THE SPEED OF TRUST

/0 Comments/in , , , , , /by

The speed of trust is coined out of Mr. Covey’s experiences he has seen over the years in leadership and while working with companies. It focuses on helping individuals in building and infusing trust in and around them. The Speed of Trust starts off with the “Economies of trust”. The author uses this formula to demonstrate his point: When trust is low, speed goes down and cost goes up; when trust is high, speed goes up and cost goes down. The author equates trust to paying taxes. As a taxpayer, we know a certain amount of money must be paid to IRS annually as a tax but when it comes to trust or lack of trust, we are paying a tax and we may not be aware of it.

 

The other equation the author offers is the product of strategy and execution.

Strategy * Execution = Results

 

But then he goes on to say the product of strategy and Execution and Trust gives Results

(Strategy * Execution)*Trust = Result

 

Trust is a multiplier. You can have a good strategy and a great execution plan but without trust, the project can get derailed. Trust is a key ingredient for all relationships and it’s one of the most powerful forms of motivation and inspiration. People want to be trusted. The author goes further to break down trust into five waves:

 

  1. Self-trust, which deals with confidence we have in ourselves, in our ability to set and achieve goals, keep a commitment, to walk the talk and also with our ability to inspire trust in others; a person who is worthy of trust.
  2. Relationship Trust, which is about how to establish and increase trust with others, to enhance relationships and achieve a better result.
  3. Organizational trust, deals with how leaders can generate trust in all kinds of organizations like businesses, not for profit organizations, etc.
  4. Market trust, is about reputation, whereby everyone clearly understands the impact of trust; and lastly,
  5. Societal Trust is about contribution and focuses on creating value for others and society at large.

                          

The first wave is about the four dimension of credibility. These are the foundational elements that make people believable to themselves and to others. They are: integrity, intent, capabilities, and result.

 

The second wave is about the thirteen different ways leaders behave. Covey believes that these behaviors are common to high trust leaders and individuals worldwide. These enhance one’s ability to establish trust in all relationships. The first five flow from character, the second five flow from competence while the last three are the combination of both character and competence.

 

These 13 behavior characteristics are:

  1. Talk Straight:  Be honest and tell the truth. Let people know where they stand and use simple English while communicating.
  2. Demonstrate Respect: Demonstrate respect, don’t fake caring and don’t attempt to be efficient with people.
  3. Create Transparency:  create transparency by telling the truth, don’t have hidden agendas or information, get real, be genuine, open and authentic.
  4. Right Wrongs: Make things right when you are wrong, don’t cover things up. Demonstrate humility  and apologize quickly.
  5. Show Loyalty: you show loyalty by acknowledging the contributions of others and giving credit freely. Don’t bad mouth or disclose others private matters.
  6. Deliver Result: this is done by getting the right things done. Make things happen, don’t over-promise or underdeliver. Always be on time and within budget.
  7. Get Better: Don’t assume today’s skill will be sufficient for tomorrow’s challenge. Constantly improve your capabilities and don’t consider yourself above feedbacks.
  8. Confront Reality: Lead out courageously in conversation, address the tough issues directly. Don’t bury your head in the sand instead take issues head-on.
  9. Clarify Expectation: Disclose and reveal expectation, discuss them validate them, renegotiate them. Done violate expectation or assume that expectations are cleared or shared.
  10. Practice Accountability: Hold yourself accountable, hold others accountable. Take responsibility for results. Don’t avoid or shirk responsibility. Don’t blame others or point fingers when things go wrong.
  11. Listen First: Listen before you speak. Understand, diagnose and listen with your ears and eyes and heart. Find out the most important behaviors are to the people you’re working with. Don’t assume you know what matters to others. Don’t presume you have all of the answers or all the questions.
  12. Keep Commitment: Say what you’re going to do or do what you’re going to do.
  13. Extend Trust: Extend trust abundantly to those who have earned your trust. Extend trust conditionally to those who are earning your trust. Don’t withhold trust because there is risk involved.

