Discovering the “third door” led to Andrew Yang’s successful career at Google and Meta. This concept involves finding unconventional paths to achieving your goals and standing out. Yeung used four steps to find her third door and create a successful career in technology and hospitality.
A few years ago, I thought I would have a mediocre career.
School was difficult for me. Mathematics, English, and science were difficult. I didn’t think I was that smart and had below-average grades all the way from middle school to college.
It’s not because I didn’t try. Actually, I worked really hard. My brain couldn’t understand basic STEM concepts. Additionally, I lacked typical traits associated with success, such as charisma, self-confidence, and genius-level intelligence.
No matter how hard I pushed myself, my results were always below average. Sometimes I would study for hours at school and end up getting bad grades. This pattern repeated itself in college, where I spent months applying for jobs with no response.
I realized that something needed to change. If you don’t, you’ll have subpar results for the rest of your life. I had to stop what other people were doing because it wasn’t working for me.
Everything changed for me in 2019 when I came across Alex Banayan’s book ‘The Third Door’. It completely changed the way I did everything and ultimately helped me land leading roles at Google and Meta.
What is the “third door”?
Imagine yourself trying to enter an upscale nightclub. There are three doors: a general entrance that everyone goes through, a second door for VIPs and celebrities, and a third door that no one goes through.
After learning about this idea, I made it a habit to solve every problem by finding a third door.
I have become almost allergic to ignoring common sense and conforming. Every time I see someone doing something a certain way, I try to do it another way, and there’s always an easier, unconventional, non-obvious way to get things done. I was sure.
Here are four things I started doing to increase my chances of building a fulfilling, high-growth career.
1. We started creating magnets to get the attention of decision makers
I always had a hard time getting into a room, whether it was an interview room with a recruiter, a private dinner with an executive, or a boardroom with decision-makers. Getting into that room often required knowing the right people, having a top-notch resume, or having exceptional intelligence or charisma. I wasn’t one of those, so I realized I needed to make the room myself.
Instead of trying to attend a private dinner with the CEO, I hosted the dinner myself.
Instead of standing on a stage and trying to get the attention of business leaders, I created my own stage and invited leaders who wanted to speak with me.
I learned that instead of chasing people, I created something valuable that would grab the attention of the people I wanted to meet.
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2. Began to differentiate by execution speed
Throughout my career, I have used execution speed as a competitive advantage, and it has always paid off.
Replying to her email within 10 seconds landed me an internship with the CEO of a company with over 20,000 employees.
At Facebook and Google, I was the first to make the move and had the opportunity to work on some of the most high-profile projects.
I once introduced someone within a minute of being asked a question. Being faster is the easiest way to differentiate yourself.
3. I started investing in a 10-year relationship when everyone else was focused on transactional relationships
Over the past few years, I’ve interacted with thousands of people and found that most people, especially in fast-paced metropolises like New York and San Francisco, take a short-sighted approach to building relationships. I realized that.
That’s natural. Although there is a high density of remarkable people and seemingly endless relationship options, in reality, this false sense of selectivity can hurt you.
Early in my career, I was rejected by dozens of recruiters. Each time, I graciously accepted the decline, thanked them for their time, and offered to provide value by introducing them to other candidates. In the end, it went back to normal.
I graduated from the University of Toronto with a degree in Finance and Economics. My first job out of school was after being rejected from a corporate internship program. I used this opportunity to develop a relationship with the hiring manager and nurtured that relationship for over a year.
My journey to Facebook began as a cold outreach role, which turned into a mentoring relationship that lasted over three years. What inspired me to join Google was building long-term relationships with people I met spontaneously.
The strongest professional relationships are built when you think about them decades in the future.
4. I started donating without expecting anything in return.
My strategy for accessing job opportunities, CEOs, and influential people has always been to volunteer my time, which is my greatest asset. It was a Trojan horse for me to open doors, build relationships, and access greater opportunities.
In my early 20s, I knew nothing about startups or technology, so I pitched myself to CEOs of early-stage companies and offered them help and suggestions. Eventually some people took me on and that became my way into the tech world as a non-technical person. This approach has helped me build my personal brand as a young, kind and hungry operator.
The third door led me to success.
These four habits will ultimately help you get opportunities, build relationships with prominent technology leaders, and “break into” the tech field without having good grades or a strong resume. Now it looks like this.
In reality, I consider myself to be an ordinary person who is neither particularly talented nor particularly smart in any particular field, but I have discovered that I have a unique unfair advantage. And I’ve managed to achieve some success.
Andrew Yeung is a former Meta and Google employee who currently hosts tech parties through Andrew’s Mixers, runs a tech events company called Fibe, and is an investor in Next Wave NYC.
