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Jeff Bezos - Regret Minimization Framework

Micky Thompson

563 subscribers • 1 video on Hallway

YouTube
  • Recommended by 5 people: 5 on Hacker News.
  • A classic. People kept recommending it from 2010 to 2020.
  • Presented by Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon
  • An opinion. It argues one side of a question engineers disagree on.

Beginner. No background in the topic needed.

552K views17 years ago5 recommendations

Careers and interviewsHistory and cultureCareer growthStartupsPeople who shaped computing

Jeff Bezos explains the regret minimization framework he used to decide to leave his Wall Street job and start Amazon.

I often share with friends and coworkers that Jeff Bezos Regret Minimization Framework had a great influence on my life and how I make important decisions. After several years of looking, I was able to locate the actual video I watched that had such an influence on my life.

Why it's here

5 people recommend this

What people say. Frequently recommended as a life-changing framework for making difficult career and startup decisions.

hartleybrodyon Hacker News • Recommends

On “Ask HN: Name one idea that changed your life”

Jeff Bezos has a great interview where he talks about his decision to leave his cushy Wall Street job and start a website selling books. He talks about how he used a "regret minimization framework" where he projects himself into the future and imagines which decision he would regret the least. I have used this technique multiple times myself to help with otherwise fraught or overwhelming decisions, and I think it's a great way to shift your frame of reference. Interview where he describes it here: link to this video
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paulsbon Hacker News • Recommends

On “Ask HN: Share encouraging advice”

…ght was going to be a really big deal. I knew that if I failed I wouldn’t regret that, but I knew the one thing I might regret is not ever having tried. I knew that that would haunt me every day, and so when I thought about it that way it was an incredibly easy decision. And I think that’s very good." -- Jeff Bezos, Regret Minimization Framework ( link to this video )…
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ledonon Hacker News • Recommends

On “Smart Things Jeff Bezos Has Said”

Hearing Bezos's regret minimization framework was one of the things that helped to make an easier decision to leave my job to start a company (I left Amazon, ironically). Here is the original video which this quote is taken from: link to this video
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npostolovskion Hacker News • Recommends

On “Ask HN: What should I plan to do on a 6 month sabbatical?”

This question is eerily similar to my current situation: hoping to go on a 6 month sabbatical starting in 2017. My goal is to, basically, work on things that I've always dreamed of doing but haven't pursued because of the demands of everyday life. See Jeff Bezos' regret minimization framework for inspiration: link to this video . Imagine yourself at 80. What would you regret not doing?
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drawkboxon Hacker News • Recommends

On “Ask HN: Do you have the courage to abandon your high paying job?”

…for more volatility if you do. If you do, my recommendation is make good habits early, cut your costs, be disciplined, aim for revenues as early as possible, work hard but work smart, be sure to take time off, and especially enjoy your successes and learn from your failures. Ship on the regular, and if you aren't, kick it in gear to go all in. 1 link to this video…
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webwrighton Hacker News • Mentions

On “Don’t Plan to Get Rich from Your Startup”

I think everyone overestimates their ability to influence the outcome. 85% of venture backed startups are no longer operating in 3 years. Startups are fragile critters, and those 85% presumably were larger high-aptitude and hardworking folk who all THOUGHT they'd at least make it the the "walking dead" group (which presumably makes up most of the remaining 15%). A lottery is probably a bad analogy. It's probably more like a couple of hands of blackjack. I think your first point is the winner. See Bezos' Regret Minimization Framework: link to this video
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newhousebon Hacker News • Mentions

On “Ask HN: anyone leave a high paying job to work at a startup?”

…y from some of the daily pieces of confusion. You know, I left this Wall Street firm in the middle of the year. When you do that, you walk away from your annual bonus. That's the kind of thing that in the short-term can confuse you, but if you think about the long-term then you can really make good life decisions that you won't regret later." See: link to this video A big payout is definitely a large factor in jumping ship if you're arrogant enough to believe that you can attain suc…
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fttechfounderon Hacker News • Mentions

On “I quit my 100k a year job to learn programming from scratch. Ask me anything. ”

…o a question about why I left my job. The question was deleted before I posted my reply below: --------- It came down to asking myself these questions: * Jeff Bezo's Regret Minimization Framework Q: What will I regret when I'm 80 years old? What am I going to regret more: taking a shot at a dream and failing, or never having taken a shot at all? ( link to this video ) A: Taking a shot and failing. * Future Utility Framework Q: What's the realistic best case scenario end game? I.e. If I look at someone who's 15 years ahead of my in the same career path and has done a good job of getting promoted, recognized and rewarded, am I happy doing what he's doing in 15 years? A: No. * Money and risk Q: I'm 25 wit…
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fttechfounderon Hacker News • Mentions

On “What should I do with my life?”

mcbeth, We have a similar background, and in similar situation I left my job to go for it. I'll share my story here: After graduating from university, I joined HSBC's international management program where I worked for 3 and a half years. I was living the dream: getting paid a six figure package, living in a nice house and working decent hours (i.e. I had most evenings and weekends free and about 6 weeks of holiday a year). In a large organization like HSBC, getting work done takes time and a lot of consensus building. Sometimes the pace got frustrating but this was compensated by getting to travel the world. As part of the international management program, I moved to a different country abo…
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eb007on Hacker News • Mentions

On “Ask HN: I’m not cut out to be a programmer. What are my alternatives?”

wow you have lots of good feedback here in this thread... probably still requires you to parse through it all though... i have a feeling though this question has been asked multiple times by different people on HN i'll just add some thoughts (though it will likely be redundant to large degree) because I empathize with anyone who's seeking for guidance on life decisions (I know what it's like) 1) agree that you should think about product management where technical and social skills combined can be powerful but I'd recommend you do (2) below first 2) based on how you've described your state, inclined to agree that you should take a real hard look at what is the source of discontent with your l…
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jnpon Hacker News • Mentions

On “How we convinced angels to invest in our porn startup”

Jeff Bezos' regret minimization framework: link to this video We genuinely wanted to fix the UX problems associated with porn.
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jeyon Hacker News • Mentions

On “Ask HN: Should I quit my job if I am not learning?”

Jeff Bezos had some thoughts on this: link to this video Personally, I think you should get out of there before your brain turns to mush and falls out. Other posters are telling you to instead perceive it as a blessing to work on these things that you find mundane and boring, but I strongly disagree. To quote Paul Graham, "If you're worried that your current job is rotting your brain, it probably is." Don't quit, but start applying/interviewing for a new job. You will need to have a good explanation for why you're looking for a new job so quickly after starting, but that's doable. You're in a pretty strong position if you start interviewing for new jobs before quitting -- at least that makes it clear t…
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drawkboxon Hacker News • Mentions

On “How to Make a Big Decision”

Jeff Bezos "Regret Minimization Framework" 1 A regret minimization framework "I wanted to project myself forward to age 80 and say, 'Okay, now I'm looking back on my life. I want to have minimized the number of regrets I have,'" explains Bezos. "I knew that when I was 80 I was not going to regret having tried this. I was not going to regret trying to participate in this thing called the Internet that I thought was going to be a really big deal. I knew that if I failed I wouldn't regret that, but I knew the one thing I might regret is not ever having tried. I knew that that would haunt me every day, and so, when I thought about it that way it was an incredibly easy decision." 1 link to this video
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esafakon Hacker News • Mentions

On “The Existential Relief of Having Children”

Because I know such people, and it is inconceivable that one would notice one's childless status only before dying. Why does it seem strange to act so as to minimize future regret? That's just common sense. This principle guided Jeff Bezos, for one: link to this video
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