Read & Repeat: Recent Episodes
Josh Khalili
Welcome to the new Read & Repeat podcast! The podcast serves as a high-level audio recap and helps readers reinforce the main insights from our favorite books, long after reading them.
This week, we continue our journey with Arnold by learning how he rose to the top of the bodybuilding world in only an 8 year span!!
As a 15 year old kid in Austria, Arnold wasn't on anybody's radar to become the next bodybuilding sensation. Certainly no one thought he would become the Mr. Universe champion as a teen... yet his unbreakable self confidence and relentless work ethic just catapulted him to the top that much quicker than all his peers.
This episode is filled with gold, from Arnold's inspiring mentality, to how he was able to differentiate himself from other greats, to his actual lifting routines that you and I can adopt today. I highly recommend you listen - whether you are someone going for greatness in your own field, or simply want a little inspiration for your next workout. Enjoy!
Arnold: The Education of a Bodybuilder - Arnold Schwarzenegger
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Recommendation of the Week: How to Lose Weight in 4 Easy Steps (it's not what you expect...)
The Web of Ideas: The Education of a Bodybuilder (my notes on the book)
Show Notes:
2:40 - A teenager with a dream
9:30 - Greatness requires OBSESSION
16:40 - Conventional wisdom produces conventional results...
23:34 - Work hard in the dark to shine in the light
32:38 - Utter self belief
37:40 - "Arnold, what can you do to be special and different?"
44:22 - Total concentration
48:55 - Cementing himself as the best
This week we dive into Arnold Schwarzenegger's book 'Be Useful,' offering insights into how he reached the pinnacle of success across bodybuilding, acting, and politics. Arnold shares the 7 tools that were most influential for his life, including setting an ambitious vision, outworking his peers, and giving back. He describes how he was able to sell the sport of bodybuilding into the mainstream, and how those training habits easily transferred over to acting. He was doubted constantly by friends and fans, but his determination and positive mindset kept pushing him to break through perceived barriers. This episode is filled with stories that we can all benefit from - enjoy!
Be Useful: Seven Tools for Life - Arnold Schwarzenegger
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Recommendation of the Week: Arnold Documentary on Netflix
The Web of Ideas: Be Useful (my notes on the book)
----Show Notes:
2:56 - Arnold's Journey: From vision to bodybuilding champion
12:33 - Never think small
18:01 - Work hard in the dark to shine in the light
24:05 - Sell sell sell
34:38 - Post-traumatic GROWTH
41:18 - Become a learning machine
45:56 - The importance of giving back
We loved making this episode because it's part Darwin evolutionary biology and part Buffett investing wisdom! In the book, Pulak Prasad shares how he has built his investment philosophy based on evolutionary survival, and how many lessons surprisingly cross over into the finance world. His approach may seem simple, but it is effective:
1) Avoid Big Risks
2) Buy High Quality at a Fair Price
3) Don't Be Lazy - be very lazy
He's used this strategy to grow his investment firm, Nalanda, into a $5 billion fund, practicing what he preaches on a daily basis. But his book differs greatly from most investment books, because he incorporates examples across evolutionary science, such as deers in the wilderness, taming wild foxes, growing rabbit populations, and much more. These stories serve as a powerful connection to investing because they teach us how businesses can structure themselves to survive the long haul, how investors can overcome their natural FOMO instincts, and how compounding can creep up on us unlike anything we've ever seen before. I think this episode will be informative for investors, operators, and all science nuts alike. We hope you enjoy it!!
What I Learned About Investing From Darwin - Pulak Prasad
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Recommendation of the Week: Dakshana Foundation
The Web of Ideas: What I Learned About Investing From Darwin (my notes on the book)
Show Notes:
3:04 - Avoid Big Risks: would you bet your life on your next investment?
12:22 - Buy high quality at a fair price
20:37 - What rats and antifragile businesses have in common
28:13 - Using the past to assess the future
38:31 - Don't be lazy... be very lazy
45:48 - What we mistake when we talk about compounding
In this episode we cover Andy Grove's famous book, Only the Paranoid Survive. Andy Grove was a co-founder and former CEO of Intel, leading the company through some of its best years as it established a stronghold over the growing PC market. In this book, he talks about the many challenges they faced before getting to that point.
Andy Grove views technological change through the lens of strategic inflection points, sharing how you can either be disrupted into oblivion because of one, or cause one onto others. He describes the struggles Intel faced as its success in the memory business was eroded, and how they had to let go of their old identity to build a lasting business.
Fortunately, Intel had been quietly working on another chip, the microprocessor, at the same time, so now they could focus all their energy on this product and lead the PC revolution. We discuss many of his insights around disruption, and how it has impacted countless industries since, such as discount retailing, cable TV, film photography, and newspapers. Enjoy!
Only the Paranoid Survive: How to Exploit the Crisis Points that Challenge Every Company - Andrew Grove
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Recommendation of the Week: Apollonia's Pizzeria in LA
The Web of Ideas: Only the Paranoid Survive (my notes on the book)
Show Notes:
3:01 - Intel abandons their identity of memory chips for something better
12:34 - Change is the only constant in technology
15:03 - The PC inflection point
21:46 - A few examples of Innovator's Dilemma disruption
29:27 - Only the paranoid survive
34:31 - Predicting the impact of the Internet in the late 90s
An episode dedicated to the investing legend, Charlie Munger. Enjoy!
The Tao of Charlie Munger - David Clark
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Recommendation of the Week: Trader Joe's Peanut Thai Salad is back!!!
The Web of Ideas: The Tao of Charlie Munger (my notes on the book)
Show Notes:
2:09 - What qualities make up a wonderful business?
11:04 - Berkshire under Charlie's blueprint
20:20 - The value of long-term permanent capital
25:50 - Staying in your circle of competence
32:50 - A few of Munger's biggest warnings
39:50 - Timeless life advice
In this episode, we cover Influence - Robert Cialdini's seminal book on the 6 principles of persuasion. This book was so influencial on Charlie Munger that he even gave Cialdini shares of Berkshire's class A stock, worth hundreds of thousands of dollars today!
We discuss how the principles of reciprocation, commitment & consistency, social proof, liking, authority, and scarcity are used against us and beneficial to us in the business world. We also talk about how many of these principles can be useful in your personal lives, such as for setting goals you'll stick to and building meaningful relationships. We hope this episode will be both insightful and entertaining - enjoy!
Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion - Robert Cialdini
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Recommendation of the Week: Online Catan
The Web of Ideas: Influence (my notes on the book)
Show Notes:
4:17 - Reciprocation
10:37 - Reject then retreat technique
14:06 - Commitment & Consistency
20:44 - Social Proof
28:27 - The Liking Principle
35:02 - Authority Bias
43:39 - Scarcity
This episode continues our two part series on the Israeli - Palestinian conflict. In this episode, we learn the origin story of the terrorist group Hamas, told firsthand by their founder's son, Mosab Hassan Yousef. We share his perspective growing up in the Palestinian region of the West Bank, internalizing a deep hatred of Jews and their role in the Palestinian people's suffering. As he reaches his teenage years, Mosab begins to rebel and tries to get involved in the conflict himself, which lands him in prison for over a year. It was this time in prison that ended up being transformative for Mosab.
He starts to build relationships with Israelis, learning that they treat him respectfully and are willing to help him complete his studies. At this fitting time, Mosab attends a Christianity lecture on "loving your enemy", and starts to reflect on what Hamas does wrong in their leadership over the Palestinian people. Over the coming years, he became the top insider spy for Israel's Shin Bet unit, stopping numerous suicide bombings and attacks on Israeli civilians.
We close off the episode describing how Hamas has continued to inflict suffering on the Palestinian people, while terrorizing innocent Israeli civilians as well. Lastly, we touch on the tragic events of October 7th, dispelling some of the most common myths being circulated online. We hope you find this episode informative!
Son of Hamas: A Gripping Account of Terror, Betrayal, Political Intrigue, and Unthinkable Choices - Mosab Hassan Yousef
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Recommendation of the Week: When Things Fall Apart
The Web of Ideas: Son of Hamas (my notes on the book)
Show Notes:4:58 - The rise of Islam
11:33 - Hamas starts to protest
18:17 - Peaceful coexistence is the last goal for Hamas
26:05 - The problem is not Israel's policies, it's Israel's right to exist...
28:42 - An eye opening time in prison
36:13 - Placing the blame on Hamas & Yasser Arafat
40:55 - The Green Prince: Israel's ultimate spy
44:12 - Hamas would never stop short of taking back all of Israel
48:19 - "The Palestinian people were as oppressed by their own leaders as they were by Israel"
49:47 - A villian more terrifying than your worst nightmare - Hamas & October 7th
1:03:46 - Free Gaza, from HAMAS
This week's episode is extra special to us. In this episode, we dive into the history of Israel and the conflict in the Middle East, attempting to provide nuance to an extremely polarizing subject. We answer questions like: are Israelis colonizers? Is Israel an apartheid state? Why do we even need a Jewish state? Who is the real threat in the Middle East?
