# Dalton & Michael: Why You Shouldn't Copy Your Tech Idols

**Author:** Dalton Caldwell, Michael Seibel
**Type:** Video
**URL:** https://www.ycombinator.com/library/Jw-dalton-michael-why-you-shouldn-t-copy-your-tech-idols
**YouTube ID:** 09mXPGVkfVA

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Is trying to live your life exactly like Elon Musk, Steve Jobs, or Mark Zuckerberg a good strategy? How seriously should
you take advice from famously successful people?

It’s hard not to give advice when you’re successful, but context matters. Is the person giving advice thinking about all
the steps they followed in the early parts of their career, or just what’s possible for them today *because* of those
steps?

For this episode of [Dalton + Michael](https://www.ycombinator.com/library/carousel/Dalton%20&%20Michael), Michael and I
dig into why some advice givers might be tempted to say “Do as I say, not as I *did*” and how we try to avoid doing that
within YC.  

