26

For this week’s newsletter, I decided to share a personal reflection I did last week for my birthday.

I finally turned 26, and it never got any weirder than turning 25. I guess at a certain point getting older and seeing that new number never feels that real.

Last year, I wrote about how I felt time and the divide between people my age was starting to weigh on me. A year later, I still feel a lot of the same feelings

That inherent pressure to figure things out, watching the divide between me and my peers grow larger. If anything, these feelings have only gotten more acute?—?the expectations higher the paths more divergent, the choices more consequential.

But this year brought something different: it was defined by the creation of principles. Ideas that fundamentally changed how I approach what’s next.

So with I decided to reflect on four of these new ideas that shaped my 26th year:

1. Moving Beyond Hope

For years, my vocabulary was filled with hope:

“I hope I get into YC so I can do a startup.”

“I hope this customer buys my product.”

“I hope I get this promotion”

Fuck just relying on “hope.”

Hope without action is just wishful thinking. I’ve learned that waiting for external validation is a form of surrendering control over your own destiny.

The world doesn’t owe us anything.? Not success. Not understanding. Not even a chance.? The only thing we can guarantee is our own determination.

There’s a scene in The Pursuit of Happiness where Chris Gardner tells his son:

“Don’t ever let someone tell you, you can’t do something. Not even me. You got a dream, you got to protect it. People can’t do something themselves, they want to tell you you can’t do it. You want something, go get it. Period.”

Instead of hoping for opportunities, I’ve realized there’s always another move to make.

Another door to knock on. Another angle to try.

When one path is blocked, there’s always a way to inch forward, even if it’s not the way we “hope for.” So now I ask myself: “What can I do today to create my own opportunities? How can I tip the scales in my favor?”

To have people see and support your vision is a blessing. To sit idly and hope they see it is acting a fool.

2. The Beauty of Imperfect Action

Taking action, no matter how imperfect, is one of the most beautiful things you can do in your life. The perfect conditions never arrive, they’re created through action, even imperfect action.

This philosophy permeates throughout my life even with the simplest example.

A couple of weeks ago, a friend took me to the roof of his apartment. I took one step onto that rooftop and told him “dude we need to throw a party up here.”

On paper, everything screamed “bad idea”: No budget No equipment No guaranteed guests Complex logistics Multiple security risks

But this is the problem I have always had. Its like in Inception when Dom Cobb explains how once an idea gets incepted and takes hold then its unshakable.

Once I have a impulse to do something, I need to do it.

So I decided to throw the party.

Obstacles, uncertainties, a dozen reasons to say “maybe later” and all.

Within days, the universe seemed to conspire with the effort. A random group chat led to finding a DJ with speakers. A Partiful invite snowballed into 200 RSVPs. Even a photographer appeared out of nowhere. For 15 glorious minutes, everything came together?—?the crowd, the views, the music, the vibe.

Then security shut it down. Two weeks of planning, countless elevator trips, and only 15 minutes to show for it. Objectively, by most accounts, a failure. But it was 1000% worth it.

We made new friends, learned valuable lessons, and most importantly, created a story worth telling.

To me that itself is good enough to give something a go.

3. The Importance of Keeping the Company of Dreamers

As people get older, their smile slowly starts to fade away.

They lose that curiosity inherent to being a child.

They start to put limits on their own explorations and ambitions.

They stray away from doing to just accepting.

Accepting that certain things will not happen for them.

They stop dreaming.

It’s natural to become more jaded as you become older. It’s why we envy children and those simpler times.

But while we can’t go back to our childhood, we can fiercely protect what makes youth magical: that endless curiosity, that hunger to learn, that refusal to accept the world as it is.

That’s why it’s crucial to surround yourself with dreamers as you start to get older. They’re the ones who never stopped wondering “what if?” They get excited about new technologies, new ideas, new possibilities. It is their energy that will keep lifting you up, those who keep believing in a better future in the face of constant cruelty.