Based on the fantastic book by Noa Tishby, we learn how Jews first populated the land of Israel over 2500 years ago, and established an ancestral homeland there across hundreds of years. We discuss the beginning of the Zionist movement - an effort to re-establish a safe state for Jews - which was ultimately accepted by the world after the horrifying events of the Holocaust. We then walk through the many wars and potential peace deals between Israelis and Palestinians, where a final deal for peace was abandoned by the Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat in 2000. Shortly afterwards, we see the rise of Islamic Jihadist movement and the terrorist group Hamas, who have expressed no interest in peace and would rather eradicate their neighbors. We conclude by discussing some of the progress Israel has made recently by establishing peace with a few of their other Arab neighbors. We hope for peace in the region and look forward to sharing part 2, on Son of Hamas.
Israel: A Simple Guide to the Most Misunderstood Country on Earth - Noa Tishby
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Recommendation of the Week: Trader Joe's Peanut Satay Noodles
The Web of Ideas: Israel - A Simple Guide (my notes on the book)
Show Notes:
4:15 - Are Israelis colonizers? What are Jews claims over the land of Israel?
15:33 - Why do we even need a Jewish state?
25:53 - Is Israel an apartheid state?
29:01 - How do the surrounding Arab states help the Palestinians?
34:22 - A couple more wars and hope for peace
42:59 - Who is the biggest threat in the Middle East?
47:18 - A villian more terrifying than your worst nightmare - Hamas
50:32 - Western democracy is alive & well in the Middle East
56:58 - How can we reach permanent peace?
In this episode, we cover the rapid rise and stunning fall of crypto darling, FTX. Sam Bankman-Fried and his firm FTX provide us with a number of incredible INVERT lessons, such as never installing a board or CFO, hiring anyone who walks through the front door, spending hundreds of millions on sports marketing in a non-core market, and lacking all forms of accountability. We discuss how the internal controls within FTX ran counter to the company's external perception, as tons of VCs and celebs wanted to get in on the action even when they didn't know what was going on under the hood. When crypto prices plummeted in late 2022, SBF tried to be a messiah in the industry, going around and saving multiple failing enterprises, but we quickly realized FTX may not be on stable footing themselves. We hope you enjoy this one!
Going Infinite: The Rise and Fall of a New Tycoon - Michael Lewis
John Ray Testimony Highlights - WSJ
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Recommendation of the Week: Funny skit song Cop Cuties
The Web of Ideas: Going Infinite (my notes on the book)
Show Notes:
2:56 - An unconventional childhood
8:04 - Optimizing for effective altruism
16:20 - Alameda Research... a vessel to save some vast number of lives?
23:19 - Capilizing on crypto's speculative frenzy
30:14 - "No experience necessary"
33:45 - Investor FOMO
37:02 - One giant dragon's liar of Alameda & FTX assets
40:31 - You can an endorsement deal! You get an endorsement deal!
48:00 - A complete absense of checks and balances
49:52 - Unlimited funds or unlimited customer deposits?
57:15 - But we didn't have criminal intent!
1:00:41 - Alameda's special privileges
1:02:41 - Bankruptcy...
In this episode we tell the story of Marvel, going back to way before Robert Downey Jr donned the Iron Man suit! Our story starts in 1961, when Stan Lee created the relatable Fantastic Four comics to compete with the superheroes Batman and Superman. Over the next 3 decades, Stan Lee went on to create incredible heroes such as Spiderman and Iron Man, sparking a tulipmania-like bubble in adult comics.
As the 90s rolled around, Marvel was saddled with debt and ready to take advantage of this fan hysteria. Only problem was - the bubble burst! Marvel, now overleveraged and facing declining sales, had to declare bankruptcy. This opened the door for an unlikely buyer to step in - Ike Perlmutter - a leader in the toy business.
As they sold rights to escape bankruptcy, Perlmutter, along with David Maisel and Kevin Feige, thought up a way that they could become a content producer themselves. They would use their characters as collateral, secure a $525 million loan, and take a swing with their own big budget superhero film: Iron Man. As you know, the rest was history.
Join us to hear the wild early stories of Marvel, how they created the movie studio, the subsequent Disney acquisition and decade-long hot streak, and what the future holds for this beloved company. Enjoy!
MCU: The Reign of Marvel Studios - Joanna Robinson, Dave Gonzales, & Gavin Edwards
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Recommendation of the Week: Tim Ferriss interviewing David Maisel
The Web of Ideas: The Reign of Marvel (my notes on the book)
Show Notes:
2:12 - Stan Lee and the tulip mania of comic books
7:06 - The burst of a bubble
11:07 - Ike Perlmutter steps in to acquire Marvel
15:14 - Selling off their top IP to escape bankruptcy
21:24 - The magic of David Maisel
28:02 - Iron Man's secret weapon? plausibility...
34:54 - The beginning of the Marvel Cinematic Universe
41:41 - The start of a historic run
46:56 - Marvel's creative committee - a classic case of the tail wagging the dog
52:02 - A momentous SONY & Marvel collab
1:00:11 - The culmination of a decade of Marvel dominance
1:03:13 - What does the future hold for Marvel?
The story of CRISPR reads like one straight out of a science fiction novel. It is filled with scientific breakthroughs, mad scientists, patent wars, and eventually, the ability to edit our own genes!
As a young kid, Jennifer Doudna was inspired by James Watson's The Double Helix. She wanted to learn more about this incredible field of DNA, but soon realized that thousands of other scientists had the same idea as her. So instead, she focused her energy on its less famous sibling, RNA. That proved to be a monumental decision.
Over the next two decades, she became an expert on RNA, putting her in the perfect position when CRISPR came knocking on her door. By experimenting with bacteria, Doudna's team was able to discover the amazing CRISPR-Cas9 system, basically combining her two specialties. Thus, they had unlocked a powerful gene editing tool for mankind.
While this discovery has huge immediate implications, it also raises serious ethical questions. What type of condition deserves the CRISPR treatment? How do we distinguish between disease vs enhancement? Will we simply resort to a genetic supermarket? In this episode, we tell the story of CRISPR and explore the many philosophical questions that come with this new technology. Enjoy!
The Code Breaker: Jennifer Doudna, Gene Editing, and the Future of the Human Race - Walter Isaacson
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Recommendation of the Week: Are People Paying Attention to Apple TV+
The Web of Ideas: The Code Breaker (my notes on the book)
Show Notes:
2:09 - The Double Helix
4:33 - The evolution of genes & DNA
9:12 - Never do something that a thousand other people are doing
17:50 - The magic of CRISPR enzymes
24:03 - Why are enzymes so important to us??
30:21 - Discovering the CRISPR Cas9 system
33:29 - The race for human gene-editing glory
37:20 - What are the implications of gene-editing?
42:04 - Germline edits and the future of the human race
51:26 - Super soldiers and geopolitical motivations
58:00 - Applying RNA & CRISPR to the Coronavirus Pandemic
The year was 2003. LEGO, the beloved company known for popularizing the little plastic building brick, was on the brink of bankruptcy. After overexpanding beyond their core business and taking on too much debt, the LEGO family felt they may have to sell their crown jewel. As a last-ditch effort, they decided to hand the keys to 35-year-old, former McKinsey consultant Jurgen Vig Knudstorp to turn around the company.
As he diagnosed the mistakes LEGO had made over the last decade, Jurgen kept asking himself a key question: Why do we exist? What makes us the best in the world at that one thing that nobody else can do? This framework is what led him to refocus on the brick, deleverage, and ultimately partner with experienced companies to grow the LEGO brand yet again. Today, LEGO is the most profitable toy company in the world, with ~28% profit margins and 10x larger profits than the next closest toy company. This episode is filled with lessons on the perils of overexpansion & overleverage, and how sometimes trimming down is the only way to grow sustainably. Enjoy!
The LEGO Story - Jens Anderson
Brick by Brick - David C Robertson
LEGO: Jurgen Vig Knudstorp Interview - Guy Raz
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Recommendation of the Week: LEGO Concorde
The Web of Ideas: Brick by Brick (my notes on the book)
Show Notes:
5:00 - 1998: LEGO's first year in the red since founding
15:12 - Luke Skywalker, LEGO's temporary savior
19:11 - It's just a thick, fat layer of cosmetics...
25:28 - Jorgen Vig Knudstorp's action plan: deleveraging and prioritizing what LEGO can do better than anyone else
29:56 - Shedding off the fat & getting a boost of BIONICLE!
32:10 - Danny Meyer - what makes you different and unique???
36:09 - There are no points awarded for difficulty
39:10 - Adults Welcome :)
46:40 - Growing into the most profitable toy company yet again
53:00 - They may not be the biggest brand in the world, but definitely one of the best!
56:51 - The modern-day LEGO
LEGO is one of the most beloved brands in the world, with 7 sets sold every second and 4 billion minifigures walking this Earth! The company's founding traces back 100+ years, as Ole Kirk Christiansen opened up a carpentry shop in the small Danish town of Billund. Over the years, he persisted through countless adversities - his wife passing away early, two World Wars, his workshop burning down - to build a high-quality toy company that gives his children joy. As Ole Kirk made the bold decision to shift from wooden toys to plastic, he set up his son, Godtfred, for the LEGO future we know today.