The speed of trust affirms that to inspire trust is to create the foundation on which truly successful organization/relationships stand. This ability is the prime differentiator between managing and leading.

THE BIG THREE – KEY POINTS

Key point #1: Trust can be efficiently taught and learned, and it can become a leverageable strategic advantage

Key point #2: Trust is one of the most powerful forms of motivation and inspiration.

Key point #3: Trust is a function of character and competence

One Last Thing

“None of us knows what might happen even the next minute, yet still we go forward. Because we trust. Because we have Faith.”

― Paulo Coelho

The Four: The Hidden DNA of Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google

/0 Comments/in , , , , /by

Galloway, an entrepreneur, and professor at NYU Stern provides a perceptive analysis of the four-horse race to become a billionaire company in THE FOUR: the hidden DNA of Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google. The author casually uncovers how each of these companies has deployed iconic leadership, technology, storytelling, fearless innovation, lightening execution and blatant plagiarism to devastating effects.

The author expressly demonstrates that despite their brilliance, the Four have not achieved dominance by themselves. They are driven by technology and capital and have thrived within a hyper-consumer de-regulated capitalist culture. Starting in America, then rapidly scaling throughout the world, the Four are the product of a Faustian bargain between weary institutions and evaporating middle class, attention-seeking media, and profit-hungry market. Fundamental to the success of these four great companies is how they used strategy and technology to appeal to basic human needs and desires.

In Galloway thesis, each of them appeals to a particular human organ. Google targets the brain and thirst for knowledge, Facebook leverages on the heart and our need to develop empathic and meaningful relationships, Amazon targets the guts by satisfying the impulse to consume while Apple focuses firmly on our genitals. With their discovery of human desires, the Four have gone about declaring war on what entrepreneurs euphemistically refer to as “friction.”

Friction includes every obstacle in the way of satisfying a given desire. Starting from the synaptic connection in the brain responsible for decision-making processes to the rules issued by regulatory and tax authorities to supply chain all the way down to the manufacturers of products in the developing world. However, the author affirms that this is not bad news. The laws of friction have been an undeniably positive development for consumers. Products are cheaper and the level of customer service has reached new heights. This system is so successful that people grant The Four access into their lives.

The Four are attempting to cement their dominance by becoming providers of public infrastructures. In this regard, Amazon is leading the pack. It is marshaling a global logistics operation that is the envy of most nation-states, including a fleet of Boeing 767s, drones, thousands of tractor trailers and trans-pacific shipping. Google has server arms and is launching blimps into the atmosphere that will beam broadband down to earth. These organizations are committed to becoming a permanent fixture of the future.

For the foreseeable future, Galloway suggests that the four will continue to reign supreme. That is, if they don’t pounce each other. If history taught us something, it is that Gods don’t share power well. And on current figures, Amazon seems the most aggressive and effective at stealing market share. They are even out stealing Google in searches with 55 percent of product searches starting on Amazon against Google’s 28 percent. As the author put it, “The prize? A trillion-dollar-plus valuation and power and influence greater than any entity in history.” In chapter nine, Galloway teases with a possible Fifth Horseman, exploring candidates, from Netflix to China’s famous Alibaba. Toward the end of the book, Gallow advises young talents on how to succeed in a new tech-dominated world. Throughout the book, Galloway pulls a few punches and never holds back any controversial opinion.

The author does not write the book to tarnish the reputation of the four companies but rather to offer a source of encouragement and understanding of the value of business. “I wrote this book for the same reason. I hope the reader gains insight and a competitive edge in an economy where it’s never been easier to be a billionaire, but it’s never been harder to be a millionaire.” Through this statement, Scott Galloway makes his intentions clear.

By far, one of the most exciting books I have read in the last two years. Understanding The Four is understanding the why, what and how of our habits today. I also found this book of value as a guideline for novices in the field of innovation and entrepreneurialism trying to understand the competitive and challenging business ecosystem the four themselves have created.

