Masters of Scale: Surprising truths from the world's most successful entrepreneurs

Description

Business secrets from the heads of the world's most exciting and innovative companies, including Facebook, Google, Airbnb, Netflix, Spotify, Uber, Starbucks, Bumble and Instagram. On his podcast Masters of Scale, Silicon Valley legend Reid Hoffman (founder of LinkedIn, investor at Greylock) sits down with the leaders of the world's most iconic companies, including Apple, Nike, Netflix, Spotify, Starbucks, Google, Instagram and Microsoft, as well as the bold, disruptive startups - from 23andMe to TaskRabbit, from the Black List to the Bevel razor - solving the problems of the 21st century. In this book, he draws on their most riveting, revealing stories to distil the counterintuitive secrets behind the most extraordinary success stories of our times. Through vivid storytelling and straightforward analysis, Masters of Scale distils their collective insights into a set of counterintuitive principles that anyone can use. How do you find a winning idea and turn it into a scalable venture? What can you learn from a "squirmy no"? When should you stop listening to your customers? Which fires should you put out right away, and which should you let burn? And can you really make money while making the world a better place? (Answer- Yes. But you have to do the work to keep your profits and values aligned.) Based on more than 100 interviews, and incorporating new material never aired on the podcast, Masters of Scale offers a unique insider's guide, filled with insights, wisdom, and strategies that will inspire you to reimagine how you do business today.

Reid Hoffman is the co-founder of LinkedIn, a partner at Greylock, and widely viewed as one of the most successful investors of all time. A founding board member of PayPal, he is now a board member at Microsoft as well as other companies and nonprofits. He's the host of WaitWhat's award-winning podcast Masters of Scale podcast and the bestselling author of The Startup of You, The Alliance, and Blitzscaling. June Cohen and Deron Triff are the executive producers of the podcast Masters of Scale and co-founders of WaitWhat, the media company behind the hit podcasts Masters of Scale, Meditative Story, and Spark & Fire. Previously, they led TED's media enterprise, growing TED Talks from its initial concept to an audience of 1 billion.

Masters Of Scale is about more than scaling. At its core, it's a book about how wildly successful people have noticed what others haven't, what they did with those ideas and what they learned along the way despite various setbacks. It's also about how curiosity, perseverance, humility and risk have helped turn seemingly impossible ideas into lucrative businesses. * Forbes * A book to take with you into battle as you build a company or a career. It's full of enjoyable stories, but the killer feature is the sharp insights Reid draws out - specific, memorable, actionable mindsets. -- Reed Hastings, co-founder and CEO, Netflix Whether you're at a startup or working to drive change within a large organization, the business principles in this book will help you deploy your strategy with creativity, integrity and realism. -- Satya Nadella, CEO, Microsoft Reid Hoffman has a talent for getting right to the heart of a business case and turning it into an unforgettable lesson. If you're scaling a company - or if you just love a well-told story - this is a book to savour. -- Bob Iger, executive chair, Walt Disney Co. To lead with vision and heart, start by listening and learning from others. Using stories to teach lessons, this book is full of solid (and sometimes surprising!) advice that will help accelerate your journey. -- Angela Ahrendts, former CEO, Burberry, and former head of Apple Retail The advice in this book is both principled and creative, rooted in true stories from a broad group of leaders at many stages of success and across many fields. A generous road map and framework for thinking more wisely about your own growing business. -- Shellye Archambeau, author of Unapologetically Ambitious What if, instead of learning from one entrepreneur at a time, you could distil the lessons of many of the greatest founders our time? This book combines memorable stories with actionable insights from world-class leaders to help you turn your biggest, boldest ideas into reality. -- Adam Grant, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Think Again and host of the TED podcast WorkLife Starting a business is not for the faint of heart, and it's good to have a team of mentors at your back. Think of this book as a mentorship in 10 chapters, with stories and advice from people you might already admire, as well as people whose journeys are just starting. Reid's skill at keying in on the bombshell insight inside the narrative turns every story into a tool for clearer thinking and bolder moves. You'll come away with at least a couple of new mantras and a new understanding of the how and why of building your business. -- Franklin Leonard, founder, The Black List This book feels like an extended conversation with Reid, full of stories of success and failure, along with insights that can reshape the way you approach a problem going forward. No matter what field you're in, the stories and advice will help you grapple with the choices you make every day as you scale your business. -- Danny Meyer, Restauranteur and CEO, Union Square Hospitality Group There is no such thing as an overnight success, but you can avoid making some of the same mistakes as those who have walked before you. I highly recommend this book as an insightful and inspiring guide to anyone embarking on an entrepreneurial journey. -- Tory Burch, founder of Tory Burch LLC and Tory Burch Foundation With his characteristic wit, Reid Hoffman draws on the full breadth of his experiences as a founder and investor to offer a level of nuance and insight into the entrepreneurial journey - with all its twists and turns - that few others could. Most importantly, he shows how any company of any stripe can bake generosity and social good into their DNA, and how making a positive contribution to the world can be the driving force that helps your company scale. -- Daniel Lubetzky, Executive Chairman and founder of KIND, and NYT bestselling author of Do the KIND Thing The antidote for the creeping feeling that the business world is hopelessly out of ideas and awash in get-rich-quick schemes. * Business Insider * When you're in the mood for a pep talk, who better to turn to than a well-networked, optimistic mentor who is naturally in your corner? * Tech Crunch * It was surprising to learn-as I did from Reid Hoffman's new book, Masters of Scale-how many of today's top Silicon Valley entrepreneurs are inveterate questioners, driven by curiosity... You need to be a restless learner and a person who's not afraid to question anything-including your own bright ideas... One of the surprises in the Masters of Scale book is seeing how many success stories were born out of failure. * Fast Company *