From the 1950s to the 70s, Godtfred executed the LEGO growth plan perfectly, running global ad campaigns to establish their brand, setting up international sales channels, patenting the ever-present interlocking brick, and building the first LEGOLAND location.
When the 3rd generation of LEGO family leaders, Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen, took over, he sparked life into a slow product development cycle and dominated the US market through a surprising partnership. It was all sunshine and rainbows until the 90s, when internal succession issues, creeping overleverage, and growing competition from digital media companies caused LEGO to have its first year in the red since its founding.
In this episode, we discuss the incredible evolution of The LEGO Group, spanning 3 generations of family leaders and global entrenchment. In the next episode, we'll discuss how LEGO was able to turnaround its financial woes and become the most profitable toy company in the world. Enjoy!!
The LEGO Story: How a Little Toy Sparked the World's Imagination - Jens Anderson
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Recommendation of the Week: Silicon Valley - HBO
The Web of Ideas: The LEGO Story (my notes on the book)
Show Notes:
2:56 - Ole Kirk the carpenter
8:37 - Greenlights - the worst of times may lead to the best of times
17:09 - LEGO's Founding
30:06 - Discovering plastics after WW2
35:53 - LEGO System in Play
41:09 - Godtfred's ambitions - international expansion!
44:24 - The LEGO patent and the modern-day brick
51:59 - Become a company of GIANTS
59:58 - LEGOLAND
1:04:27 - Kjeld's turn as the 3rd generation Kristiansen CEO
1:06:28 - An epic co-promotion campaign to dominate the US market
1:11:14 - Hello digital competitors!
1:23:12 - 1998 was LEGO's first year in the read since its founding...
In this episode, we dive into Morgan Housel's new book, Same as Ever, which chronicles a series of human behaviors that tend to repeat over time. We talk about how we're all constantly tempted to change and evolve, when sometimes the most powerful things in our lives are the ones that never change. The book offers great timeless insights into both life and business, such as how to sustain happiness for long periods of life, the most important variable in compounding, and the types of risk we will never predict. We also explore the power of the story, sharing how companies like Nvidia, LEGO, and Trader Joe's have used effective stories to sway customers and investors. Hope you enjoy this one!
Same as Ever - Morgan Housel
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Recommendation of the Week: Greatest of All Talk Podcast (for NBA fans)
The Web of Ideas: Same as Ever (my notes on the book)
Show Notes:
5:40 - Risk is what you don't see coming
13:27 - Happiness is reality minus expectations
20:33 - The best story wins
28:22 - Days of prosperity make us forget adversity
34:16 - The 8th wonder in the world
39:58 - Survival is key
49:21 - Incentives: the most powerful force in the world
58:00 - The long run is just a collection of short runs you have to put up with
1:03:54 - There are no points awarded for difficulty
We're back with an absolute banger of an episode - Capital Returns! The core idea behind Capital Returns is that high returns tend to attract more capital, aka competition, so over time what may have been an incredibly profitable company can deteriorate into a commoditized business. This is a crucial insight for both operators and investors alike. In the episode, we discuss different ways to take advantage of the capital cycle, such as Sam Zell's grave dancer playbook and the scaled economies shared framework that Costco operates under. We also touch on how ever-changing tech businesses can sometimes avoid the pernicious effects of the capital cycle, usually by establishing a mission-critical operating system for their end customer or by benefitting from a viral network effect. It's been a long time since we've been back, and we have a big surprise for you in this one, so we hope you enjoy it!
Capital Returns: Investing Through the Capital Cycle 2002 to 2015 - Marathon Asset Management
Recommendation of the Week: Taming the Mammoth - Why You Should Stop Caring What Other People Think
The Web of Ideas: Capital Returns (my notes on the book)
Show Notes:
2:50 - The big reveal
4:39 - High returns tend to attract competition
6:56 - Zeckendorf's first time dealing with oversupply
10:33 - The widget manufacturer
15:58 - Competition KILLS returns
22:02 - The misaligned incentives behind banking
28:24 - Sam Zell's grave dancer approach to investing
35:07 - Costco: the ultimate example of scaled economies shared
48:29 - If change is the only constant in technology, how do we protect ourselves???
56:28 - The sudden winners of today can just as easily become the losers of tomorrow
Mike Michalowicz's book, Profit First, provides a simple yet foundational idea: take your profit first. His theory flips the traditional sales - expenses = profits formula on its head, by telling small business owners to take their profit before paying expenses. He shares how we are all hardwired to spend what's available to us, so we must put those profit dollars out of sight, out of mind. By using Michalowicz's Profit First framework, thousands of entrepreneurs have already turned their cash-eating monsters into money-making machines. Over time, these businesses will see their profits accumulate into hefty war chests, enabling them to hire top talent and actually grow on a consistent basis. If you are an entrepreneur, investor, or owner-operator of any business, I think you'll find plenty of useful ideas in here.
Profit First - Mike Michalowicz
Recommendation of the Week: Palmer Luckey - Invest Like the Best
The Web of Ideas: Profit First (my notes on the book)
Show Notes:
4:17 - The Problem
8:08 - You can't always grow your way into profits
13:14 - Optimize for DURABILITY of consistent growth
20:40 - The key to profits? It's as simple as buying smaller plates...
25:36 - Implementation
29:30 - Adopt a question-everything mentality
36:14 - Pay peanuts and you get monkeys
40:29 - The best thing money can buy you is freedom
This episode will cap off our month-long deep dive into the mind of David Ogilvy. We'll explore how he used internal memos to ingrain his powerful ideas onto his team, such as becoming a company of giants and the teaching hospital of the advertising world. Ogilvy also shows us his playbook for excellence in any domain, which involves studying the precedents, doing the work, and relentlessly editing until your craft is perfect. Whether you are an ad man or not, this episode will be packed with insights for you. As Ogilvy says, it'll appeal to those of you who've "installed a generator" within. Join me in studying a true learning machine, David Ogilvy!
The Unpublished - David Ogilvy
Recommendation of the Week: Jury Duty
The Web of Ideas: The Unpublished (my notes on the book)
Show Notes:
2:47 - If you ever find a man who is better than you are - HIRE HIM
6:21 - Become a company of GIANTS
7:50 - Rockefeller: no one does anything if he can get anybody else to do it
10:33 - Hard work never killed a man
12:47 - Who's ready for a promotion?
15:12 - Ogilvy's excellence playbook
21:03 - How to write a memo
23:21 - Every ad should contribute to the long-term image of a brand
28:27 - Your reputation follows you
34:20 - Be a professional: study the greats who came before you, read every book on the subject, conduct your own professional research - simply, BE A PROFESSIONAL
This is my favorite book on David Ogilvy - it combines his memorable mantras with the stunning visual ads that established his legacy, creating a masterclass in effective advertising & leadership. If you are a high-achiever in any realm, you will find this episode inspiring. You will learn how Ogilvy consistently increased the quality of talent within his company, studied the greats who came before him, and differentiated his product offerings from those of his competitors. I learned A TON from this book and believe you'll find value in it as well. Enjoy!
Ogilvy on Advertising - David Ogilvy
Recommendation of the Week: Sam Zell - The Tim Ferriss Show
The Web of Ideas: Ogilvy on Advertising (my notes on the book)
Show Notes:
3:12 - Do your homework
7:39 - Promise, large promise, is the soul of an advertisement
16:34 - You aren't advertising to a standing army, you are advertising to a moving parade
19:01 - Who, do you suppose, is more likely to be right???
22:22 - Become a company of giants
25:18 - It is suicide to settle for second-rate performance
27:43 - You have 5 seconds to catch their attention...
30:08 - The more facts you tell, the more you sell
35:02 - TV as the new dominant ad medium
39:15 - Differentiation is SURVIVAL
41:31 - What Proctor & Gamble gets right
48:17 - Why reinvent the wheel when the wheel is right in front of you?
55:35 - Your product is making people's lives better!
In this episode, we dive deeper into the mind of advertising legend, David Ogilvy. He shares with us how his endless pursuit of knowledge led him to the top of the advertising industry, a path that any high-achiever can emulate. Ogilvy gives us the keys to creating successful ad campaigns, such as offering the customer a benefit and packing the copy with facts - essential advice to entrepreneurs looking to sell more effectively. On the leadership side, Ogilvy equips us with many mantras that can be used to motivate our own troops, ranging from setting sky-high ambitions to overcoming complacency and "success disease". Lastly, Ogilvy describes how he attracted the best companies to become clients of his firm, by avoiding the pernicious winner's curse and breaking away from the misaligned incentives so common in his industry. I believe that we are ALL always selling something, whether it's a new product to potential customers or our talent to an employer, so this episode is a must-listen for everyone.