THE BIG THREE –  KEY POINTS

Key point #1: The Four have not achieved dominance by themselves despite their brilliance. Their similarity is that technology and capital drive them, thriving within hyper-consumer and deregulated capitalist culture.

Key point #2:  The Four used technology and strategy to understand and appeal to basic human desires.

Key point #3: The Four undoubtedly faced threats among each other, the entrance of a possible 5th horse and other forces outside of their industries, such as Google’s ongoing confrontation with the European Commission. However, the Four will continue to reign supreme.

DEVELOPING THE LEADERS AROUND YOU

/0 Comments/in , , /by

Developing the leaders around you is about creating other leaders while leading. It boils down to having a growth environment that encourages others to emerge from their closed selves and become leaders.

The first chapter of this book capitalizes on a leader’s success. A leader’s success is determined by maximizing utilization of the abilities and resources/talents under him/her. The author draws our attention to a biblical story of Moses as an example of the importance of developing leaders who you can trust and delegated duties to. When Moses failed to delegate work, he began to burn out. Jethro advised him to seek for other people’s assistance which he yielded to. He was glad he did. A leader who carries others along tends to be more efficient and successful.

The second chapter further encourages the development of potential leaders. We must create a space around us where leaders can rise and feel safe. In the next chapter, John Maxwell unveils how to identify potential leaders. He made the process easy by giving some interesting principles that help to determine a potential leader. I will talk expressly on one of these principles.

John Maxwell says the next thing to look out for in any leader, after strength of character, is ability to influence. A leader must be heading somewhere and have the ability to persuade others to follow him. There is more needed to be a person of influence. Some potential leaders are like a rough diamond. Some may carry the ability to influence but not yet possess other needed attributes. They should not be discarded, instead, consult the Holy Spirit. He alone can rightly judge a man. When you influence the right set of people, you will not be left with regret when raising up the future leaders.

The fourth chapter discusses the nurturing of the identified leaders. Once potential leaders have been recognized, you must start building them into the leader they can become. To achieve this, John Maxwell describes a strategy using an acronym, BEST, which means; Believe in them, Encourage them, Share with them and Trust them. Those closest to a leader will determine the success of that leader. Energy, drive and vision is not enough to be a leader. A leader must possess the ability to develop the leaders around him. You can only estimate the strength of a leader by looking at the those around him. You attract who you are. In developing a leader, there is a need to work on yourself and be personally secure. According to John, organizations either rise or fall depending on the trend of the leaders. A team must develop the habit of building a generation of new leaders, a strategy that requires a great deal of careful selection, planning, preparing, nurturing and follow through.

THE BIG THREE: KEY POINTS

Keypoint #1: Leaders must build an environment that encourages growth.

Keypoint #2: Leaders should not just lead but invest in others by seeing the possibilities in them and developing their potential.

Keypoint #3: The success of a leader is not only measured by the number of followers but the number of potential leaders he has been able to build.

SCRUM The Art of Doing Twice the Work in Half the Time

/0 Comments/in , , /by

Jeff, the CEO of scrum develop a system of doing more work in less time. In his book, he shares the principle behind this system. The principle is based on the art of checking in on your team regularly to see if the work is being done and if it is headed in the right direction while ensuring the goal remains constant. Jeff explains that the process requires thought, introspection, honesty, and discipline.

​Jeff encourages the need to plan but disapprove the art of following plans blindly. When detailed plans meet reality, they fall apart. Therefore it is essential to give room for an assumption of change discovery and new ideas. When executing the plans, pause at every stage and review what has been done to know if you are on the right path or if there is something you can improve upon. Change is adept. It is constant; you have to be flexible with your predictions so that you will not be left behind by an organization that is willing to adopt change. The author moved on by describing the origin of Scrum.

