that are more enjoyable but less critical to the company’s success.
He even said that Slack creates a lot of fake work, and that he dreads the first and last hour of his day because of it.
Most founders (including me) / ProductGeeks are guilty of this - when you run the treadmill, sweat it out and realise that you haven’t gone anywhere.
In this (<4 minutes) video, I break down a simple venn diagram to help you audit your work - whether it is fake or real and what’s the danger zone.
What we cover:
Why Sam Altman dreads the first and last hour of his day.
The “Slack Trap”: Why internal communication feels like progress (but isn’t).
The Danger Zone: Premature scaling and “Political Theater.”
The 24-Hour Rule: How to filter your tasks for Real Work.
The Bottom Line:
We don’t fail because we are lazy. We fail because we choose comfort over truth.