Don’t Outsource Your Thinking to ChatGPT5
Manage The Managers The Buffett Way. Everything Has A Price .
Happy & Rich — that’s the goal. Every Sunday I share three useful ideas to get us there.
This week:
Don’t Outsource Your Thinking to ChatGPT5
Manage The Managers The Buffett Way
Everything Has A Price
I am a part of Zero1 by Zerodha, a curated network of high quality storytellers that build what this generation needs and not what it needs to be sold. You can also find all past editions here. Also check out my Master of the Deal podcast and the M&A This Week newsletter.
Let’s dive in 👇
(1) Don’t Outsource Your Thinking to ChatGPT5
With ChatGPT 5 out, everyone thinks they can outsource just about everything.
When I look at my work, communication is at the core. And at the heart of that communication is the ability to influence decision makers through the written word. Now that everyone is running their English through AI, it’s imperative that you don’t outsource your thinking.
AI is there to make you better. It’s not there to do all your thinking. You still have to put in the work.
I can spot AI-written emails from a mile away. The tone. The context. The ask. It all smells “artificial.” You have to be different. You have to understand psychology. You have to keep learning. If you just copy-paste from an app, soon you’ll be replaced by the app.
I use AI too. But my first draft always comes through my brain. I think. I write. I read. I process before I run it through any kind of prompt. The goal? To sound like me. To be me. To get the exact response I want from the other end.
Over the past month, I’ve been reaching out to senior decision makers. These are people who run multimillion-dollar businesses. Here’s what happened:
78% open rate on my outreach
23 CXO responses
6 face-to-face calls booked
2 in-person meetings
What’s the game at the most senior level?
First, get their attention. Everyone is getting pitched all the time. I get a dozen messages a day myself. If I responded to them all, I’d waste hours. So I have blinders on. And so do they.
The only way to cut through is to offer something of value that is huge, not incremental. And do it in seconds.
In other words: what can I say in as few words as possible to make them want a face-to-face call with me?
Once you get that call, the game changes. It’s now about building connection and trust fast. They don’t know you. They’ve given you precious time. At this stage, no AI will help you. It’s your ability to influence at a subconscious level while dismantling perhaps years of your competitor’s work. And you may only get one shot.
All of this takes time. Trust takes time. Influence takes persistence. You need a process for the madness.
I start each day by zooming out before I zoom in — looking at a visual chart of which part of the process my team and I are working on before diving in.
Because you can use all the AI in the world, but if you don’t own the thinking, you don’t own the result.
(2) Manage The Managers The Buffett Way
In the 1998 Berkshire Hathaway annual meeting, Warren Buffett said something that should be framed in the office of every owner and manager.
“We may meet with some of our managers annually or semiannually, but we have no formal system whatsoever, and we will never have a formal system. We don’t demand any meetings of our managers. We have no operating plan submitted to headquarters. They are all run by people who have terrific records, and they have different batting styles. We’re not about to tinker with somebody that’s batting .375 just because somebody else holds the bat a little differently or uses a different weight bat. We believe in letting them do, currently and in the future, what has been successful for them in the past. And different people have very different styles. We have managers that like to talk things over, we have other managers that like to go their own way. We have managers that have a by-the-book approach which works well, we have other managers who wouldn’t dream of that. Most managers probably have monthly statements of financials, others don’t. That really isn’t a problem.
“What we want to have is good managers. There’s more than one way to get to business heaven, and we have a number that have found different ways to get there. We have certain requirements because we’re a public company; SEC requirements and IRS coordination. But we’ve never imposed anything from the top on the operating managements. We have MBAs running companies; we have people who never saw a business school. Talent is the scarce commodity, and when you find talent and they’ve got their own way of doing things, we’re delighted to have them do it. We want them to do it their way.”
"Our managers know their businesses and they know how to run them. And if they didn’t, we’d do something about the manager, we wouldn’t try and build a bunch of systems.”
That philosophy is rare today. Many leaders want uniformity. They want one “company way” of doing things. And while systems are important, they can also become cages that suffocate the people you hired for their talent. Provide freedom within a framework. Have systems and accountability but never micromanage.
I own and I manage. And while this isn’t always easy for me because I’m so system-driven, I lean much closer to Buffett’s style than many of my peers. The way I see it, I’m not trying to fit a circle into a square. I’m choosing the people who are also choosing me, so we can achieve a common vision. I’m trying to let each shape excel in its own way because that’s how everyone rises.
(3) Everything Has A Price
Feeling low is the cost of feeling high.
Grief is the cost of love.
Lack of privacy is the cost of fame.
Threats are the cost of fortune.
We often chase the highs — the rewards, the wins, the glory.
But we rarely talk about what they cost — stress, solitude, uncertainty, failure.
No one tells you that building wealth might bring lawsuits.
That leading a team might mean sleepless nights.
That being exceptional might make you misunderstood.
That love might one day break your heart.
There is no free upside. Because everything you want will demand something from you in return.
The question isn’t “What do you want?”
The real question is: “What are you willing to endure?”
👋 I’m Harsh. I build businesses and share useful ideas in pursuit of a rich life - full of good health, rising wealth and loving relationships. Read by 7500+ CXOs every Sunday. If you’re curious about what I’m building, here’s where I spend most of my time:
Ideals VDR - We are the world’s most secure and highest rated Virtual Data Room provider. Used by investment banks and companies to share confidential documents. Here is a short demo.
Happy Ratio - We make healthy, chef-made wraps from fresh ingredients that are gut-friendly, packed with flavor, and never boring. Designed for daily eating, these wraps help you feel full, stay sharp, and save money. Explore our menu and taste the difference.
Marcellus Investment Managers - This is where my personal investments compound quietly and consistently. Their philosophy of investing in clean, honest, cash-rich businesses lets my money grow while I sleep. If you believe in long-term wealth creation without daily noise, explore their MeritorQ and Global Compounders portfolios.
Harsh Batra (Connect with me on LinkedIn)