Sam Szuchan

Founder @ Soleo. LinkedIn strategy for industry leaders. Clients work w/ Apple, Amazon, Google + published in FT, Bloomberg, etc.

Creator of influence. Nice things folks have said about me:

"Recently, a lot of Sam's posts have been taking off. Last week, he helped me reach 400K+ enterprise professionals with a single post. A third of them from companies with 10,000+ employees. When recruiting teams start sharing your content internally, you know you're doing something right."
—Very major recruiting tech CEO

"Each time that I post [a post Sam made], 100+ people enroll in a course that changes their lives, and my business does twelve or thirteen grand in revenue in that day. A total win-win."
—B2B educator you 100% definitely follow

"Sam helped me clarify my goals and think strategically to reach 150K people in my target demographic – largely founders, CEOs, and senior execs. Prospects frequently mention my LinkedIn content."
—CEO of very cool agency working with Google and many other big tech co's!

"Sam's ability to understand who you are and become an extension of you online is second to none. He provides strategic direction, insightful research, and a relentless desire to bring your strengths and knowledge to light."
—Forbes 30u30 founder who basically invented consumer-facing recruiting tech

You have probably read a few dozen posts I've written without realizing it. Thanks for stopping by :)

Founder

Formerly Saga. Leveraging the world's largest B2B platform to create overwhelming lead pipelines for B2B firms.

"As long as the history books get it right, take some pride in letting the newspapers get it wrong."

Sam Altman wrote that in 2020. A year earlier, he walked away from Y Combinator's presidency to bet everything on OpenAI. 

Everyone thought he was insane.

YC was the most powerful platform in startup land. Direct access to hundreds of founders per year. The ability to shape how an entire generation thinks about building companies. A reputation machine that had already minted Airbnb, Dropbox, and Stripe.

Remember, this was 2019 - way before OpenAI’s rise. He left YC for (what was then) a nonprofit-controlled AI lab that still looked more like a research shop than a product company.

Looking back, EVERY move he made throughout his career was the maximum leverage option available to build influence, way before anyone realized:

- Chose computer science at Stanford in the early 2000s when finance was the prestige path
- Dropped out to do YC and build Loopt when he could have gone straight to Google or Facebook
- After Loopt, launched Hydrazine Capital to invest in YC companies, making himself essential infrastructure for the next generation of founders
- Became YC president at 28 and turned it into a distribution network across hundreds of startups
- Left YC to become CEO of OpenAI's new "capped-profit" structure

Throughout his entire career, he's been 5-10 years early on the most influential position possible. It's happened too many times to be a coincidence.

His pattern works because he understands how influence compounds. Every YC batch, he met dozens of founders at their most malleable stage.

He saw the raw decks, the dysfunctional teams, the early flashes of product-market fit. Some became Instacart, DoorDash, and Coinbase.

Each founder he helped became a future allocator of equity, attention, and introductions.

Their founders remembered who took them seriously when they were pitching half-finished slides.

"The question isn't 'How do I stop caring what people think?'" Altman wrote. "It's 'Whose opinions should I care about and on what timescale?'"

November 2023 proved the pattern works. When OpenAI's board tried to oust him, hundreds of employees threatened to walk. Microsoft made it clear the partnership was with Altman, not the corporate shell.

He didn’t survive through maneuvering.

He survived because of the protective layer of influence he built.

Because influence isn't a cooler job title—

It's pure leverage.

It's a 15-year bet on who and what matters later, and how you can own it before anyone realizes it’s the next big thing.

“The newspapers will get it wrong. The history books will get it right.”

That's the bet he's made his entire career - and he's making it again.

What could you build by choosing history books over newspapers?

P.S. Full breakdown of Altman's 15-year playbook in the comments

Sam Altman Chose Influence Over Billions (And Got Both)

Asim Khaliq

7 Successful Exits | 25+ yrs of Experience | Transforming Business Consultants into Brand Leaders | CMO & Brand Strategist | Generated $800M+ in E-Commerce Revenue

Follow Me for Daily Tips on Business, E-Commerce, Marketing & Growth.

About Me:

Consultant , Coach, Entrepreneur, and Content Creator.

