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August 20, 2024 • 0min
#440 – Pieter Levels: Programming, Viral AI Startups, and Digital Nomad Life
Lex Fridman Podcast
Peter Levels (also known as levelsio on Twitter) is a self-taught developer and entrepreneur who has designed, programmed, and launched over 40 startups, many of which have become highly successful. He is known for building and shipping products quickly, often by himself, while living a digital nomad lifestyle. Some of his most well-known projects include Nomad List, Remote OK, and Hoodmaps.
In this conversation with Lex Fridman, Peter discusses his philosophy on building startups, his experiences as a digital nomad, his approach to learning and productivity, and his thoughts on minimalism and automation. He provides insights into his creative process and offers advice for aspiring entrepreneurs.
#440 – Pieter Levels: Programming, Viral AI Startups, and Digital Nomad Life
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Key Takeaways
- Build and ship quickly - Peter advocates for rapidly building prototypes, launching them, and iterating based on user feedback rather than spending too much time planning or perfecting things upfront
- Keep things simple - Peter uses basic tech stacks like PHP, jQuery, and vanilla JavaScript to build products quickly rather than complex frameworks
- Automate as much as possible - Peter tries to automate repetitive tasks and business operations so he can focus on building new things
- Learn by doing - Peter recommends learning new skills by working on real projects rather than just studying theory
- Be open and build in public - Peter shares his work and process openly which helps build an audience and get feedback
- Focus on solving real problems - Look for pain points in your own life or others' lives that could be solved with technology
- Don't be afraid to try many ideas - Peter has launched over 40 startups, with only a few becoming successful. Quantity leads to quality.
- Minimize and simplify your life - Peter advocates for minimalism and getting rid of unnecessary possessions to focus on what's important
- Travel and expose yourself to new experiences - Peter credits his digital nomad lifestyle with exposing him to new ideas and opportunities
Introduction
Peter Levels (also known as levelsio on Twitter) is a self-taught developer and entrepreneur who has designed, programmed, and launched over 40 startups, many of which have become highly successful. He is known for building and shipping products quickly, often by himself, while living a digital nomad lifestyle. Some of his most well-known projects include Nomad List, Remote OK, and Hoodmaps.
In this conversation with Lex Fridman, Peter discusses his philosophy on building startups, his experiences as a digital nomad, his approach to learning and productivity, and his thoughts on minimalism and automation. He provides insights into his creative process and offers advice for aspiring entrepreneurs.
Topics Discussed
Peter's Startup Philosophy (11:38)
Peter explains his approach to building startups, which differs from the typical Silicon Valley model:
- He doesn't raise venture capital funding
- He does everything himself - design, development, marketing, etc.
- He builds and launches products very quickly, often within 2 weeks
- He focuses on validating ideas by getting people to actually pay for products
Peter emphasizes the importance of shipping products quickly to validate ideas: "I need to go fast, I need to make things fast to see even if it works. I have an idea in my mind and I build it, build like a mini startup and I launch it very quickly, within two weeks or so of building it. And I check if there's demand, if people actually sign up, and not just sign up, but if people actually pay money."
Digital Nomad Lifestyle (29:29)
Peter shares his experiences living as a digital nomad, working on his startups while traveling the world:
- He started traveling after feeling stuck and depressed in Holland after university
- Living in places like Thailand allowed him to keep costs low while building his businesses
- The lifestyle can be psychologically challenging, leading to feelings of isolation
- It exposed him to new ideas and ways of living that inspired his projects
On the challenges of the digital nomad lifestyle: "You're alone a lot back then when you travel alone. There was no other digital nomads back then, a lot. So you're in a strange culture. You look different than everybody. I was in Asia. Everybody's really nice in Thailand, but you're not part of the culture. You're traveling around. You're hopping from city to city. You don't have a home anymore."
Building Products and Learning New Skills (42:08)
Peter discusses his approach to building products and learning new skills:
- He focuses on solving real problems he encounters in his own life
- He learns new technologies by building real projects, not just studying
- He's not afraid to use simple technologies like PHP and jQuery
- He builds in public, sharing his process openly on social media
On learning by doing: "I think taking action is the best step to learn. So making things, like, you know nothing, just start making things. Okay, so, like, how to make a website, search how to make a website. Or nowadays you ask, ChatGPT, how do I make a website? Where do I start? It generates code for you, right? Copy the code, put it in a file, save it, open it in Google Chrome or whatever. You have a website and then you start tweaking with it."
Automation and Productivity (2:23:07)
Peter explains his focus on automating as much of his businesses as possible:
- He tries to automate repetitive tasks rather than hiring people
- He uses cron jobs and simple scripts to automate many processes
- He creates "health check" pages to monitor his systems
- Automation allows him to run multiple successful businesses mostly by himself
On the benefits of automation: "I've always tried to automate these things as much as possible. And this can literally be like for Nomad List. It's literally like, it's not different than other startups. It's like a webpage where you can organize your own meetup, set a schedule, a date, whatever. You can see how many nomads will be there at that date. So you know there will be actually enough nomads to meet up, right. And then when it's done, it sends a tweet out on the Nomad List account. There's a meetup here, it sends a direct message to everybody in the city who are there, who are going to be there. And then people show up on a bar and there's a meetup and that's fully automated."
Minimalism and Simplicity (3:24:56)
Peter shares his thoughts on minimalism and simplifying one's life:
- He once reduced his possessions to under 100 items as an experiment
- Minimalism allowed him to travel easily and focus on what's important
- He advocates for simplicity in both life and business
- He believes constraints can boost creativity and productivity
On the benefits of minimalism: "You learn that you can live with very little objects, very little stuff. But there's a counter to it. You lean more on services. Like, for example, you don't need a car, you use Uber, right? Or you don't need kitchen stuff because you go to restaurants when you're traveling. So you lean more on other people's services, but you spend money on that as well."
Advice for Young People (3:50:56)
Peter offers advice for young people looking to follow a similar path:
- Don't be afraid to forge your own path and ignore conventional wisdom
- Travel and expose yourself to new experiences and cultures
- Start building things and putting them out into the world
- Be willing to go "all out" on your passions and interests
His key advice: "I would listen to like, nobody. Just do what you think is good and follow your heart. Right. Like, everybody peer pressures you into doing stuff you don't want to do. And like, they tell you, like parents or family or society and tell you, but like, try your own thing, you know, because it probably, it might work out."
Conclusion
Peter Levels offers a refreshing and unconventional perspective on entrepreneurship, productivity, and living life on one's own terms. His approach of rapidly building and launching products, focusing on solving real problems, and embracing minimalism and automation has allowed him to create multiple successful businesses while maintaining a lifestyle of freedom and travel.
Key themes that emerge from the conversation include the importance of taking action and learning by doing, the value of simplicity and constraints in both technology and life, and the benefits of being open and building in public. Peter's experiences as a digital nomad also highlight both the opportunities and challenges of that lifestyle.
For aspiring entrepreneurs and creators, Peter's story offers inspiration and practical advice on how to forge an unconventional path to success. His emphasis on trying many ideas, not being afraid to fail, and focusing on solving real problems provides a roadmap for those looking to build impactful products and businesses.