Scrum was inspired by the Japanese through the HBR paper published in 1986: “The New Product Development Game” by Hirotaka Takeuchi & Ikujiro Nonaka which highlighted the importance of cross-functional teams and faster, flexible way of working. The next chapter opens up what scrum is base on. Scrum is based on Teams. More resources make the team go slower. It is preferable to have a team that has every skill needed to complete a project irrespective of the set mission. Remember small teams get work done faster than big teams.  The author did not stop at that, he went ahead discourage the habit of waste in a project. He explained the types of waste which are MURI (waste through unreasonableness), MURA (waste through inconsistency) and MUDA (waste through outcome) and then summarize it all by saying “do one thing exclusively before moving on to the next project.”

What in the beginning you thought you needed was never what you actually needed. Scrum breakdown its role into three. These are the product owner (what the work should be). The Scrum master (how the work should be done) and the team member( does the work). The product vision serves as the intersection of what can be implemented, what you are passionate about and what can be sold.  Jeff says ”figure out where the most value can be delivered for the least effort and do that right away. Then identify the next increment after and then the next” Scrum can be used un any endeavor to improve performance and result. It accelerates human effort irrespective of the project or the problem being analyzed.

Finally, T.E Lawrence said “all men dream but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds wake up in the day to find that it was vanity: but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men for they may act their dreams with open eyes to make it possible”.

​The Big Three – KEY POINTS

​Key point #1: Don’t guess. Plan, Do, Check and Act. Plan what you are going to do. Do it. Check whether it did what you wanted to act on it and be flexible with how you do things. repeat the process in the regular cycle to achieve continuous improvement.

​Key point #2: Small teams get work done faster than big teams. 

Key point #3: Choose the smoothest, most struggle-free way to get things done. Scrum is about enabling the most flow possible.

One Last Thing

“Multitasking Makes You Stupid. Doing more than one thing at a time makes you slower and worse at both tasks. Don’t do it. If you think this doesn’t apply to you, you’re wrong—it does.”
― Jeff Sutherland

Insanely Simple. The Obsession That Drives Apple’s Success

/0 Comments/in , , , /by

Insanely simple is a book that values simplicity. It tells how simplicity drives success and how it has molded apple into what it has grown to become. How it happened, the techniques skills, actions, and decisions are all described in this book.

The author, Ken Segall worked for Apple for years on Apple ad campaigns such as Think different and Mac vs. PC. He also is responsible for the “I” in front of Apple products. He references Steve as “simple stick.” Steve will stop at nothing to knock complexity out in everything and make things as simple as possible. Complexity has its way of walking into an organization, a system or its product. Ken Segall knowing the effect of complexity on an organization shared the decisions that were made at Apple with the advantage of knowing how things worked out. Apple keeps everything insanely simple.

Steve said “simple can be harder than complex, you have to work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple. But it’s always worth it in the end because once you get there, you can move mountains.”

Sometimes the easy path is not always the simple path. The easy path can cause more complexity and complications than the simple route. Simplicity is not just a goal for an organization or oneself; it is a skill that must be learned. Like leadership, we all have the ability to surge ahead through simplicity; we only need the right tools and frame of mind to do so. To be simple, you must think simple.

Thinking simple does not stop you from thinking brutally, and there is a difference between brutally honest and simply being brutal. Steve job was known for his brutal honesty. If he thought your work was terrible, he would not shy away from telling you. “Blunt is simplicity; Meandering is complexity” Job does not compromise his standard for Apple because of someone else’s feelings.

Another level of thinking Steve adopted was iconic thinking. To think simple, you have to think iconic. The first significant campaign Apple did after the return of Steve Jobs was the Think Different campaign. This campaign was designed around images of people who have made a tremendous difference in the world. Images speak more than the words. It gives Apple brand an edge to associate with iconic figures. By thinking iconic, it allows a ton of core value information to be communicated by an organization in just a few images.

Steve did not stop at that. To think simple, you have to think human. To think human, you allow your heart into the decision-making process and remember why you do what you do. Ultimately, it’s not about the gaining influence or making money; it’s about the people your organization helps.

