Noah Wertim

A resume shows where someone is. It does not show how fast they are moving.

I have hired two kinds of people. The first had an impressive track record at well-known companies and a portfolio of finished work. The second had a less impressive resume but had clearly taught themselves something hard in the last 12 months.

The second kind almost always outperformed. Not because they were smarter, but because they were actively in the middle of getting better at something, and that momentum carried into the work.

The trap is that intercept is easy to measure and slope is not. You can read a resume. You cannot read trajectory. The only way to see slope is to ask what someone has learned recently, how they learned it, and what they got wrong along the way.

For me, I finish the tasks I didn t complete during the week, then try to get ahead on a few things.

And I always finish my weekend by preparing my tasks for the next week.

I know some founders completely disconnect on weekends, but I ve never really managed to do that

What about you? Do you work on weekends or completely switch off?

I started rock climbing in January. Not for networking. Not for "balance." Just because I wanted something that had nothing to do with building.

It turned out to be the best product decision I've made all year.

Not because I met someone who helped me. Not because I had a great idea while climbing. But because for two hours, three times a week, I completely stop thinking about my product. I can't check my phone. I can't refresh analytics. I can't spiral about churn. I'm just trying to not fall off a wall.

When I come back to my desk, I'm different. Less frantic. More clear. Problems that felt impossible at 9am sometimes solve themselves by 9pm, not because I worked harder, but because I stopped working at all for a while.