The people who believe in you more than you believe in yourself.? Those who see possibility where others see dead ends.

It reminds me of one of my favorite quotes:

“All men dream; but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds wake to find that it was vanity; But the dreamers of day are dangerous men, that they may act their dreams with open eyes to make it possible.”?—?T.E Lawrence

The dangerous ones are who you want in your corner. The ones who dream with their eyes wide open, who see the world not as it is, but as it could be. They’re the ones whose enthusiasm is contagious, whose curiosity never dulled with age.

They’re the ones who will keep you young in the ways that matter.

4. The Fallacy in a Grand Master Plan

Mike Tyson famously said, “Everyone has a plan till they get punched in the face.”

Initially, this sounds like just another catchy quote about life being unpredictable. But there’s a deeper truth here about the nature of planning itself.

Think about it mathematically: Every decision point in life typically has multiple possible outcomes. If you’re making two sequential decisions with two possible outcomes each, you’re dealing with four possible scenarios.

But plan seven decisions ahead? Now you’re trying to account for 128 different possibilities and that’s being optimistic. Real life has far more variables. No wonder even the most detailed plans crumble at the first punch.

This is why detailed five-year plans often become obstacles rather than roadmaps. They give us the illusion of control while making us less adaptable to reality.

The punch isn’t the exception to the plan. It’s the rule.

Life is a series of unexpected jabs, and the winners aren’t those with the perfect plan, but those who know how to roll with the punches.

Instead, I’ve learned to think of long-term planning differently:

- Keep the destination in mind but stay flexible about the route? - Focus on the next few steps rather than the entire staircase? - Build skills that are valuable across multiple possible futures? - Make decisions that open doors rather than lock you into a single path

Because ultimately, it’s not about avoiding the punch, it’s about being ready to adapt when it comes.

Looking Forward

At 26, I’m not more certain about the future. Far from it in fact. I’ve just become more comfortable with uncertainty.

The pressure to “have it all figured out” hasn’t disappeared, but I’ve learned that nobody really does. We’re all just writing our stories as we go, some of us are just more honest about it than others.

Twenty-five taught me to stop waiting for permission. Twenty-six is teaching me to stop waiting for certainty. The future remains unwritten, and that’s exactly how it should be. I’m optimistic, not because I know things will work out, but because I’m finally comfortable with working things out as they come.

After all, the best stories are the ones you couldn’t have planned.

To taking on 26.

Featured Events

Events that I host, will be at or think might be worthwhile to check out

?? - I plan to be there, feel free to say hi!

?? - I am hosting! Please feel free to swing by!

San Francisco

11/25 - SF Founders Brew Mixer ?? - Register

11/27 - Thanksgiving Founders Dinner at Mission Dolores Manor ?? - Register

11/30 - Founders Running Club :: San Francisco - Register

Toronto

11/26 - Graphite Ventures x CIBC - Technology Market Update - Register

11/27 - Notion Toronto Community Meetup - Holiday 2024 Edition - Register

11/28 - DMZ's Startup Sleigh Day - Register

New York

12/02 - NYC ?? AI Furnace Ugly Sweater Holiday Party - Register

12/03 - Techstars Demo Day Fall 2024 in NYC - Register

12/04 - December [HAPPY HOUR] Edition: Product Leader Holiday Party - Register

Want to see your event here? Is there something going on that I should be highlighting? Feel free to reach out and I would be happy to feature them!

Check out this Podcast Episode!

You can also listen on Spotify, Apple Music, and Google Podcasts

In this episode of Building Blocks, we dive deep with Vijay Koduri, co-founder and CEO of Sizzle.gg, an AI-driven platform revolutionizing gaming highlights and esports content creation.?

From his early days witnessing the birth of the internet to leading marketing at Google Wallet and Adyen, Vijay shares his fascinating journey through tech’s evolution.?

He offers valuable insights on building trust in fintech, leveraging community for growth, and his current mission of transforming how gaming content is created and shared.

Thanks for reading,

Daivik Goel