How Hubspot became a $28BN company: Leadership insights from Co-founder Brian Halligan

I think it was Louis Pasteur who said luck favors the prepared and if I were to do sort of a correlation of prepared versus luck, their high R-squared on that is quite high. So I’ve always been overprepared for everything. – Brian Halligan

Brian Halligan, Co-Founder and Executive Chairperson of HubSpot, shares his experiences from leading a startup to becoming a $28 billion public company. He discusses the importance of preparedness, the value of joining scale-ups, and the pursuit of happiness over material possessions.

Table of Contents

1. The Power of Preparedness
2. Advantages of Joining Scale-ups
3. Learning from Experience
4. Pursuing Happiness Over Achievements
5. Constantly Reassessing Roles
6. Choosing Future Growth Over Immediate Pay
7. Value of Convenience
8. Evolving Leadership Styles
9. Recognizing Different Stages in Company Building
10. Embracing Individuality in Hiring

The Power of Preparedness

Preparedness often leads to being in the right place at the right time for luck to take effect.

This was evident in Halligan’s career trajectory as he landed his first job with a fast-growing company due to being well-prepared.

Advantages of Joining Scale-ups

Joining a rapidly growing company or ‘scale-up’ can provide invaluable experience and exposure to various aspects of running a business.

This can be an advantageous step before venturing into starting one’s own business.