Success Of A New Idea Depends On...: Netflix Co-founder Advice On Looking Beyond Perfection

Looking back on his time at Netflix, Randolph confessed that he once fixated on every minute detail—down to each word of copy and every paragraph in customer-facing products

Netflix co-founder Marc Randolph has recently talked about the common belief that most people have that hard work guarantees success. “The idea that hard work leads to success is a myth,” Randolph said. Instead, he stressed that success often lies in strategically choosing which problems to address first.

In a recent episode of the podcast ‘The Diary of a CEO with Steven Bartlett,’ Randolph highlighted that the true differentiator for successful CEOs and entrepreneurs is their skill in prioritising effectively rather than the sheer volume of effort they invest.

“If I can be really smart about which problems I choose to focus on, that will make the difference,” he said. Randolph underscored that not every task or decision is equally important, and identifying and addressing the few that genuinely matter drives success.

Looking back on his time at Netflix, Randolph confessed that he once fixated on every minute detail—down to each word of copy and every paragraph in customer-facing products. He initially believed that perfecting every aspect before it reached customers was crucial. However, he soon recognised that the success of a new idea depended less on perfection and more on quickly gathering real-life feedback, even if the concept was still in its early stages.

“If it had even an inkling of being a good idea, no matter how bad the test was, it shone through. Customers would immediately perk their heads up,” he said.

Randolph acknowledged that putting in long hours might be necessary at the start of a career or when launching a new company, but he stressed that this approach shouldn't be a long-term strategy. “When you’re younger, when you don’t really know what you’re doing, you must work hard. Ideally, you get yourself far enough ahead to get some breathing room,” he added.

He highlighted that working at full speed continuously eventually leads to diminishing returns. “So many entrepreneurs (are) up all night polishing their deck. Double-checking every detail (and working) so hard. But you don’t lose the deal at 2 o’clock that morning because you didn’t check the fonts. You lost the deal four weeks ago when you didn’t have some fundamentals right,” he noted.