Also, you have to think war. The concept behind “think war” is those worthy ideas are worth fighting for. You have to use everything you’ve got, take risks and overwhelm with force. Remember, simplicity is what can separate you from victory. Always keep it simple.

In a world of ever-growing complexity, if your organization can have the mind of thinking simple, people will flock your banner. Insanely Simple has all you need to know to think simple. A copy is more than worth it.

THE BIG THREE – KEY POINTS

Key point #1: Simplicity is a skill that can be learned and developed. To be simple, you have to think simple.

Key point #2: Compromising your vision in order to spare someone else’s feeling is not simplicity.

Key point #3: Focus on one thing so as not to miss out on the most important thing.

“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” ~Steve Jobs

Start With Why

/0 Comments/in , , , , , , , /by

Start With Why is about an effective way of thinking, communicating, innovating and influencing people as a leader. Simon Sinek displays the notion that capable leaders inspire other people by emphasizing on the intention (‘the WHY’) before the procedure (the “HOW”) and the product or service (the “WHAT”). The more organizations and people who learn to start with WHY, the more those around will live a fulfilled life.

The first part of the book talks about a world that doesn’t start with WHY. Simon discusses two ways to influence behavior which is inspiration or manipulation.  Salespeople believe they attract customers with their features or price. In other words, we have no idea, so we manipulate sales, promotion the whole time. And yes, manipulation works. Prices, promotion, fears, aspirations, and novelty are all used to manipulate and motivate a purchase. All of these techniques work but Simon made it known that they are not sustainable and are short-lived. Regarding leadership, they can push you to the top, but they won’t make people follow you. Leadership is the ability to rally people, not for a single event but for years. However, there are few leaders who choose to inspire rather than motivate people. Whether individuals or organizations, every inspiring leader thinks, acts and communicates the same way. Consciously or not, how they do it is by following a naturally occurring pattern called the Golden Circle.

Part two of this book shows how leaders can inspire actions instead of manipulating people to act. The golden circle revolves around the WHAT (product or service), the HOW ( the procedure) and the WHY (the intention). Inspiring companies start with WHY. There is no trickery or manipulation. They just reverse the order of information. As humans, we crave a sense of belonging and we do this to survive. Starting with why helps to eliminate fear, share your beliefs and create a sense of belonging.

Part three of this book introduces us to the leaders’ needs. Leaders need a following. As members of the human race, we are attracted to those whose values, cultures and beliefs align with ours. When we recruit employees, we recruit people who believe what we believe so that we can trust one another instead of hiring purely based on skills and experience. In order words, leaders must build trust before building followers. The emergence of trust shows that trust is not a checklist. Instead, it is a feeling. We trust people and companies even when things go wrong, and we don’t believe others even when things might have gone the way it should. The idea is as a leader; you must earn trust by communicating and demonstrating that you share the same value and belief. That is why recruiters don’t hire for skills but attitude. Skills can be taught, but attitude must align with the organization’s culture. When you have a belief, i.e., a ‘WHY’ your what is just one of the ways of bringing that WHY to life.

Other parts of this great book discuss building trust, marketing and branding, the big Why and many other cogent topics that add value to organizations and individual.

The WHY does not come from looking ahead at what you want to achieve and figuring out an appropriate strategy to get there. Finding WHY is a process of discovery and not invention.

THE BIG THREE – KEY POINTS

Key point #1:   To influence people’s behavior, you either manipulate or inspire.

Key point #2:   A clearly stated WHY helps separate you from others and build trust.

Key point #3:   Clients identify with organizations that have their WHY clearly stated.

 

One Last Thing

“People don’t buy what you do; they buy why you do it. And what you do simply proves what you believe”
― Simon Sinek, Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action

The Innovation Code

/0 Comments/in , , /by

The hidden elements behind innovation are disharmony, disruption, disagreement and contrasting. That is what innovation is made of. Innovation is about constructive, creative, positive tension. A clash makes innovation possible in a team; agreement dissolves it. 