Confessions of an Advertising Man - David Ogilvy
Modern Day "Long Copy" - Apple
I am deeply saddened by the Hamas terrorist attacks carried out against Israel last weekend. The way these terrorists murdered, raped, kidnapped, and tortured innocent civilians is absolutely barbaric and inhumane. I am praying for the safe return of those kidnapped and for peace in the region. For those looking to help, United Hatzalah is a great organization providing emergency relief services to those injured. If you'd like to learn more about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the evil of Hamas, I found these three pieces highly informative: War in Israel, When Things Fall Apart, and Jared Kushner on the Lex Friedman podcast. Stay safe and let's aim to be a light in this world.
Recommendation of the Week: Jesse Itzler - My First Million Pod
The Web of Ideas: Confessions of an Advertising Man (my notes on the book)
Show Notes:
2:25 - The good ones know their craft
6:10 - The key to success is to promise the consumer a benefit
12:29 - You're not advertising to a standing army, you're advertising to a moving parade
17:00 - Don't bunt. Aim out of the park. Aim for the company of immortals
24:49 - Search all the parks in all your cities, you'll find no statues of committees
28:21 - Avoid competition like the plague
32:54 - Align the incentives with your clients
36:56 - Invest in what you use
41:45 - Every ad is a contribution to the long-term brand image
47:15 - Writing potent copy: headlines and body
56:18 - Test everything
58:44 - The power of advertising
David Ogilvy is the godfather of the modern advertising industry. He started his agency, Ogilvy & Mather, at 38, and quickly catapulted to the top of the advertising profession. Today, we'll learn exactly how he did that. Through a combination of relentless persistence and "professional research", Ogilvy was deemed the king of advertising only a decade after entering the business. He used his long-form campaigns to create multiple industry leaders, from Rolls Royce to Shell to American Express. As he gained more success, Ogilvy started to leave an imprint on the entire industry, establishing the concept of a brand image. Within his own company, Ogilvy preached the value of developing talent, aiming to be the "teaching hospital" of the advertising world. Ogilvy has a way with words and is an excellent teacher of advertising principles. This episode ought to be useful for anyone looking to reach the top of their profession, build a world-class organization, or advertise effectively to their customers.
The King of Madison Avenue: David Ogilvy and the Making of Modern Advertising - Kenneth Roman
Runnin' Down a Dream: How to Succeed and Thrive in a Career You Love - Bill Gurley
Recommendation of the Week: The Prestige - Christopher Nolan
The Web of Ideas: The King of Madison Avenue (my notes on the book)
Show Notes:
4:10 - A real-life Don Draper
7:38 - Driven by his father's failures and sibling jealousy
12:36 - Selling Aga cookers door to door
22:24 - An Obsession with advertising
26:19 - Seeking out the experts - Claude Hopkins and John Caples
30:03 - Work hard in the dark to shine in the light
37:21 - Describe the process technique with Rolls Royce
42:02 - Ogilvy becomes "the apostle of the brand image"
45:35 - Ogilvy & Mather will be the teaching hospital of the advertising world
48:36 - Winning over General Foods, Shell, & AMEX
53:30 - Devote your genius to making the cash register ring
1:00:24 - You must know it to the dollar to have an edge
In part two, we explore how Elon Musk went from a crazy innovator to one of the richest people in history. After raising crucial funds for Tesla during its early days, Musk proceeded to double down on a new mass-market car, the Model 3. He leaned into vertical integration and a software-driven competitive advantage, ensuring that Tesla would stand out compared to its auto industry peers. Over at SpaceX, he continued to fear any sense of complacency, building mind-blowing new rockets such as the Falcon 9 and Starship. We'll dive into the powerful Algorithm framework that makes this all possible, highlighting how he questions every requirement and demands a maniacal sense of urgency from his team. Lastly, we'll close by discussing his recent Twitter acquisition and ask the thought-provoking question, should we envy Elon Musk?
Elon Musk - Walter Isaacson
SpaceX Falcon 9 2015 Launch
Recommendation of the Week: James Cameron - Founders Podcast
The Web of Ideas: Elon Musk (my notes on the book)
Show Notes:
2:29 - ALWAYS doubling down - the Falcon 9 & Model S
6:21 - Be like a cockroach - hard to kill
9:47 - Tesla's competitive advantage: the machine that builds the machine
13:58 - A modern-day Henry Ford - 5,000 Model 3's per week
22:16 - The Algorithm
29:18 - SpaceX's Starlink internet services & Starship rocket
34:40 - Musk's employees: "I'd rather be burned out than bored"
36:55 - Change is the only constant in technology
38:42 - Setting his eyes on Twitter
46:18 - Coming full circle on his X.com vision
49:57 - Advertising and free speech don't mix well
58:24 - Take risks and fail fast
1:01:32 - Should we envy Elon Musk?
In this two-part series, I'll dive into Walter Isaacson's brand new book on Elon Musk! Musk has an unbelievable story, overcoming his traumatic childhood in South Africa to create two of the greatest hard tech companies of our last century. In this first part, we'll discuss how his troubled relationship with his father led to an addiction to risk, unlike any other entrepreneur. You'll hear the founding stories of his first two internet startups, Zip2 & PayPal, and how those exits gave him the opportunity to start a new space company from scratch. We'll analyze how he differentiated against all the entrenched space incumbents, and constantly beat them on price as he built SpaceX's reputation. Lastly, we'll touch on the origin story of the Roadster and the many struggles it faced as Tesla had to scale up production. Enjoy this journey into the mind of a young Elon Musk!
Elon Musk - Walter Isaacson
PayPal Episodes - The Founders & A Conversation with Jimmy Soni
Recommendation of the Week: Project Hail Mary (sci-fi!)
The Web of Ideas: Elon Musk (my notes on the book)
Show Notes:
3:02 - Addicted to risk and shutting down fear
7:40 - Seeking an escape in books and programming
13:55 - A roof is a man-made thing
17:51 - Zip2: basically Google Maps before Google Maps
22:44 - X.com: A one-stop everything store for all financial needs
29:51 - My mission in life is to make mankind a multi-planetary civilization
35:34 - Differentiation is SURVIVAL
38:38 - Question everything mentality
45:14 - Trial by fire
53:12 - Changing the perception of EVs, one luxury Roadster at a time
1:00:00 - Musk needs total control
1:07:00 - I will never give up, and I mean never... as God is my bloody witness, I'm hell-bent on making it work
"Scientific Advertising", written 100 years ago, offers timeless wisdom on advertising at scale. Claude Hopkins teaches us how he was able to convince the entire nation to care about brushing teeth daily, through his famous Pepsodent ads, by appealing to our simple desire for beauty. He shares effective tactics for sparking action in customers, such as using the word FREE and offering samples to win over lifelong customers. You'll learn numerous advertising strategies that are still in use today, including the value of mail-order ads and how Apple employs his "describe the process" technique on its new product announcements. Whether you are trying to sell a product in your business or sell your story to a potential employer, we all use advertising in our daily lives. This book serves as a foundational tool for anyone looking to improve their advertising success.
Scientific Advertising - Claude Hopkins
Recommendation of the Week: BlackBerry - 2023 Movie
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The Web of Ideas: Scientific Advertising (my notes on the book)
Show Notes:
2:58 - Advertising is Multiplied Salesmanship
7:20 - Pepsodent Toothpaste - a simple desire for beauty
11:57 - Customers respond to FREE like starving people at a buffet
16:46 - Find your ideal customers and offer service
22:44 - Describe the process - Schlitz Beer & Apple
30:00 - Perfected mail-order ads still win over new readers
36:33 - Grab the customer's attention quickly with your headline
38:29 - Work hard in the dark to shine in the light
40:17 - Position your product with a mental impression - SONY's pocketable radio & VCR
44:21 - The essence of Scientific Advertising: we let the thousands decide what the millions will do
48:42 - Small expenditures made on a guess will grow to big ones on a certainty
In this episode, we continue our INVERT focus with an all-time classic, "The Big Short". We'll dive into the misaligned incentives that encouraged banks to pursue growth at all costs and led to the Great Financial Crisis. We'll explore the value investing strategies of Michael Burry, the first big short investor, who spotted the trouble ahead and bet on it through credit default swaps. We'll say "these shitty loans" A LOT. Most of all, we'll walk away with a deep understanding of the catalysts behind the GFC, and the recurring mistakes made across crises. I hope you enjoy this eye-opening journey into Michael Lewis's "The Big Short"
The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine - Michael Lewis
The Big Short - 2015 Movie
INVERT episodes: When Genius Failed, Liar's Poker, Bull! A History of the Dotcom Bust, A Short History of Financial Euphoria, Zeckendorf, The Liar's Ball----
Recommendation of the Week: Costco - Acquired
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The Web of Ideas: The Big Short (my notes on the book)
Show Notes:
3:40 - The growing subprime mortgage-backed bond market
6:43 - Michael Burry - spotting the ticking time bomb before anyone else
12:20 - "Ick" investing
18:43 - A level of preparation beyond any of his peers
24:33 - Collecting fees while ignoring fat tails
29:20 - Synthetic CDOs = unlimited exposure
35:34 - Targeting less-educated immigrants to grow volumes
44:05 - Eisman finds his fool
46:47 - Correlations go to one during a crisis
50:10 - "Be aware that information flows down a food chain, with those who get it first EAT and those who get it late BEING EATEN" - Ed Thorp
55:53 - The last buyer of subprime mortgage risk had stopped buying
1:01:00 - All it takes is a slight decline of assets to go bankrupt
1:05:42 - The transferring of risk from execs to shareholders
1:09:38 - NEVER be dependent on the kindness of strangers
Roger Lowenstein's book "When Genius Failed" is one of the best business failure case studies I've ever read. As we come up on the 25-year anniversary of Long-Term Capital Management's downfall, I thought it would be a great time to explore the lessons behind their fall from grace. LTCM started as a hot new hedge fund in the mid-90s, ready to deliver outstanding returns through their team of "genius" Ph.D. financial experts and unique bond arbitrage strategy. They posted incredible results over the first 4 years, multiplying their investor's capital by 4x, but then only 6 months later, nearly lost it all. The story of Long-Term contains many valuable insights on what NOT to do, such as ignoring fat tail risks, loading up on leverage, and letting hubris reach unbearable levels amongst the partners. I'm excited to share with you the illuminating rise and fall of Wall Street's greatest fund ever, or at least the one with the highest IQs, Long-Term Capital Management!
