Founders - podcast cover

Founders

Learn from history's greatest entrepreneurs. Every week I read a biography of an entrepreneur and find ideas you can use in your work. This quote explains why: "There are thousands of years of history in which lots and lots of very smart people worked very hard and ran all types of experiments on how to create new businesses, invent new technology, new ways to manage etc. They ran these experiments throughout their entire lives. At some point, somebody put these lessons down in a book. For very little money and a few hours of time, you can learn from someone’s accumulated experience. There is so much more to learn from the past than we often realize. You could productively spend your time reading experiences of great people who have come before and you learn every time." —Marc Andreessen

Episodes

#15 Leonardo da Vinci: The Biography

What I learned from reading Leonardo da Vinci by Walter Isaacson. ---- Founders Notes gives you the ability to tap into the collective knowledge of history's greatest entrepreneurs on demand. Use it to supplement the decisions you make in your work.   Get access to Founders Notes here .  ---- “ I have listened to every episode released and look forward to every episode that comes out. The only criticism I would have is that after each podcast I usually want to buy the book because I am...

Nov 17, 201747 min

#14 The Accidental Billionaires: The Founding of Facebook: A Tale of Sex, Money, Genius, and Betrayal

What I learned from reading The Accidental Billionaires: The Founding of Facebook: A Tale of Sex, Money, Genius, and Betrayal by Ben Mezrich. Microsoft had offered Mark between $1 million and $2 million to go work for them. Amazingly, Mark had turned them down (1:25) Maybe he knew he was about to cross a line. But he had never been very good at staying in the lines. From Mark's history, it was obvious that he didn't like the sandbox. He seemed the type of kid that wanted to kick out all the sand...

Sep 17, 201738 min

#13 Elon Musk and Why SpaceX Will Colonize Mars

What I learned from reading The Elon Musk Blog Series: Wait But Why by Tim Urban. In the most recent 1% of our species short existence, we have become the first life on earth to know about the situation (4:38) The total market for satellite manufacturing, the launches that carry them to space, and related equipment and services has ballooned from $60 billion in 2004 to over $200 billion in 2015 (8:41) Here is what SpaceX does: it takes things to space for people for money. Here is what SpaceX re...

Aug 27, 201755 min

#12 Elon Musk & How Tesla Will Change The World

What I learned by reading How Tesla Will Change The World by Tim Urban Kindle version: The Elon Musk Blog Series: Wait But Why . ---- Founders Notes gives you the ability to tap into the collective knowledge of history's greatest entrepreneurs on demand. Use it to supplement the decisions you make in your work.   Get access to Founders Notes here .  ---- “ I have listened to every episode released and look forward to every episode that comes out. The only criticism I would have is that...

Aug 20, 201741 min

#11 The Cook & The Chef: Elon Musk's Secret Sauce

What I learned from reading The Elon Musk Blog Series: Wait But Why by Tim Urban Read The Cook & The Chef: Elon Musk's Secret Sauce on WaitButWhy . Quotes from this episode: Which leaves only two options: create or copy Conventional wisdom: If something is both a good idea and possible, it's already been done. I'm fascinated by those rare people in history who managed to dramatically change the world during their short time here, and I've always liked to study those people and read their biograp...

Aug 13, 201745 min

#10 Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike

What I learned from reading Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike by Phil Knight. The best teacher I ever had, one of the finest men I ever knew, spoke of the Oregon Trail often. It’s our birthright, he’d growl. Our character, our fate—our DNA. “The cowards never started, the weak died along the way—that leaves us.” [0:35] Some outsized sense of possibility mixed with a diminished capacity for pessimism. [1:03] I found it difficult to say what or who exactly I was, or might become . Like all...

Jul 27, 20171 hr 5 min

#9 I Invented the Modern Age: The Rise of Henry Ford

What I learned from reading I Invented the Modern Age: The Rise of Henry Ford by Richard Snow. ---- Founders Notes gives you the ability to tap into the collective knowledge of history's greatest entrepreneurs on demand. Use it to supplement the decisions you make in your work.   Get access to Founders Notes here .  ---- “ I have listened to every episode released and look forward to every episode that comes out. The only criticism I would have is that after each podcast I usually want...

