Hes had a hand in creating an entire string of notable and influential startups.
And thats not even the full resume.
We caught up with Levchin to learn a little about how he works.
I foremost see myself and approach problems as a computer scientist and mathematician.
My view of life is built from first principles.
I was born in Kiev, Ukraine.
Pretty much every person in my family was a scientist.
What apps, software, or tools cant you live without?
If I cant ride my bike, I can run.
Whats your workspace setup like?
At work, I have a standing desk with a big monitor, and headphones are essential.
If I dont have headphones, Id rather have earplugs than nothing.
At home, my kids have taken over my nook, so now I just work from my laptop.
Whats your best time-saving shortcut or life hack?
I tend to come up with precise routines and repeat them obsessively every day.
In perfect detail, every morning at home looks the same.
By cutting out the contemplation of what to do next, I achieve extreme efficiencies.
For example, I know it takes precisely 90 minutes between waking up and getting onto my bike.
I know how to cut that to 75 minutes if needed.
This works with well with anything that doesnt require creativity.
Whats your favorite to-do list manager?
I use Evernote a lot.
It has a good checkbox mode to it.
I dont use it for everything, however.
I start by copying yesterdays list and then add and adjust.
Besides your phone and computer, what gadget cant you live without and why?
I also wear a heart-rate monitor every day and often a bike power meter for my workouts.
What everyday thing are you better at than everyone else?
I can execute almost any recipe with extreme precision.
Im also pretty good at making coffee.
What do you listen to while you work?
It depends on what Im trying to accomplish.
French techno/house, Spanish ska, Argentinian or Brazilian ska or rock, Japanese techno, etc.
What are you currently reading?
I read four to six books a month.
How do you recharge?
What do you do when you want to forget about work?
As I mentioned before, I give a shot to check that my days follow a pattern.
I attempt to get home in time to cook or help prepare dinner for the kids.
Im hopelessly uncreative in the kitchen, but I take instruction well.
Whats your sleep routine like?
Im fortunate that about 10 seconds pass between my head hitting the pillow and falling asleep.
I can fall asleep under any circumstances and have insomnia maybe once every two years.
I often miss takeoff when on airplanes.
I usually get to bed by 10:30 or 11pm.
My goal is to get 7 hours of sleep, but I only need 5.
Fill in the blank: Id love to see _________ answer these same questions.
Hmmm, Ive actually asked a lot of people these types of questions already.
Such as professional cyclists.
Whats the best advice youve ever received?
I dont know, but I think all of it came from my wife.
Have someone you want to see featured, or questions you think we should ask?
