Live by a Principle, Not a Goal, and Leave Room for Luck
Investor Patrick O'Shaughnessy says goals narrow your view, while a principle tells you how to spend your time and leaves you open to surprise.
David Senra · My Conversation With Patrick O'Shaughnessy, Founder of Colossus & Positive Sum | David SenraPatrick O'Shaughnessy, an investor and founder of the media company Colossus, was asked in a conversation with David Senra, a fellow podcaster who studies founders, whether he was chasing something. He answered plainly, "I'm not a goals person."
His most read essay, he said, was called "The Growth Without Goals." He said he keeps no "long-term goals or short-term goals," and he does not have what he called a big, hairy, audacious goal. O'Shaughnessy added, "some people are goal-oriented and that's awesome," but it is not him.
What he recommends instead comes from a talk called "Inventing on Principle" by Bret Victor, a computer scientist. O'Shaughnessy summed up the message this way: "find a principle. Don't necessarily have a goal, but find a principle."
Victor's own principle, O'Shaughnessy said, was that people who make things on computers should get instant feedback, the way a painter sees paint hit the canvas. In computing, you write code, wait to compile it, and only later see the result, and Victor wanted to collapse that gap.
O'Shaughnessy's principle, which he said took him a decade to put into words, is to act when he spots talent nobody else has noticed yet. That means getting to know the person, learning from them, and introducing them to others, with no need to get anything back. He said, "you've found your principle when it starts informing literally every decision you make every day with your time."
On his team of about 16 people at the time, in late 2025, he said he thought the same way, asking who he could bring in and help make their career explode. The same test applied to investing and friendship.
He distrusts goals, he said, because very talented people tend to achieve them. Set one and you know the road ahead, so you put on blinders. Everything that ever worked for him, he said, came from the periphery and "came out of left field," including the text from his friend Sam Hinckley that first pointed him to Senra when he was not looking for anyone to promote.
For people searching for their own principle, he suggested a test he described as red light, green light with your principle. Try a direction, and treat feeling more present and alive as a green light that you are on the right path. He said people can call to mind moments when they felt most alive and use those moments as signposts.
Questions people ask
Who is Bret Victor?
Bret Victor is a computer scientist who gave a talk called Inventing on Principle. His principle was that digital creators should get instant feedback while they work, the way a painter sees paint hit the canvas. O'Shaughnessy recommends the talk as a model for finding a principle to work from.
How do you actually find your own principle?
O'Shaughnessy said it took him a decade, so he advises not to expect an answer in an hour. Look for what repeatedly makes you feel most alive and present, and notice what you feel obligated to champion. When an idea starts guiding daily choices about time, you are close.
Does living without goals mean you stop planning?
No. In the December 2025 interview, he described hiring, investing, building, and choosing how to spend each day through his principle rather than a finish line. He said some people thrive on goals, and that is fine. His objection was that a fixed target can close you off to better opportunities.