Jul 10, 20171 hr 11 min

#8 The Intel Trinity: How Robert Noyce, Gordon Moore, and Andy Grove Built the World's Most Important Company

What I learned from reading The Intel Trinity: How Robert Noyce, Gordon Moore, and Andy Grove Built the World's Most Important Company by Michael Malone. ---- Founders Notes gives you the ability to tap into the collective knowledge of history's greatest entrepreneurs on demand. Use it to supplement the decisions you make in your work.   Get access to Founders Notes here .  ---- “ I have listened to every episode released and look forward to every episode that comes out. The only criti...

Jun 20, 20171 hr 1 min

#7 Grinding It Out: The Making of McDonald's

What I learned from reading Grinding It Out: The Making of McDonald's by Ray Kroc. ---- Founders Notes gives you the ability to tap into the collective knowledge of history's greatest entrepreneurs on demand. Use it to supplement the decisions you make in your work.   Get access to Founders Notes here .  ---- “ I have listened to every episode released and look forward to every episode that comes out. The only criticism I would have is that after each podcast I usually want to buy the ...

May 27, 20171 hr 3 min

#6 Sam Walton

What I learned from reading Sam Walton: Made In America by Sam Walton. ---- Founders Notes gives you the ability to tap into the collective knowledge of history's greatest entrepreneurs on demand. Use it to supplement the decisions you make in your work.   Get access to Founders Notes here .  ---- “ I have listened to every episode released and look forward to every episode that comes out. The only criticism I would have is that after each podcast I usually want to buy the book because...

May 14, 20171 hr 4 min

#5 Steve Jobs

What I learned from reading Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson. ---- Founders Notes gives you the ability to tap into the collective knowledge of history's greatest entrepreneurs on demand. Use it to supplement the decisions you make in your work.   Get access to Founders Notes here .  ---- “ I have listened to every episode released and look forward to every episode that comes out. The only criticism I would have is that after each podcast I usually want to buy the book because I am intere...

Apr 30, 20171 hr 36 min

#4 The Remarkable Life and Turbulent Times of Joseph P. Kennedy

What I learned from reading The Patriarch: The Remarkable Life and Turbulent Times of Joseph P. Kennedy by David Nasaw ---- Founders Notes gives you the ability to tap into the collective knowledge of history's greatest entrepreneurs on demand. Use it to supplement the decisions you make in your work.   Get access to Founders Notes here .  ---- “ I have listened to every episode released and look forward to every episode that comes out. The only criticism I would have is that after eac...

Apr 19, 201757 min

#3 The Wizard of Menlo Park: How Thomas Edison Invented The Modern the Modern World

What I learned from reading The Wizard of Menlo Park: How Thomas Alva Edison Invented The Modern World by Randall Stross Edison starts his first business at 12 years old (11:00) Edison's discipline (20:00) Edison's rivalry with Alexander Graham Bell (38:00) Edison's friendship with Henry Ford (1:00:00) Edison's stoic nature (1:15:00) The death of Thomas Edison (1:21:00) ---- Founders Notes gives you the ability to tap into the collective knowledge of history's greatest entrepreneurs on demand. U...

Mar 24, 20171 hr 27 min

#2 Walt Disney

What I learned from reading Walt Disney based on the book Walt Disney: The Triumph of the American Imagination by Neal Gabler. ---- Founders Notes gives you the ability to tap into the collective knowledge of history's greatest entrepreneurs on demand. Use it to supplement the decisions you make in your work.   Get access to Founders Notes here .  ---- “ I have listened to every episode released and look forward to every episode that comes out. The only criticism I would have is that a...

Oct 10, 20161 hr 18 min

#1 Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, & the Quest for a Fantastic Future

What I learned from reading Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future by Ashlee Vance The conventional wisdom of the time said to take a deep breath and wait for the next big thing to arrive in due course. Musk rejected that logic by throwing $100 million into SpaceX, $70 million into Tesla, and $10 million into SolarCity. Short of building an actual money crushing machine, Musk could not have picked a faster way to destroy his fortune. He became a one-man-ultra-risk taking ...

Sep 19, 201658 min
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