When Genius Failed: The Rise and Fall of Long-Term Capital Management - Roger Lowenstein
How the Eggheads Cracked - Michael Lewis
INVERT episodes: Liar's Poker, Bull! A History of the Dotcom Bust, A Short History of Financial Euphoria, Zeckendorf, The Liar's Ball
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The Web of Ideas: When Genius Failed (my notes on the book)
Show Notes:
4:30 - Salomon's trading scandal
9:38 - An edge of PhD "geniuses"
13:00 - Long-Term's core thesis: betting on convergence & efficient markets
18:06 - Leveraging their capital 20-30x
22:14 - Having little understanding of how Meriwether's gang actually operated
26:58 - 1994 the fund starts
28:19 - Buying the illiquid securities
34:03 - Nearly every trade it touched turned to gold
36:38 - The secret of bond arbitrage is out
37:46 - Trading equity for more leverage
41:30 - A fat tail event can be catastrophic
45:53 - A flight to quality within US Treasuries
51:12 - The Russian Ruble tail event they never expected
53:33 - Just because it's never happened before, doesn't mean it won't happen in the future...
55:09 - All the buyers have suddenly disappeared
57:21 - Long-Term is dependent on the kindness of strangers and is running out of friends
1:02:11 - The correlations had gone to one
1:07:34 - What NOT to do - playing Russian roulette with a highly leveraged portfolio
Michael Lewis's first book, Liar's Poker, is the ultimate case study of misaligned incentives. The book covers the rise of Salomon Brothers as the king of bond trading in the 80s, and the many perverse incentives that later lead to their downfall. Throughout this episode, we learn what NOT to do when running a business, and as Charlie Munger likes to say, invert always invert! We'll discuss how Salomon Brothers built a thriving monopoly in mortgage bonds only to lose it all within 5 years, how traders were always incentivized to screw over their customers first, and how the money game rewarded disloyalty within the firm. Get excited for the wild Wolf of Wall Street-esque debauchery in Liar's Poker!
Liar's Poker - Michael Lewis
INVERT episodes: Bull! A History of the Dotcom Bust, A Short History of Financial Euphoria, Zeckendorf, The Liar's Ball
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The Web of Ideas: Liar's Poker (my notes on the book)
Show Notes:
3:59 - Michael Lewis joins Salomon Brothers
8:38 - They have PhDs in man's ignorance
12:31 - Fraternal Wolf of Wall Street-esque culture
18:04 - Dog-eat-dog world of the trading floor
21:09 - Lewis Ranieri: The Father of the Mortgage-Backed Security
28:06 - From laughingstock to a thriving monopoly
35:38 - A stamp from the government quells all fears
39:15 - Feeling on top of the world but not getting paid like it!
43:05 - The disintegration of the Salomon mortgage department
48:54 - History never repeats but man always does
51:01 - Customers have short memories, they'll forget about it!
54:48 - Selling him something I probably wouldn't touch with a barge pole...
57:50 - Salomon turns to a friendly savior
1:04:44 - The money game rewarded disloyalty
Made in Japan is the incredible autobiography of Akio Morita, the cofounder of SONY. Akio Morita started SONY in the rubble of post-WW2 Japan, determined to make Japan known as a country of high quality products. Throughout SONY’s rise, he was always focused on leading the technological transition from real world senses to digital consumption, pioneering fundamental inventions such as the tape recorder, pocketable radio, slow-mo camera, VCR, color TV, and portable music player, the SONY Walkman. In many ways, Akio Morita was Steve Jobs before Steve Jobs, creating many of the genius marketing tactics that later would inspire Jobs to market Apple products. We'll dive into how a worldbuilder like Morita was able to shift the perception of ALL Japanese products and stay ahead of the constantly changing competitive landscape in technology - this is a fun one!
Made in Japan: Akio Morita and SONY - Akio Morita Steve Jobs iPod Presentation: "A Thousand Songs in your Pocket" - YouTube (correction note: the iPod was in his jeans pocket, not his shirt)
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The Web of Ideas: Made in Japan (my notes on the book)
Show Notes:
4:40 - Obsessed with music phonographs as a kid
9:03 - Meeting his cofounder Masaru Ibuka
13:01 - The War was over
14:19 - Getting his father's blessing
18:13 - Experimenting with a tape recorder
23:03 - You need more than just a great product...
27:20 - Reinventing the transistor for radios
32:40 - The "Pocketable" radio and global ambitions
36:45 - Establishing a high-quality SONY brand
43:37 - Marketing through their own retail outlets
49:04 - With VCR, you can control your own schedule
53:41 - Charging a premium for premium products
57:33 - Conventional wisdom produces convention results - the SONY Walkman
1:04:53 - In the technology industry, the only thing we can be certain of is that the business will never stand still
1:07:39 - Innovate or Die
1:09:57 - Japan vs US cultural differences
1:14:12 - How Japan turned their weakness into an advantage
1:18:06 - The modern-day SONY
Danny Meyer's book Setting the Table is an instant favorite amongst entrepreneur memoirs, up there with the likes of Creativity Inc and Shoe Dog. Danny Meyer opened his first restaurant, Union Square Cafe, in 1985, and has been prolific since then, building and expanding premier restaurant concepts across NYC and other major markets. In addition to that, he founded and scaled Shake Shack into the nationwide burger chain that is it today, taking the company public in 2015. In this episode, we learn how his obsession to hospitality helped him overcome the high failure rates and bankruptcies in the restaurant industry, and explore many of the tools he used to distinguish himself. I'm thrilled to share the story and wide-ranging insights from Danny Meyer's career!
Setting the Table: The Transforming Power of Hospitality in Business - Danny Meyer
Runnin' Down a Dream: How to Succeed & Thrive in a Career You Love - Bill Gurley
Welcome to Hillstone, America's Favorite Restaurant - Bon Appetit
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The Web of Ideas: Setting the Table (my notes on the book)
Show Notes: 3:38 - Hospitality exists when you believe the other person is on your side
5:42 - His father is both his hero and the ultimate warning of what NOT to do
11:40 - Experimenting and finding inspiration as a child
15:23 - Pursuing his dream as a restauranteur
18:23 - Bill Gurley's advice: seek out the experts in your field
21:33 - Professional research: be the MOST knowledgeable in your field!
26:18 - Selecting a location for Union Square Cafe
31:45 - Less is more
36:09 - There is no such thing as an "overnight success"
39:21 - Always be collecting dots
43:15 - Excellence is preparation
47:20 - Founding Shake Shack - be the consummate student AND master
56:21 - What makes ours different and special??
1:00:10 - It's the "whelming" candidate you must avoid at all costs...
1:04:59 - The more we give, the more we get back
1:08:52 - An OBSESSION to hospitality
Matthew McConaughey's book Greenlights gives us a valuable metaphor for life: the problems we face today eventually turn into blessings in the rearview mirror of life. I'll discuss how he was able to use visualization and eliminate limiting beliefs to catapult himself into the superstar league of Hollywood actors. McConaughey will also share with us the tough times he experienced along the way to stardom, and how those redlights only helped him come out of the other side even stronger. I really enjoyed reading this book, not only because McConaughey is a great storyteller, but also because many of his stories and poems pack a ton of wisdom. Get excited for an entertaining journey through the life of Matthew McConaughey!
Greenlights - Matthew McConaughey
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Show Notes:
4:11 - A rambunctious and creative childhood
7:46 - The man in the car paradox
11:38 - Studying abroad in Australia
17:22 - Pursuing a storyteller's dream
21:41 - Visualizing "Who's my man?"
27:07 - A Roof is a man-made thing!
31:38 - Days of prosperity make us forget adversity
35:14 - His romantic comedy streak
37:31 - Process of elimination - less is more
40:24 - The worst of times lead to the best of times
47:10 - A redlight turned greenlight... the McConaissance!
