Would be curious to know how he actually evaluates determination when analyzing startups. How can you tell?
It's hard; that's our biggest problem. It's straightforward to tell in a 10 minute conversation how smart someone is, but very hard to tell how determined they are. When we pick wrong it's almost always by misjudging determination.
Whatever qualities the rich may have, they can be acquired by anyone with the tenacity to become rich. The key, I think, is confidence. Confidence and an unshakable belief it can be done and that you are the one to do it.
I think that last part is key. Determined people feel an obligation to succeed. Most feel like the opportunity is theirs to lose and not gain. Here are some behaviours I've noticed when speaking to technical people that I think are determined:
1. They speak calmly -- almost without emotion -- about their plans, even while responding to criticism. I think this is because they've worked out all possible scenarios in their head so many times before that spouting off about them one more time is just rote exercise. It's almost like they're an objective third person describing the plan.
2. They confide in others about their vulnerabilities and weaknesses. I think determined people are just confident enough that they aren't over-confident. Over-confidence is what differentiates a determined winner from a stubborn loser.
3. They never settle when it matters. We all went to school with the guy or girl that scored an A on a test and threw a fit because they wanted an A+. You never get the sense that they're satisfied until the goal is reached. Most people think this is all a show, and that these determined types are rubbing their noses in the average folks faces. That is not the case at all. The average folks don't matter to these people. They never enter the equation.
Other than these 3 things, I'm hard pressed to think of other characteristics. I've seen quiet determined people, loud mouth cocky ones, and everything in between.