My wife and I recently went on a trip to the Serengeti. While there, we came across two lionesses looking to hunt. Several baby giraffes had wandered nearby unaware. Our guide stopped the car so we could witness a chase. But the baby giraffes never got close enough; the lionesses, though alert and watching, took no action. After an hour of waiting, the giraffes walked away and the lionesses sat back down. Nothing happened.
Yet something also did happen. the lionesses chose to do nothing. Lions, like all animals, have a limited reserve of energy. If they deplete that energy giving chase to every marginal opportunity, they will die. So they wait and do nothing until there’s something to do. They strike only when the odds of success are very high, when the “pitch is very fat”.
In Taoist and Zen philosophy, which observes nature, comes the saying “無為而無不為 (Wuwei er wubuwei)“, which translates as “to accomplish everything by doing nothing”. Doing nothing when there is nothing to do is a deliberate choice. It is intentional rather than lazy. It conserves energy and frees space for when an opportunity does come along, instead of depleting energy chasing wasteful things. By waiting and doing nothing, the lionesses ensure their own survival.
This philosophy of “doing nothing” runs in direct opposition to today’s always-on culture, which obsesses over constant activity. This is especially true in the startup world of Silicon Valley, where everybody always appears to be doing something. New founders navigate a labyrinth of endless activity: cofounder dates, speaker panels, accelerators, investor dinners, growth experiments, thought leaderships, and on and on. Activity becomes a marker of progress; busy-ness a sign of success. This leaves founders with little space to contemplate the most important question of all: should this thing be built at this moment in time?
In Peter Thiel’s seminal book Zero to One, he writes: “you should not necessarily start your own company, even if you are extraordinarily talented. If anything, too many people are starting their own companies today. People who understand the power law will hesitate more than others when starting a business…Time follow(s) the power law, and some moments matter far more than others”.
The most important determinant of a startup’s success is timing. Doing the right thing at the right moment. These moments come infrequently. In most other times, it is better to wait, observe, experiment, rather than rush in.
I started Proxima as a venture-funded games company in 2021, alongside a cohort of other very capable gaming founders. The industry’s growth was exploding thanks to the pandemic, and the party seemed to go on forever. The idea of the metaverse was so pervasive that Facebook changed its name to Meta. Every investor wanted a piece of us. In hindsight, 2021 was the last “glory year” of two decades of continuous growth for gaming. Thereafter, the industry collapsed: total industry sales declined for the first time in decades, and tens of thousands of people were laid off.
Most peer game start ups are now dead despite the heroic efforts of their founders. Proxima survived and became profitable, but it was a very difficult journey. The experience left me with a deep appreciation on the importance of building the right thing at the right time. The “wisdom of the crowd” is often wrong; the louder the hype, the more one needs to stay vigilant and think independently. When everyone else is swimming in activity, it is often better to do nothing. It preserves the mindshare, clarity, and energy to do something when it matters.
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In a recent conversation, I asked a friend who worked at a very well-known investment company whether he’s allowed to hold cash and do nothing when the markets are irrationally frothy. The answer was no. They had to stay invested at all times and “beat the market”, and performance is measured on a quarterly basis. It was an extraordinarily stressful job marked by constant activity, partially because markets are often irrational in the short term.
It is curious that this approach is completely antagonistic to the philosophy of the best investors in the world: Buffett and Munger. Charlie Munger in particular emphasizes the importance of doing nothing when there is nothing to be done. In his own words: “We have a passion for just sitting on our asses…We sit there very patiently waiting for something to happen…It takes character to sit there with all that cash and do nothing. I didn’t get to where I am by going after mediocre opportunities”
Warren Buffett shares this sentiment. In his 2025 shareholder meeting, he says: “If you told me that I had to invest $50 billion every year, that would be the dumbest thing in the world. Things get extraordinarily attractive very occasionally…we will be bombarded with offerings that we’ll be glad we have the cash for”
In other words, do nothing until there is something to do.
The sage of Omaha and the sages of Eastern philosophy share the wisdom of “無為”, or in their terms ”sitting on our asses”. By doing nothing, they are also doing something: they are resting, learning, staying present, not chasing what doesn’t make sense, and staying prepared for when opportunity comes. This deliberate strategy of “sitting on our asses” led to the best investing performance of all time.
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The idea that we’re “not going to make it” unless we work with all-consuming intensity is becoming more pervasive in our world today. In my own experience as a founder, I’ve often felt the social pressure that what we’re doing is constantly not enough. That we need to signal constant progress: building new things, hitting milestones, finding new insights. In talking with other founders, this feeling is almost universal. In a culture that values hyper-activity, standing still often feels like moving backwards.
In a recent study, a staggering 72% of founders experienced burnout. In another study of VC-funded founders, 45% rated their mental health as “bad” or “very bad”. 76% had anxiety, 39% had depression. Building a business is a marathon, yet so many founders today are flaming out at the two-mile mark. Relentless (and often manufactured) need for constant activity takes a heavy toll on personal wellbeing.
Within this context, doing nothing is a deliberate decision to push back against the performative acts of hustle culture. It is an acknowledgement of the importance of rest as natural part of healing and sustainability. It enables the runner to finish the marathon and not burn out at the two-mile mark.
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Our society today prizes constant activity. Activity is viewed as a proxy to progress. Inactivity seen as lazy, unproductive, and even wasteful. From my experience, this can’t be further from the truth.
Like the lionesses on the Serengeti or Buffett “sitting on his ass”, doing nothing is an intentional choice. It is an opportunity to rest, think, and wait. To do nothing when there is nothing to be done. By not jumping at every opportunity, not forcing constant activity for the sake of activity, one opens up his presence to the moments that do matter. It’s the often-forgotten art of accomplishing everything by doing nothing.