The Innovation code by Jeff DeGraff and Staney DeGraff introduces a framework that shows and explains how different kinds of leaders and thinkers can stir up constructive conflict in the organization. This positive, creative tension produces inventive solutions from both resources. DeGraff discovered the hidden inspiration in harnessing the creative energy that arises from opposing perspectives. The discovered force to sharpen creative innovations is through contrasting ideas.

DeGraff identified four contrasting styles of innovators:

  1. The Artist who loves radical innovation)
  2. The Sage who innovate through collaboration)
  3. The Engineer who continually improves on everything)
  4. The Athlete who competes to develop the best innovation). 

In addition, he included assessments and what to do to build, manage and embrace dynamic disagreement in a team that contains all four. You can discover which style best defines you and each of your team member as well.  Your dominant worldview makes you know how you sort and manage challenges. Your quality makes you outstand the crowd, and that is where the need to discover your biggest weakness comes in. 

Outside the interview room, take time to realize that secret about yourself without clouding your judgment with your world perspective. When the dominant worldview overpowers all other point of views, you tend to have a blind spot and become a prisoner of your ideology. Worldview is how we interpret and experience the world based on our belief and mindset. A worldview is more than a style; it is a collection of different opinions. We all have our dominant worldview, a particular conception of the world from a specific standpoint. This standpoint can be generated from personal experience, culture, and society at large.  DeGraff concluded that the most significant obstacle we face on the path of innovation is YOU, while the greatest solution is combining different perspectives and hybrids of ideas. So it is essential we learn to let go of our preconceptions and biases.

When you can identify your greatest weakness and strength, you get enough insight to select your team of superheroes, a band that can give you a significant push to create things you cannot work on your own. People who are unlike you are the kind of people you need to surround yourself with. But first, get to know the worst part of yourself and the right part of yourself. ​

Innovation code shows how to play to win the innovation game irrespective of your organization, team and associates. No one ever says innovation is easy; innovation code does not gloss over innovation like its simple and easy either, instead it tackles the hardest element which is how to create a constructive conflict and use it to innovate.  In this book, DeGraff shares his insight from his experience with many organizations to create a practical print for all innovators. 

The Big Three: Key Points

Key Point #1

You must know how to stir up constructive conflict in an organization and how to manage different innovation styles within an organization or team.

Key Point #2

There are four contrasting styles of innovators: The Artist, the Sage, the Engineer and the Athlete.

Key Point #3

People who are unlike you are the kind of people you need to surround yourself with. But first, get to know the worst part of yourself and the right part of yourself.

One Last Thing 

“The best teams are like a band of superheroes” – Jeff DeGraff

The One Thing

/0 Comments/in , , /by

The one thing by Gary W Keller and Jay Papasan is focused on understanding that one thing you need to focus on to make you successful. Not all tasks on your to-do list matter equally. There are some that are of high importance and consistently give a successful result, that is the ONE THING we are referring to. Sometimes it is the only thing you do, sometimes; it is the first thing you do. Whatever ways you handle it, there is always a key phrase that says doing the most important is the most important thing to do. You have to make the hard things easy to do by disciplining yourself.