52:09 - A Greenlights mentality means we have to sometimes go through pain, suffering, and darkness to make it out the other side even better
Living with a SEAL is a hilarious & motivating book that chronicles the month Jesse Itzler spent training with Navy SEAL legend David Goggins. Serial entrepreneur Jesse Itzler was looking for a new challenge in life, after starting a private jet pass company and growing the Zico Coconut Water brand. He happened to run into David Goggins at an ultra marathon race and immediately decided that this man could shake up his routine. Itzler convinced Goggins to spend a month living with him, his wife - the founder of Spanx Sara Blakely, and their young child, as they workout together. What emerged was a day-by-day account of the physical challenges they faced together, as Goggins showed Itzler what makes a resilient mind. We'll dive deeper into the strategies of David Goggins, from seeking out daily discomfort to testing your own limits, which can have a life-changing impact on all of us!
Living with a SEAL: 31 Days Training with the Toughest Man on the Planet - Jesse Itzler
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Show Notes:
3:01 - Every day do something that makes you uncomfortable
5:35 - Giving Goggins the keys to his life
9:19 - Itzler's businesses: Marquis Jets & Zico Coconut Water
18:28 - Goggins' no excuses mentality and the 40% rule
23:53 - If it doesn't suck, we don't do it
29:55 - Conquering that internal voice
31:59 - Test your limits
35:07 - Unfathomable workouts to end on
37:19 - Visualization and self-belief
Can't Hurt Me is one of the most inspiring books I've ever read. David Goggins takes us through his tough upbringing and years battling a victim mentality, until he decided enough was enough. He shares how he remarkably lost 106 pounds in only a few months, as he became obsessed with joining the Navy SEALs. Throughout this unbelievable story, Goggins shows us how to develop a calloused mind, one that stands up to pain & fear and seeks out the uncomfortable. As his career progresses, he goes on to run 100+ mile ultra marathons on a regular basis and beats the worldwide pull-up record in a 24-hour period, demonstrating that we all can achieve feats way beyond the limits we place on ourselves. After hearing Goggins' incredible life story, you will be ready to run through a brick wall!
Can't Hurt Me: Master Your Mind and Defy the Odds - David Goggins
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Show Notes:
2:07 - Growing up with an abusive father
5:18 - Every day was a lesson in survival
7:39 - Being the only black kid in school
10:55 - An aspirational goal to escape his victim mentality
12:44 - The Accountability Mirror - I brainwashed myself into craving discomfort
16:05 - Reverting to old habits
21:11 - An impossible task of losing 106 pounds
25:20 - David Goggins becomes GOGGINS
29:14 - Hell week is a battle of the mind
36:58 - Attacking his fear of water head-on
40:51 - A PhD in pain
42:57 - Conquering ultras using the cookie jar concept
49:42 - His work ethic does the recruiting
52:20 - The 40% rule - when everyone else is sleeping, I'm in the gym
56:51 - There is no finish line Goggins
59:30 - Going for the pull-up record
1:03:03 - Soundtracks: the most important conversations you'll ever have are the ones you'll have with yourself
Morgan Housel’s fantastic book “The Psychology of Money” is a collection of stories on how we interact with our own money. I really enjoyed reading Housel’s book (for the second time!) because it contains many fundamental lessons on investing psychology. He emphasizes that the true wealth lies not in material possessions or lavish lifestyles, but in the freedom it affords us. The best thing money can buy us is freedom. Housel also describes that while we often fixate on high-flying investment strategies, the key to long-term wealth accumulation is actually prioritizing financial survival. By optimizing for survival and using a “how well you sleep at night” barometer, we’ll allow compounding to work its magic over time. I'm thrilled to share the memorable stories and lessons from The Psychology of Money!
The Psychology of Money: Timeless Lessons on Wealth, Greed, and Happiness - Morgan Housel
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Show Notes:
3:01 - History never repeats itself but man always does
7:25 - What seems crazy to you might make sense to me
12:08 - Never enough mentalities
16:44 - The best thing money can buy you is freedom
24:20 - Compounding is the 8th wonder of the world
29:01 - Survival is priority #1
32:51 - Optimize for how well you'll sleep at night
37:43 - Volatility is the price we pay for market-level returns
40:39 - Stories sell stocks
48:45 - Tails drive everything
54:05 - Morgan Housel's personal money management strategy: independence & simplicity above all else
"The Irvine Ranch", by Martin A. Brower, shares the remarkable rise of the Irvine Company from a citrus crop ranch to a local real estate behemoth. The Irvine Company is the closest thing to a monopoly I've found in the largely commoditized world of real estate, where they began by owning 100,000 acres of prime land in the Southern California beach region and have since developed that into a residential, office, and shopping master-planned community. We discuss their playbook for gaining local market dominance, from partnering with merchant builders in the early days to constructing their own diversified portfolio over time. We dive deep into the ownership tenure of Donald Bren, who supercharged the Irvine region's growth with his executive developer program, built antifragility into his business with internal cash flow financed developments, and created a culture of excellence by consistently retaining top talent. I'm so excited to share the story of the Irvine Company with you!
The Irvine Ranch: A Time for People: A 50-Year Overview of the Development of the Irvine Ranch in Orange County, California - Martin A. Brower
Donald Bren Q&A - USC Lusk Center for Real Estate
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Show Notes:
2:15 - Acquiring the Irvine Ranch
5:52 - The University of California Irvine
8:52 - William Pereira's Grand Master Plan
12:04 - Starting their own development pipeline
16:49 - Don Valentine's Aircraft Carrier Model
20:16 - The City of Irvine
23:12 - The Sale of the Irvine Company
25:50 - Public pushback challenges
27:23 - Donald Bren takes over
32:05 - Donald Bren's hands-on management style
33:42 - Retaining OG talent & raising rents
39:40 - A well-oiled machine
42:29 - The Executive Developer Program to fast-track growth
44:06 - Location location location & demographics!
46:50 - The Irvine Company today - a pseudo monopoly that can set prices at will
48:46 - "Time is their friend" with internally CF-financed projects
50:13 - NIMBY challenges go hand in hand with beneficial limited supply
Vicky Ward’s “The Liar’s Ball” gives us a lens into the famous 2003 sale of the GM Building, one of the most valuable real estate buildings in American history. We’ll see how numerous real estate titans, from William Zeckendorf to Sam Zell, all played a role in this asset’s history - while we’ll particularly focus on the decisions made by the protagonist, Harry Macklowe. Macklowe’s journey to owning the GM Building teaches us vital lessons about excessive leverage and unlimited ambition, as he sought to build a legacy in the elite New York real estate world. I highly recommend this book to all investors, especially those in the real estate space, so let’s jump right into the story of the GM Building!
The Liar's Ball: The Extraordinary Saga of How One Building Broke the World's Toughest Tycoons - Vicky Ward
Pairs well with our recent Zeckendorf episode!
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Show Notes:
2:55 - Harry Macklowe: Fueled by debt and driven by ego
5:29 - Zeckendorf begins the Upper East Side revitalization
11:34 - Cecilia Benattar leads the storied GM Building development
16:52 - GM buys the building themselves
19:30 - It ends up in the hands of Donald Trump
21:36 - Trump loses the building
24:13 - Your reputation follows you - Zell rejects partnering with Trump
25:43 - Eastdil puts it on the market for $1.2 billion!
28:01 - Demanding a non-refundable $50 million deposit
32:29 - Harry Macklowe signs an unmarked contract to win the deal
34:39 - The Famous Apple cube
40:47 - You can't turn off ambition (Macklowe's never enough mentality)
45:35 - Ultimate risk-on through maximum leverage & personal guarantees
47:47 - The vultures will simply wait you out to feed on your carcass
50:22 - Macklowe's fire sale to avoid bankruptcy
53:58 - He makes his comeback with 432 Park Avenue
56:59 - What gets you to the top may lead to your downfall...
Michael Mauboussin’s book “The Success Equation” walks through how to distinguish skill from luck and its impact on everything from investing to sports. Mauboussin is the author of one of my favorite books of all time, Expectations Investing, and this one has similarly powerful insights. He teaches us how to develop skill through deliberate practice and how to overcome stronger opponents as an underdog. He also shares the counterintuitive paradox of skill, where as skill improves, luck becomes even MORE important, a framework affecting financial markets and sports leagues today. Lastly, Mauboussin shows us the value of persistence in skill-based activities, explaining the impact reversion to the mean has on technology companies and public market investors. Let's jump right into the important lessons behind skill vs luck!
