A Lucky HackPrinceton 2022

I am SO thankful to have delivered a keynote at Princeton University on the same day my name was being unveiled at my alma mater in Dartmouth Hall — one of the most iconic buildings on campus following extensive renovations made possible by the largest alumnae-led fundraising effort in the College’s history.?The ceremony in Hanover, New Hampshire was part of A Celebration of Women: 50 Years of Coeducation at Dartmouth.??

Below is the keynote I delivered at HackPrinceton, Princeton University’s bi-annual hackathon.?Over 200 hackers participated in 36 hours of coding, learning, and collaborating over the weekend of 11 November 2022.

Welcome to HackPrinceton! (Co-Chaired by Alison Lee )

This is my second visit to Princeton.?My first visit was in 2017 for the 17th annual Ivy Leadership Summit.?I LOVE the beautiful campus, so thank you all for bringing me back to speak with you about entrepreneurship and technology – Two areas I’ve worked in and written about over the past decade, since I served as an Assistant Director at the Tuck School of Business.??

I am Lisa Chau, a Dartmouth College graduate who has been published over 130 times in Forbes, Buzzfeed, Thrive Global, US News & World Report, as well as Huffington Post on TABLES: Technology – Academia – Business – Leadership – Entrepreneurship – Strategy.?In the past, I’ve been a SXSW mentor, Ted-Ed lesson creator, and featured guest on NPR.??

I’ve also attended at least 20 hackathons, and I’ve judged pitch competitions.?Most recently, I participated in my first Cornell Tech Crit, a mainstay of their Studio program which allows faculty and practitioners, who have extensive industry and entrepreneurial experience, to advise and help improve students’ work.

That’s my story.?Now, I’ll tell you a story about a much more famous person, Michael Lewis, Princeton Class of 1982 –?

Here, he studied art history... Okay, stay with me -- This story is actually related to your tech ambitions!?Or any ambition.?When Michael went to his thesis defense, he expected to be told how well-written his thesis was.?Instead, he was told about his writing, “Never try to make a living at it.”

One of my favorite journalists was told by his Princeton professor never to try making money as a writer.?Today, Michael Lewis is known as the the bestselling author of Liar’s Poker, The Undoing Project, Moneyball, The Blind Side, and The Big Short, among other books.

How did this happen??If he were sharing this stage with me now, what would he say??What would you guess??Listen to his journey –?

One night Michael Lewis was invited to a dinner, where he was seated next to the wife of a big shot at the giant Wall Street investment bank, Salomon Brothers. She more or less forced her husband to give him a job. As an employee, Michael was assigned, almost arbitrarily, to the very best job in which to observe the growing madness in the world of finance – He became the house expert on derivatives.??

He also decided to try his hand at writing again.?This time about Wall Street culture.??

He called up his father, and told his father that he was going to quit this job that promised him millions of dollars to instead write a book for an advance of 40 grand.?

At 28 years old, Michael Lewis’ first book was titled, “Liar’s Poker.”?I loved it.?It sold a million copies. All of a sudden people were telling him he was born to be a writer.?

Again, I’ll ask you, how did this happen??Michael will tell you, there was a theme of luck running through his life –?

What were the odds of him being seated at that dinner next to that Salomon Brothers lady??

Of him landing inside the best Wall Street firm from which to write the story of an age??

Of landing in the seat with the best view of the business??

Of having parents who didn’t disinherit him but instead sighed and said “do it if you must?”?

Even of having been let into Princeton in the first place?

Luck plays an important role in success.?Of course, you need to work hard towards your goals, but you might just need some luck along the way to get to the finish line.

As an American raised to believe in meritocracy, I had to learn this lesson the hard way, over the course of many years.?Just working hard does not guarantee success.?Your chances are much better if you can get some luck on your side.?And yes, you can nudge the odds in your favor by cultivating a supportive community around yourself.

Your attendance here at HackPrinceton is a great step in doing just this.?Sure, you should be completely immersed in hacking during the assigned times, but cultivate your tribe beyond the team you arrived with.?Find new diverse friends, identify potential mentors, and make new meaningful connections.?It will be a MUCH better use of your time than sitting in a room alone mindlessly and passively scrolling through TikTok videos of stupid human tricks.

This hackathon is brimming with lucky opportunities.?Don’t waste it.?Go after it, because you can create a luckier life for yourself.?Ask the hacker here this weekend who flew in from Hungary!?Or the one who flew in from the University of Chicago.

Pre-pandemic, I was going to about three tech events a week to meet people offline.?If I spoke with 12 new people per night and had one solid conversation, I was satisfied even though I knew it still might not lead to anything substantial BUT every so often, someone will genuinely help me – Sometimes without me even asking.?And it makes my trajectory so much better and easier.

I’m not going to lie, creating your own luck in this way is time-consuming and exhausting, but it’s worth the investment.

Other advice I have for cultivating favorable opportunities in your life include:

1. Cultivate intellectual curiosity by constant reading across topics, learning and applying new knowledge.?Being a better thinker will make you a better communicator throughout your network.?Always keep the mindset that you have something to learn from everyone — From toddlers to the most successful CEOs.?There’s always something more to know.

2. Articulate ideas effectively through practice, integration of feedback and reiteration with the evolution of progress.?As I mentioned in Forbes, Tuck School of Business corporate communication professor Paul Argenti states, “You can’t be a great leader if you’re not a great communicator.?You can’t execute it if you can’t communicate it.?It’s that simple.”

3. Nurture purposeful community by connecting with others who will support you in the short and long-term.?This should be a major reason why you are here at HackPrinceton.?Strategically expand your circles but remember that Networking Should Never Be Forced, as I co-authored with Harvard Business Press author & Forbes contributor, Dorie Clark.

4. Add value always by volunteering without the need for instant, or any, reciprocation.?If you add value, your offer to help will rarely be declined.?Use your efforts to open doors.?Money should not be the only form of payment you accept — Access can be much more valuable, and indirectly lead to money in the long-term.

…In closing, I share these words, delivered by Michael Lewis in his Commencement Remarks to?the Princeton Class of 2012:

You are the lucky few. Lucky in your parents, lucky in your country, lucky that a place like Princeton exists that can take in lucky people, introduce them to other lucky people, and increase their chances of becoming even luckier. Lucky that you live in the richest society the world has ever seen, in a time when no one actually expects you to sacrifice your interests to anything.

I, Lisa will also be here tomorrow if anyone would like to speak with me more about technology and entrepreneurship.?You are also welcome to reach out to me on LinkedIn.?

Thank you and –??

GOOD LUCK HACKPRINCETON!?