Things become easier after you have discipline yourself and establish that habit not only the thing you trained yourself for. The key point is, aim for bigger achievement, dream big, follow peoples trail and don’t be scared o fail. Sometimes we blindly believe in some lies that sound like truth and this has a great impact on your productivity. Some of these lies are multitasking, everything matters equally, a balance etc. Gary and Jay made us understand that there is nothing like multitasking, equality, willpower. They are all lies. It is much advisable to do fewer things for more effect than doing many things with side effects. Successful people work with a clear sense of priority and not from junks of priorities. Gary Keller and Jay Papasan reminded us again of the 80/20 principle. He shared in his book that we don’t need a To Do list; instead we need a success list. A success list is a list designed purposefully around your highest leverage activities. Your leverage activities can be determined using the 80/20 principle. The principle states that the MINORITY of your effort is what leads to the MAJORITY of your result. Your little investment today will yield a bigger result of what you will experience. So most importantly, you have to understand those minute tasks, those little tasks you should divert your 20% attention to that will yield 80% impact on your results. With this, you have been able to turn your to-do list into success list. Gary continues, “You can do two things at a time but you can’t focus effectively on two things at once. The truth is when you focus on two things you feel you are multitasking without paying cognizance to the fact that your attention is being divided and something is serving as a distraction at that particular time. I admire a quote that says take up two things, and your attention gets divided, take on three things, and somethings get dropped. The buzz, flash, pings on your phones can wait or be avoided by shutting down your phone just for the limited period you need to concentrate. People who seem like they are highly disciplined has conditioned a handful habits into their lives. Developing a habit takes an average of 66 days, with your willpower and persistence you can turn your discipline into a habit and things become easier to execute. In summary, your willpower each day is limited so use it wisely and do the most important things first so that you will not miss it.

The Big Three – Key points

Key Point #1: Do fewer things and get more effect rather than doing many things with side effects

Key Point #2: Discipline can be groomed into a habit

Key Point #3: Work with your success list and not your To Do list

One Last Thing 

“Work is a rubber ball. If you drop it, it will bounce back. The other four balls– family, health, friends, integrity– are made of glass. If you drop one of these, it will be irrevocably scuffed, nicked, perhaps even shattered.”
― Gary Keller

Zero to One

/0 Comments/in , , , , , , /by

This book is composed of Peter Thiel’s advice on startups with different take away such as the DO’s and DON’TS of startups, what to focus on when building a startup, insight of building a billion-dollar startup that stands the test of time and many more. He gave an illustration of the first team he built which is known as the “PayPal Mafia” who have gone out to help each other start and invest in successful tech companies. They sold PayPal to eBay in 2002 for $1.5billion. Ever since then:

  •    Elon Musk has founded SpaceX and co-founded Tesla Motors
  •    Reid Hoffman co-founded LinkedIn
  •    Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim together founded YouTube
  •    Jeremy Stoppelman and Russel Simmons founded Yelp
  •    David Sacks co-founded Yammer
  •    and Thiel himself co-founded Palantir
  • And today, all these seven companies are worth over $1billion.  

This book begins with Peter’s favorite interview question which is, “What important truth do very few people agree with you on?”  He justifies this question by saying that “brilliant thinking is rare, but courage is even shorter than genius”. He further says that globalization without new technology in a world of scarce resources is unsustainable. Because the truth is that technology matters more in globalization. The best way to create wealth is not by spreading old ways but by innovation. And to introduce innovation, we have startups. He points out that competitive market destroys profit. He said, “if you can recognize competition as a destructive force instead of a sign of value, you are saner than most.” To get more capital, you need to be a monopolist and escape competition. You may think monopolies are bad but thinking of it in a world where it’s possible to invent new things, it brings about more creativity and innovations. Creative monopolists add new categories to the categories of products available, thereby giving customers more varieties to choose from.

What makes a monopoly durable? What does a company with large cash flows far into the future look like? There are four key characteristics to describe:

  1. Proprietary technology
  2. Network effects (aka virility)
  3. Simple scalability
  4. Branding

Peter’s next favorite question is “What valuable company is nobody building?” You get a valuable company when you create value and capture value. If you want to create and capture value as an entrepreneur, don’t build an undifferentiated commodity business. The author makes the difference between a perfectly competitive market and a monopoly and explains how both companies are trying to disguise themselves. The author takes us through various schools of thought of startups in each chapter of his book. Some of which are: the ideology of competition which explains why people compete, secrets which reveal why people are not looking for secrets and why companies need to stop believing in secrets, the mechanics of mafia and so on.

