Episode description
Tony Fadell is an amazing and successful engineer, entrepreneur, and investor. He is the father of the iPod, co-creator of the iPhone, founder and former CEO of Nest Thermostat, and the founder of Future Shape, a global investment and advisory company.
In 2014, Tony Fadell was one of the Time Magazine’s 100 most influential people in the world. He is also a NY Times bestselling author with his book Build: An Unorthodox Guide to Making Things Work.
It’s a true pleasure to have Tony on our show and hear how he searched and found his excellence!
(00:28) Introduction
- Learning from his dad about building trust in business (relationships, not transactions build trust)
- 50% is what you know and the other 50% is who you know
- When rejected for a job, don’t take it personally (send follow-ups, keep the line open create the conversation, ask how to improve)
(10:18) Tony’s childhood
- Selling eggs to neighbors as a young kid (money = freedom)
- Degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science studies
- As a sophomore, made an improved processor for Apple 2 – offered it to Apple and Apple bought it!
(16:44) The value of cold calling skills
- The first job in Silicon Valley – got it through cold calling (overcome the fear of cold calling)
- Know how to tell your story to engage people – what value you can bring?
(21:13) Is education worth it?
- Most people attend college in the wrong way
- Tony’s mantra "Do, Fail, Learn"
- The importance of internships (do a lot of things to know what you don’t want to do)
- After college, go and learn from experts
(28:30) Turning disappointments into opportunities
- General Magic – failed
- 6 years in Silicon Valley of failure
- In 2000 Internets stocks tanked, the market froze
- Called to work for Apple when the company was about to bankrupt
- Apple was developing a new generation of Walkman
- Randall’s experience with Apple
(40:25) Tony at Apple
- 6-week contract to research and design the iPod
- The importance of constant improvement
- Innovation must never stop, even if you’re #1 (you must be ahead your competition)
(48:59) What is an entrepreneur?
- Someone who disrupts the market
- Resonate with people in the first 30 seconds
- Start with a pain and offer the painkiller (the development of iPhone – solved the issue of taking three devices with you)
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