Who is Naval Ravikant, and 10 things he said about the way of living

Naval Ravikant is a name synonymous with innovation, entrepreneurship, and investment success in Silicon Valley. As one of the most influential angel investors of his generation, he has been involved in some of the biggest tech companies in the world, including Twitter, Uber, and Ethereum.

The 49-year-old is also known for his profound philosophical insights on wealth, happiness, and living a meaningful life, making him a unique figure who bridges the worlds of finance, technology, and personal growth.

Born in India, Ravikant immigrated to the United States at a young age. He grew up in a lower-middle-class family, which taught him the value of hard work and self-reliance. His early interest in reading and self-education helped shape his worldview. After studying computer science at Dartmouth College, he ventured into the tech industry, where his journey was far from smooth. His first company, Epinions, faced litigation and challenges before merging with Dealtime to form Shopping.com, which eventually went public.

ALSO READ| ‘I do near-death exercises’: Indian-origin entrepreneur Naval Ravikant opens up about life, work with BeerBiceps

Ravikant’s philosophy on life and wealth goes beyond just financial success. He advocates for a deeper, more meaningful approach to wealth creation and personal fulfilment.

Here are 10 principles of Naval Ravikant that can shape anyone’s life:

• “Wealth is having assets that earn while you sleep. Money is how we transfer time and wealth,” so don’t chase money, build wealth. Ravikant encourages building systems that work for you, allowing you to create lasting wealth that grows even when you’re not actively working.
• “You’re not going to get rich renting out your time. You must own equity – a piece of a business – to gain your financial freedom.” Trading time for money won’t lead to true wealth.
• “Learn to sell. Learn to build. If you can do both, you will be unstoppable.”
• Ravikant advises, “Play long-term games with long-term people”, not just quick wins. Success is a product of consistent effort over time.
• The Indian-American entrepreneur believes in “packaging your knowledge into a product that can be sold repeatedly.” This allows you to leverage your skills in a way that can generate ongoing income.
• “The internet has massively broadened the possible space of careers. Most people haven’t figured this out yet.” With the internet, the potential for career paths has expanded exponentially.
• Creating software or media that works for you while you sleep is a form of leverage that can scale infinitely without requiring your constant attention. “Code and media are permissionless leverage. They’re the leverage behind the newly rich,” he said.
• You don’t need to be a technical genius to build wealth, “If you can’t code, write books and blogs, record videos and podcasts.”
• “Set and enforce an aspirational personal hourly rate. If fixing a problem will save less than your hourly rate, ignore it,” he suggested. Like RavikantNaval sets his own hourly rate at $5,000 and delegates or automates anything that falls below it.
• “Study microeconomics, game theory, psychology, persuasion, ethics, mathematics, and computers,” he suggested.

ALSO READ| Who are Menendez brothers? Why are they back in focus over 1989 murder case?

Ranbeer Allahbadia, aka YouTuber BeerBiceps, described Ravikant, “A true game-changer in the world of self-growth, Naval is the man behind the mindset shifts of millions, including mine.” {These principles are initially flagged by Matt Gray, founder and CEO of Founder OS}