He concluded by asking the question: Stagnation or Singularity? It all depends on us. Our task today is to find singular ways to create new things that will make the future transpire from Zero to One. The critical step is to think for yourself, see the world anew, afresh and as strange as it was to the ancients who saw it first. Then we can recreate it and preserve it for the future. Whatever decision you make today, determines the success we experience tomorrow. So think critically and take action not by acting upon a created solution but by searching out a unique problem and proffering a solution to it.

THE BIG THREE – KEY POINTS

Key point #1:  The author encourages monopolization other than perfect competition

Key point #2:   Leverage on the power of exponential growth

Key point #3: Don’t just invent a product; invent an efficient way of selling it.

One Last Thing

“The best entrepreneurs know this: every great business is built around a secret that’s hidden from the outside. A great company is a conspiracy to change the world; when you share your secret, the recipient becomes a fellow conspirator.”
― Peter Thiel, Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future

THE OUTLIERS

/0 Comments/in , , , , , /by

The Outliers is structured around a series of case studies, cultures and time periods that are all related to same theories and thesis. According to Malcolm, success has nothing to do with high intelligence, level of genius or innate ability. Instead, success is based on prior investment of hard work, creativity, time, support and opportunity. Gladwell says it is that simple. Your culture, legacy and environment also play a part. He backed his point using various case studies of triumph and success. When an opportunity presents itself, you must be prepared and ready to maximize on it. That is not the point where you begin your preparation. Your prior preparation will determine if you will seize the opportunity or lose it. There is no shortcut to mastery. You must put in the work.

Below is a quick summary of the six key points Malcolm Gladwell takes us through:

Opportunity: Success rarely comes to those who struggle to break from the norm. There must be at least a glimmer of talent in you to achieve success. Opportunity gives you the chance to access coaches and tools that you need to build your skills. Those tools prepare you for a more robust opportunity. Gladwell considers remarkable individuals in this section such as Bill Joy, Robert Oppenheimer, Bill Gates and an unsung intellectual Chris Langan.

Timing: Timing is crucial and critical to success and opportunity. When and where you are born can influence your opportunity. 14 of the 75 richest people in history were born between 1860’s and 1870’s when the industrial revolution was taking off. Also in 1935, there were fewer babies born, roughly 600,000, which means a smaller class size. During this period, there were greater chances of getting into college, good sports team or even getting a good job in better firms.

 

Upbringing: The quality of the upbringing a child receives also influences his/her success. Parents that are more involved in their kids’ lives provide them with opportunities that lead to the child’s success. This can include enrolling them in summer school, taking them to museums and assisting with their homework. Kids that do not have parental care or affection tend to lose more opportunity.

10,000 hours: It typically takes 10,000 hours to become a master of something. You must invest that amount of your time.

Meaningful Work: You must invest hard and meaningful work to get the best out of it. Meaningful work makes you want to put in more hours. For instance, immigrants value and practice hard work. Sociologist Louise Farkas confirmed this while studying the immigrants family tree. He found out that the offspring became professionals and successful. She concluded that in spite of their humble background, they have been trained to value and practice hard work.

Legacy: Value drives legacy. Our values are passed down to us from generation to generation which directly affects our current behavior. Dutch psychologist, Geer Hofstede, did an analysis on different country’s cultural tendencies. He identified different dimensions such individualism, collectivism, uncertainty, avoidance and power distance index. Gladwell believes the society of one’s ancestors has a tendency of determining one’s practice and preference, even in the present day.

The Big Three – Key Points:

Key Point #1    Success has nothing to do with level of genius or IQ. It has more to do   with hard work, culture, society, and opportunity.

Key Point #2    Success comes to those who are ready to become a master in what they do.

Key Point #3    To be successful you must be ready to seize opportunities.

 

One Last Thing

“Practice isn’t the thing you do once you’re good. It’s the thing you do that makes you good.”

― Malcolm Gladwell, Outliers: The Story of Success