I founded my first company when I was 22 years old.

Over the last 27 years, I've built 7 businesses, generating more than $800 million in revenue for myself and my clients. 

I have helped 100s of businesses in 30+ countries with scaling, growing and hiring people.

With a career spanning over two decades, I’ve worked with startups, growth-stage businesses, and established brands to help them define who they are, build what matters, and scale what works.

Areas of Focus

E-Commerce & Business Strategy:

↳ Positioning new businesses for meaningful market entry
↳ Rebranding and repositioning for mature businesses
↳ Structuring offers, funnels, and monetization models
↳ Building execution systems for product, marketing, and operations

Entrepreneur Coaching & Advisory:

↳ Working 1-on-1 with aspiring founders and professionals
↳ Guiding startup leaders through launch, traction, and scale
↳ Mentoring eCommerce teams in high-growth environments

Leadership & Team Building:

↳ Strategies for leading with purpose.
↳ Building teams that drive growth and innovation.

Organizational Growth:

↳ Developing branding and marketing strategies to fuel growth.
↳ Consulting on e-commerce growth, from 7-figure to 9-figure revenue.
↳ Scaling businesses through effective growth marketing and processes.

Key Highlights:

↳ Founded and scaled 7 businesses from scratch.
↳ Generated $800M+ in revenue for myself and clients.
↳ Developed systems and processes that help organizations thrive.
↳ Hired and managed thousands of employees across 30+ countries.
↳ Helped over 100 businesses build teams, develop strategies, and scale globally.
↳ Led the growth of e-commerce companies from 7-figure to 9-figure revenues.

Industry Expertise

Fashion & Apparel, Beauty, Consumer Goods, Hair Care, Nutrition, Furniture, Food, Technology, Home & Kitchens, Jewelry, Real Estate, Online Education, Accounting & HR

My Approach:

I’ve lived every stage of the business lifecycle.

From launching ideas to building brands, from hiring globally to fixing what’s broken, my work is grounded in hands-on experience, deep strategic thinking, and a passion for building what matters.

My coaching and consulting is rooted in practical experience, not just theory.

Let’s Connect:

Whether you're launching your first product, growing your team, or preparing to scale

Let’s talk. (DM me if you want to grow your brand, business, or revenue.)

Best regards

Asim Khaliq

Member Board of Directors

I Almost Quit:

(And every time, right before the breakthrough.)

What I learned the hard way is simple:

Success doesn’t reward talent first.

It rewards endurance.

Here’s the real problem we don’t talk about:

We give up too early, right before momentum kicks in.
W
→ Failures blur our sense of direction
→ Delays convince us we’re not capable
→ Setbacks feel personal, not situational
→ We mistake slow progress for no progress

Therefore, train yourself to try “one more time”:

→ Break the challenge into one small next step.
→ Create routines that move you even when motivation is low
→ Replace “Why isn’t it working?” with “What can I improve today?”
→ Build patience like a muscle instead of expecting instant results

Trying one more time compounds into outcomes others call “luck.”

→ You develop grit, the real competitive advantage
→ You eventually arrive where most people quit
→ You break limits you once believed were permanent
→ You start seeing progress where others see problems

Here’s what I remind myself today:

Your life doesn’t change when you achieve something.

It changes when you refuse to stop trying.

So, the next time you feel like giving up, pause and ask:

“What if the breakthrough is one attempt away?”

Because most of the time… it is.

Like and Repost this to help others.

Follow Asim Khaliq for more business insights and growth.

Business Growth Coach & eCommerce Consultant | Top 3 Marketing Leader in Canada | 25+ Years Building & Scaling Businesses | 7x Founder | Generated $800M+ in E-Commerce

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The Battle

Sam Szuchan

Asim Khaliq

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Performance ScoreSam Szuchan's LinkedIn Performance

Performance ScoreAsim Khaliq's LinkedIn Performance

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taplio

The Battle

Sam Szuchan

Asim Khaliq

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Sam Szuchan's LinkedIn Performance

Performance ScoreAsim Khaliq's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

Performance ScoreSam Szuchan's LinkedIn Performance