The Success Equation: Untangling Skill and Luck in Business, Sports, and Investing - Michael Mauboussin
bubble.com memo - Howard Marks
Increasing Returns and the New World of Business - Brian Arthur
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Show Notes:
1:47 - Distinguishing luck vs skill
6:04 - The Luck-Skill Continuum
10:59 - Developing skill through deliberate performance
14:35 - Improving skill through feedback - pick ROI over EGO
16:29 - The Paradox of Skill: as skill improves, luck becomes even MORE important
19:54 - Reversion to the Mean: Public Markets & VC firms
25:58 - Change is the only constant in technology (Howard Marks)
31:30 - Brian Arthur's Increasing Returns to Scale
35:48 - Overcoming a more skillful opponent as the underdog
41:25 - Clayton Christenson's Innovators Dilemma: Minimills vs Steel Mills
49:13 - Avoiding Survivorship Bias - study business failures for what NOT to do
52:46 - Beware of small sample sizes when luck is involved
Moneyball, the groundbreaking book by Michael Lewis, forever changed the landscape of professional sports. Moneyball tells the inspiring story of the Oakland A's, a small-market baseball team that defied the odds by leveraging advanced data to gain a competitive edge in the highly traditional world of baseball. The hero of this story is the Oakland A's general manager, Billy Beane, who repeatedly challenged the conventional wisdom of the game by favoring data-driven decision-making over the scouts’ “eye test”. He managed the team much like a hedge fund manager would trade assets, exploiting market inefficiencies to build a competitive roster, despite having a significantly lower payroll than his peers. Let’s dive into the extraordinary story that started the sports analytics revolution!
Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game - Michael Lewis Expectations Debt - Morgan Housel
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Show Notes: 2:22 - Billy Beane's experience as a top HS prospect forged his view as a GM later on 7:56 - Expectations Debt 14:43 - Bill James, a pioneer of baseball analytics 18:00 - Conventional wisdom often produces conventional results 21:35 - We need to be DIFFERENT to win 23:19 - Bet where you have an edge 26:57- Euclis: the Greek God of Walks 31:17 - Zig when others zag... college > HS pitchers 33:42 - A pseudo hedge fund manager 38:45 - Buying low when teams lose hope 42:21 - Avoiding the echo chamber of traditional execs 44:59 - Pick ROI over EGO 48:42 - Luck kills them in the playoffs 52:04 - The sports analytics revolution & beyond
Today we'll be discussing "The Club: How the Premier League Became the Richest, Most Disruptive Business in Sports" by Joshua Robinson and Jonathan Clegg. Since its inception as a breakaway league in 1992, the English Premier League has risen to become one of the largest and most lucrative sports leagues in the world. Behind the glitz and glamour lies a tale of business owner drama, where unprecedented money flowed in from Russian Oligarchs and Abu Dhabi royalty alike. Moreover, we examine the pivotal lessons learned in the realm of sports commercialization and cable rights, revealing how the Premier League took a page from the NFL’s playbook to become an entertainment juggernaut. Let’s jump right into this fascinating story on the Premier League!
The Club: How the English Premier League Became the Wildest, Richest, Most Disruptive Force in Sports - Joshua Robinson & Jonathan Clegg
The NFL: The Complete History and Strategy - Acquired Podcast
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Show Notes:
3:45 - David Dein studying the great before them, the NFL
6:53 - Innovator's Dilemma
13:42 - Rupert Murdoch secures the first TV rights deal for the upstart Premier League
18:57 - Manchester United shows strength leads to strength
21:45 - Eric Cantona Work hard in the dark to shine in the light!
26:22 - Chelsea spends their way into title contenders
37:27 - Manchester City actively weakening their opponents
45:03 - Richard Scudamore expands the EPL to the global stage
51:57 - Competition no more
58:32 - You need to spend to survive
1:04:22 - Cable bundle = sports bundle?
Phil Knight's memoir "Shoe Dog” shares his incredible entrepreneurial journey that transformed a small business selling running shoes in Oregon into the global behemoth we know today as Nike. From his ultra risk-taking mentality to deep passion for shoes, Knight was able to create an entire new running market when casual runners were mocked before. He endlessly experimented with his cofounder Bowerman on new product designs, building a cult-like following amongst his customers and even driving word of mouth sales to his home doorstep. So, tighten your laces and embark on this inspiring journey with me as we dive into the lessons behind "Shoe Dog," revealing the highs and lows of the legendary entrepreneur Phil Knight!
Shoe Dog - Phil Knight
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Phil Jackson’s book "Eleven Rings" shares his insights on leadership after winning 11 championships in 20 seasons! Studying coaches can teach us about leadership in any domain, spanning from delegating authority and suggestively nudging those you lead to differentiating from competitors. We’ll see repeated themes from past episodes, including John D. Rockefeller, Ed Catmull, HBO, Bill Walsh, and more. Phil Jackson coached some of the greatest players in NBA history, such as Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, and Shaquille O'Neal, dealing with complex egos on the path to numerous titles. He is an all-time legendary coach, winning 75% of the championships during a 12-year coaching span and over 50% of the titles in all his seasons in charge. Enjoy this masterclass in leadership!
Eleven Rings: The Soul of Success - Phil Jackson
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Kobe Bryant's book "The Mamba Mentality" teaches us vital lessons about studying the greats who came before us, working hard in the dark to shine in the light, and why we need obsession to reach the level of greatness. After listening to his insights, you will walk away feeling inspired to outwork your competitors and revel in the process. Kobe's powerful Mamba Mentality guided him through an incredible career in the NBA, winning 5 championships and scoring the 4th most points of all time. Get ready for a masterclass in mental fortitude - "When everyone else was thinking it was time for bed, his mind was telling him it's time to get ahead of the competition!"
The Mamba Mentality: How I Play - Kobe Bryant
The Redeem Team - Netflix
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Today we'll cover the phenomenal book "Michael Jordan: The Life" by Roland Lazenby. Michael Jordan is widely considered the greatest basketball player of all time, having won six NBA championships, five NBA MVPs, and expanding the game of basketball to the global stage. You could put all the best directors and writers in a room and they wouldn’t be able to create the story of MJ… But it wasn't just his natural talent that made him great; Jordan was known for his relentless obsession to practice and his competitive drive. So in this episode, we'll discuss the lessons from his unbelievable rise, from being cut by his HS varsity team to conquering the entire NBA. Get excited for a motivating journey through the life of Michael Jordan!!
Michael Jordan: The Life - Roland Lazenby
The Last Dance - Netflix
My Favorite Jordan Lessons:
- Greatness requires obsession (approach every practice like Game 7 of the Finals)
- The common denominator of success is doing what no one else is willing to do
- The habits you repeat again and again when no one is watching are what allow you to perform on the biggest stages
- Use slights as a competitive edge
- Don’t let ego get in the way of improvement (have "big ears")
- Elevate your teammates to win
- Watch game tape (relentlessly study the greats)
- Bet on yourself and have skin in the game (Nike)
- Bounce back to administer the pain (the Bad Boys)
Today we’re gonna explore the fascinating life of William Zeckendorf, one of the most influential real estate developers in American history, as he shares his remarkable journey of revitalizing cities like New York, Los Angeles, Washington DC, and Denver through his ambitious visionary designs. Zeckendorf's book is full of insights and lessons that still resonate today. He was a master at spotting opportunities where others saw challenges and excelled at structuring complex financial deals, such as through his unique "Hawaiian technique.” He was the ultimate deal-maker, oftentimes approached BY local mayors for the chance to turn around their struggling city. Unfortunately, Zeckendorf eventually met his downfall when he became spread too thin and over-levered, leading to the bankruptcy that stained his legacy. Get excited to learn about the highs and lows of a real estate titan, William Zeckendorf!
Zeckendorf - The Autobiography
Lessons learned from Zeckendorf:
- If supply surpasses demand, goodbye pricing power
- A mile wide and an inch deep means you have no priorities - being spread too thin is dangerous!
- Developments have 3 more opportunities for failure - construction delays, increased competition, & over-levered in a market cycle
- Be financially impregnable and never dependent on the kindness of strangers (ample cash!)
- Be like a cockroach - hard to kill (lean cost structure)
- Real estate depressions are a slow burn where the lender foreclosures 1-2 years later
- History does not repeat but it does rhyme (gambling investor mentality)
- Beware sunk costs and be willing to quit the project early
“The Score Takes Care of Itself” by Bill Walsh details the rise of a legendary coach who changed the NFL and led the San Francisco 49ers to three Super Bowl titles in just 10 years. Walsh revolutionized the game with his West Coast Offense, which, against all odds and conventional wisdom, emphasized a pass-first strategy in an era dominated by the run game. We’ll explore key takeaways throughout the book, such as instilling a Standard of Performance, bucking conventional wisdom, being a student of the game, bouncing back from failure, seeking out expert teachers, avoiding success disease, and developing greatness. Get ready to gain a ton of wisdom from one of the greatest coaches in NFL history, Bill Walsh!
The Score Takes Care of Itself: My Philosophy of Leadership - Bill Walsh with Steve Jamison & Craig Walsh
Runnin' Down a Dream: How to Succeed and Thrive in a Career You Love - Bill Gurley
Today we're going to dive into the mind of Coach John Wooden, the all-time great who led UCLA Basketball to 10 championships over a 12-year period. We’ll discuss Wooden’s Pyramid of Success in detail and highlight qualities that made the famous coach stand out. Wooden emphasized that excellence is not a fixed destination, but a journey that requires constant hard work and self-improvement. From fulfilling our potential to the power of practice, Wooden shares many of the core insights that guided him throughout his life. Some of his core mantras include: how you practice is how you play; little things make the big things happen; good values are like a magnet - they attract good people; when the going gets tough, the tough get going; failure to act is often the biggest failure of all; and the best leaders are lifelong learners. Get ready for a fascinating episode on leadership from one of my personal role models, John Wooden!
