There's one Elad Gil. One Tim Ferriss. If 10,000 people try, perhaps one of them could roughly replicate Tim's success. Personal moats are great. And incredibly tough to build.
I prefer advice that is actionable, and can bring results for most people following that advice. This one is not advice, it is wishful thinking.
Sorry to rock the party, but that's my view.
But... I think there is some value in a slightly different take on the subject: develop a reputation for excellence in X. What that "X" actually is can be almost anything people and companies value: it can be a specific technology ("That guy/gal is an Oracle guru"), a subject matter ("If you want the expert on security, talk to Alice!") or an individual trait ("He is the most responsive person I know!"). I think this type of advice, while not foolproof (being known as the go to person for something doesn't mean other people can't achieve it as well), is something that is actionable for most people.
As a consultant my personal moat is a blend of my experience and current relevant knowledge. My 20 years in IT combined with my and MBA & my deep knowledge of cloud architectures is my moat. Previously it was my 15 years experience and my deep knowledge in automation.
What makes my moat changes over time, and if I stop learning new things my moat will vanish.
Somehow, there is very little importance given to values in all these posts. What really matters in the world ultimately is what you value, your integrity for example. That's something you can't earn overnight, and for sure compounds like crazy over time. Integrity is also not a standalone unit of growth. It is a function of hard work, discipline and sheer will power. It takes a lot of guts to not veer off into the grey areas or to not stick to your words.
So, IMO, while skills based moats are extremely valuable - like for all the examples cited, character/quality based moats shouldn't be overlooked. Perhaps they go hand in hand.
I agree with you, this isn’t a helpful or useful article.
Talent stacks are valuable.
Could have talked about more obscure people who have an interesting resume.
Fixed it.
And yet, a moat is so much less than specialization. A moat is a blog! A moat is a following! A moat can be pure reputation, apparently.
Maybe only one person as big as him, but in the niches related to marketing, "growth hacking" and coaching, there are literally thousands of people out there that have built such a person cult around them and are making a very good living out of it.