it's taken san francisco 20 years to build a single bus lane
but many incredible things get built surprisingly quickly
stripe's founder patrick collison wrote an article highlighting 9:
ipod
went from hiring a product manager to launch in ~290 days for a product that reached 1 billion people
look at the timeline:
• jan: tony fadell hired to lead the project
• mar: steve jobs gives it the green light
• oct: product announced
• nov: delivered to users
apollo 8
nasa decided it wanted to go to the moon on august 9, 1968
134 days later, apollo 8 was launched
it landed on the moon on december 27, 1968
the new york city subway
the first version of the subway — with 28 stations — was built in 4.7 years ending in 1904
recently, it took NYC 17 years to open 3 stations…
javascript
yes, the coding language
brendan eich created and implemented the first prototype in 10 days back in 1995
today it’s the third most common programming language in the world
the eiffel tower
completed in 1889, the Eiffel Tower became the tallest building in the world
it took just 2 years and 2 months to build
p-80 shooting star
the first fighter jet used by the US air force was designed, built, and delivered in 143 days
disneyland
in 366 days disneyland was created to fill 160 acres
that's an incredible pace — just over 2 days per acre!
shenzhen
the chinese city grew from 4.4 million residents to 5.4 million in just one year (1998-1999)
how?
it was declared a special economic zone, opening the city to foreign investment and technology
tgv — france’s intercity, high-speed train system
the first line went live in 1981 after only 5 years
for context, california announced a similar system in 1996 and it is currently expecting its first line online in 2033
the entire article is here and has even more examples
it’s one of my favorites to read when i need a reminder of what’s possible:
patrickcollison.com/fast
if you're interested in growing your startup fast then apply to @launchhouse
we're a community of vc-backed builders with:
• cohort-based courses
• coliving retreats
• peer groups led by coaches
• fundraising support
• and more
apply 👇
launchhouse.com/
and if you enjoyed this thread:
1. follow @callmehouck for weekly threads on building startups
2. try my new free newsletter to become a more effective founder
getrevue.co/profile/houck