Boris is the wise ol’ CEO of TNW who writes a weekly column on everything about being an entrepreneur in tech — from managing stress to embracing awkwardness. You can get his musings straight to your inbox by signing up for his newsletter!

Whenever I have a free moment during weekends, I like to build things. I might make a cutting board out of discarded wood, or a chair, or something else that’s relatively easy to make, considering my limited skill set. It gives me a lot of satisfaction to create something tangible and personal.

But it’s not just the act of creating that I like, I also enjoy learning stuff. There are countless videos of hardcore woodworkers explaining how to use every tool imaginable.

This is especially great since every now and then — while I’m trying to build something new — I can get stuck, not knowing how to proceed.

A particular type of job might be harder than I thought, or I might undertake something that seems extra challenging to do with the tools I have. I’ll find myself using a lot of force, and sweating and cursing out loud because things aren’t going the way I envisioned.

I’ve learned to be aware of those moments and make sure to act on them, rather than just stick to my guns and try to push it through. Why? Because it usually means I’m using the wrong tool, or I’m using the tool wrong.

So as soon as I catch myself cursing under my breath, or I feel like I’m trying to lift something heavier than is good for me, I’ll pause and ask myself a simple question: did someone, somewhere find a more straightforward solution for the problem I’m trying to fix? And surely, 90% of the time, I’ll find exactly that.

Basically, whenever I think, “There must be an easier way to do this,” it turns out there is — and someone else has found it. In fact, it seems arrogant to think you’re the first one trying to do the exact thing you’re doing.

Now, I also try to apply those lessons to my management style and really any other aspect of my life. Not out of laziness, but in search of efficiency (although making it easier sure is a nice bonus for my laziness).

When I’ve struggled with a particular project or business problem, I’ve therefore often found myself in the same situation as with woodworking. There must be a logical conclusion, a more straightforward way, and a better tool to help me reach my goals. When I talk to other entrepreneurs, managers, or artists, it turns out there is.

I won’t deny it’s pretty satisfying to use sandpaper to round the edges of a cutting board you’ve made yourself. But it’s also pretty great to discover that a router exists that does the job better and faster.

P.S. Here’s one of my chairs!

Can’t get enough of Boris? Check out his older stories here , and sign up for TNW’s newsletters here .

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Nextdoor’s CEO proves how kindness makes business sense

Sarah Friar will be joining our flagship online event, TNW2020 , to talk about how the power of kindness can work as a foundation for business. Secure your free ticket here and join us October 1 & 2.

The world of business is often denoted as cut-throat, competitive, and ruthless. And while this may of course be true, there’s also room for kindness — that’s at least what Sarah Friar, the CEO of Nextdoor , believes.

A seasoned CEO — she was previously at Square and Salesforce — Friar is a great believer that profit and kindness aren’t mutually exclusive. In fact, she’s known for offering actionable insights on how monetization can be driven by responsibility and purpose.

Nextdoor is a hyperlocal social networking service for neighborhoods that seeks to bring people and local businesses together.

It monetizes by offering brands, local businesses , and public authorities and governments the opportunity to advertise on its platform so long as they are relevant to each community .

In other words , the message needs to add value to Nextdoor’s members and the platform has a responsibility to ensure its advertisers are vetted to meet these criteria.

“You’ve got to walk the talk, there’s actually no other way to do it. You have to be authentic and genuine,” Friar adds.

Friar really is best placed to chat about how advertising can be used for good (yes, you’ve read that right!) to empower local communities and individuals while also generating revenue — and I look forward to digging deeper into that topic during our discussion at TNW2020 this week.

Personally, I’m also very keen to hear what Friar has to say about the challenges she’s endured in growing a community-driven platform. For example, how can businesses such as Nextdoor deal with the proliferation of racism , or other types, of hate speech ?

In a world so focused on growth — sometimes at all costs — and given the current zeitgeist, I’d say kindness has never been so important.

Don’t miss this refreshing take on how technology can be used for good, to create better, more successful businesses , that actually care about their people and customers.

You’ll walk away with plenty of food for thought, a new perspective on business , and hopefully, an increased interest in using your power for good.

What are you waiting for? Secure your free ticket to TNW2020 now!

Index Ventures launches $2B fund to back tech startups worldwide

Index Ventures, arguably one of the most prominent venture capital funds around, has announced the closure of a $2 billion investment fund .

According to a press release , $1.2 billion will go towards backing growth rounds and the remaining $800 million will be used to support more nascent companies .

Interestingly — and perhaps unsurprisingly given the current climate — the fund will specifically target companies fundamentally changing how we live and work, as well as those providing enterprise infrastructure and AI to underpin these changes.

The news is likely to provide a much needed injection of positivity for founders and entrepreneurs suffering the effects of the coronavirus pandemic .

Jan Hammer, Partner at Index Ventures, said: “ Innovation is often born out of adversity. The path to building a great company is not a straight line, with many obstacles and forks along the way. We take the long view and remain committed to investing in ambitious entrepreneurs at this unprecedented time.”

The fund’s launch comes after several of Index Ventures ’ portfolio companies — including Adyen , Datadog, and Slack — IPO ’ed last year.

Other well known investments include Alan, Collibra, Confluent, Deliveroo , Facebook , Glossier, KRY/LIVI, Notion, Pilot, Revolut , Roblox, Robinhood , and Scale AI .

Several other funds have announced important fundraises in recent months.

Back in February, Atomico, the VC firm set up by Skype ‘s co-founder Niklas Zennstrom closed an additional $820 million fund to back “mission-driven” European tech startups.

Earlier this week, Blossom Capital said it was launching a $5 million angel program targeting European technology startups.