FIVE MINUTES WITH ...
Scott Walchek is the CEO and founder of Trōv . The San Francisco-based technology company develops APIs and software that enable insurtechs to increase recurring revenue . We talk books , childhood heroes and future goals with Walchek as he looks back over 2020 and 2021
CEO AND FOUNDER
Q . WHO WAS YOUR CHILDHOOD HERO AND WHY ?
» I suppose , like most kids who grew up on 60s TV shows , I loved superheroes and spent countless hours watching Superman , Batman , and Will Robinson on Lost in Space . Can ’ t say I aspired to be like them , but their stories surely resonated with a deep thrum of justice in me .
Q . WHAT ' S THE BEST PIECE OF ADVICE YOU EVER RECEIVED ?
» “ Don ’ t be clever . You ’ re not God .” ( King Solomon )
This piece of advice ( which stems from Eugene Peterson ’ s interpretation of Proverbs 21 verses 30 and 31 : “ Nothing clever , nothing conceived , nothing contrived , can get the better of GOD . Do your best , prepare for the worst — then trust God to bring victory ”) has provided a powerful guardrail for me , especially when I get all spun-up trying to outwit , outmanoeuvre , and cleverly ‘ work the angles ’ to achieve what I perceive is best for me .
In “ Road to Character ”, author David Brooks – one of our generation ’ s most prominent moral thinkers , details what he calls “ the Humility Code ”, a fifteen-point contract with ourselves designed to engender moral clarity on “ what to live for and how to live ”. He writes :
“ The long road to character begins with an accurate understanding of our nature , and the core of that understanding is that we are flawed creatures . We have an innate tendency toward selfishness and overconfidence . We have a tendency to see ourselves as the centre of the universe as if everything revolves around us . We resolve to do one thing but end up doing the opposite . We know what is deep and important in life , but we still pursue the things that are shallow and vain . Furthermore , we overestimate our own strength and rationalise our own failures . We know less than we think we do .”
20 October 2021