Wooden on Leadership: How to Create a Winning Organization - John Wooden & Steve Jamison
I'm excited to dive deeper into the "zig when others zag" philosophy of Henry Singleton with my guest today, Aleem Choudhry. Aleem worked with William Thorndike to study Henry Singleton - one of the best Capital allocators over the last century - during his time at HBS in the early 2000s. He’s since gone on to become an impact investor focusing on the education and healthcare sectors, through his private equity firm Crane Street Capital. In our conversation, we discuss some of the qualities that made Henry Singleton stand out from his peers, such as his indifference to public pressure and aggressive buyback push, while learning how Singleton's capital allocation tactics now apply to Crane Street. I hope you enjoy this informative conversation!
Henry Singleton 1979 Profile - Forbes
Crane Street Capital - Aleem Choudhry
In "Hit Refresh", Satya Nadella shares his rise to the top of Microsoft as they were struggling competitively, and the drastic changes he made to reinvent the culture of the company around a growth mindset. Since taking over in 2014, Nadella has redirected the company away from its declining Windows PC business and towards enterprise services & cloud computing, making strategic acquisitions of LinkedIn, Minecraft, Github, and today Activision Blizzard. With their OpenAI partnership, Nadella has positioned Azure as a chief beneficiary in the AI race, pushing Microsoft into the world's second most valuable company slot. "Hit Refresh" offers a unique view into Nadella's leadership philosophy and the last decade at Microsoft, so it's an insightful read for those interested in the enterprise giant.
Hit Refresh: The Quest to Rediscover Microsoft's Soul and Imagine a Better Future for Everyone - Satya Nadella
The Future of Work with AI - Microsoft March 2023
Bubble.com Memo - Howard Marks
Jon Acuff's book "Soundtracks" explores how our negative thoughts and overthinking can become like broken soundtracks, playing on repeat in our minds. When we consistently listen to these broken soundtracks, they become ingrained in our psyche and lead to inaction. Acuff argues that we need to actively shift to more positive soundtracks if we want to reach our goals and live a more enjoyable life. Through his use of turn-down techniques and soundtrack swapping, we’ll learn how to challenge our negative thoughts and implement new soundtracks to improve our self-talk mindset. This book is REALLY funny and shares a fundamental insight on overthinking, so I would highly recommend it to anyone!
Soundtracks: The Surprising Solution to Overthinking - Jon Acuff
In my conversation with Dr. Anna Lembke, we discuss many of the core insights from her influential book Dopamine Nation, such as the pleasure-pain seesaw, the DOPAMINE framework, and how leaning into pain can lead to a restored pleasure balance. She shares numerous tools we can use in avoiding our compulsive urges, such as time restraints, exercise, cold immersion, and community. We also touch on technology & social media's role in our modern world, where notifications delivering digital dopamine keep us glued to our devices. I learned so much from Dr. Lembke and think you will too!
Dopamine Nation - Dr. Anna Lembke
Digital Addictions are Drowning Us in Dopamine - Dr. Anna Lembke via WSJ
In today’s episode, we'll be discussing the management philosophy and investment strategies of Mark Leonard, the CEO of Constellation Software. Over the years, Leonard has developed a cult following for his unique approach to acquiring mission-critical vertical software businesses, which has led to impressive 30% annualized returns for shareholders. Leonard's decentralized management style and his focus on aligning incentives with stakeholders have been key to Constellation's success, fueling their acquisition engine to complete 100+ deals per year. In this episode, we'll break down some of the key themes in his shareholder letters, drawing parallels with the CEOs from "The Outsiders". With only 3 pictures of him on the Internet, Leonard eludes the spotlight of Wall Street and investors, instead focused on delivering hall-of-fame returns. Get excited for a deep dive into the mind of an all-time investing legend, Mark Leonard!
Constellation Software Letters - Mark Leonard
Jamal Baksh CFO Interview - Tegus
Mark Robichaux’s phenomenal book “Cable Cowboy: John Malone and the Rise of the Modern Cable Business” dives into the fascinating evolution and history of the cable industry through the lens of its robber baron pioneer, John Malone. Much like John D. Rockefeller, Malone exerted control over his industry peers by buying cable operators and investing in the cable programs, giving him power over the pipes and water flowing through it. Cable Cowboy teaches us many lessons about sheltering cash flows through tax-efficient strategies, applying leverage as you gain scale, and zigging when others zag. Malone continues to be a dominant voice in the media landscape with his chairmanship of Liberty Media and is an incredible person to study!
Cable Cowboy: John Malone and the Rise of the Modern Cable Business - Mark Robichaux
John Malone Interview - Mavericks Lecture
William Thorndike's "The Outsiders" provides a masterclass in capital allocation like no other! The book highlights 8 successful CEOs who have defied conventional management styles and adopted unique investment strategies, such as buying back huge portions of their stock, making acquisitions worth 25% or more of the enterprise value, and avoiding tax-inefficient dividends. Across Warren Buffett, Henry Singleton, John Malone, and the other Outsider CEOs, these executives constantly diverged from the crowd and rewarded shareholders with 20-30% CAGRs! We will learn about many of the qualities these Outsider CEOs shared, including zigging when others zag, hiring the best people, pushing decisions down to the local level, instilling cultures around ROI and cost consciousness, and taking opportunistic positions when the market provides them. I think both investors and operators will thoroughly enjoy this one.
The Outsiders: Eight Unconventional CEOs and Their Radically Rational Blueprint for Success - William Thorndike
Felix Gillette and John Koblin’s influential book "It's Not TV" chronicles the rise of HBO as a premium cable channel and its eventual competition with Netflix in the streaming wars. The book shares countless stories of HBO's high-quality content playbook, stemming from its desire to be different from the broadcast TV networks and their advertising-supported business models. From groundbreaking shows like "The Sopranos" and "Game of Thrones" to its evolvement in the changing media landscape, HBO remains a major player in the entertainment industry. Get ready for the incredible story of one of my favorite media companies, HBO!
It's Not TV: The Spectacular Rise, Revolution, and Future of HBO - Felix Gillette & John Koblin
Ed Catmull's inspiring book Creativity Inc is a must-read for anyone looking to build a culture of innovation and creativity. Ed Catmull is the co-founder of Pixar Animation Studios and one of the pioneers of the computer animated film industry. We’ll dive into his secrets of managing Pixar, including their effective Braintrust feedback system, their story is king quality mindset undergirding all their creative projects, and their edit relentlessly approach to content. We share inside stories from the development of movies like Toy Story 2 and Ratatouille, and how those lessons around embracing failure can apply to our businesses today. I think anyone who is a fan of Pixar, in the creative business, or in a culture-setting role will enjoy this episode.
Creativity Inc: Overcoming the Unseen Forces That Stand in the Way of True Inspiration - Ed Catmull & Amy Wallace
Bob Iger’s book The Ride of a Lifetime chronicles his inspiring journey from the bottom of ABC to CEO of Disney, where he successfully pulled off 3 of the biggest media acquisitions over the last two decades, bringing in Pixar, Marvel, and Lucasfilm into the House of Mouse. We’ll discuss many of the management lessons he learned from famed Sports mentor Roone Arledge, such as Innovate or Die & the relentless pursuit of perfection. We’ll close off by looping back to our disruptive innovation framework from the last episode, sharing how Iger bucked the innovator's dilemma with his development of Disney+.
The Ride of a Lifetime - Bob Iger
The Innovator’s Dilemma is a powerful business framework, characterizing when incumbent businesses ignore disruptive technologies for 3 main reasons: listening too closely to their mainstream market customers, targeting higher margin products which thus leads to higher cost structures, and ignoring small new markets due to large growth forecasts. Managers are usually rational in their decision-making, but don’t have incentives in place to pursue the lower-margin and smaller disruptive markets. Using examples across the disk drive, steel, discount retailing, and accounting industries, we explore times when large incumbents suffered at the hands of the innovator's dilemma. We'll close off with Christensen's prescient 1997 case study on avoiding the innovator's dilemma, where he hypothesized, as an auto executive, how he would deal with the looming disruptive innovation: electric vehicles. The Innovator's Dilemma - Clayton Christensen
We build on the last episode by discussing lessons learned from historical periods of irrational exuberance, going through examples given by John Kenneth Galbraith in his impactful book, A Short History of Financial Euphoria. We cover Tulipmania and its resemblance to crypto, the US Paper Currency euphoria, and the excessive overleverage of the Great Depression. By the end of this episode, I hope listeners will have a sound playbook to spot signs of financial euphoria and excess before the speculation, as Galbraith likes to say, ends not with a whimper, but with a bang!
A Short History of Financial Euphoria - John Kenneth Galbraith
In today's episode, we'll be diving into the dot-com boom and bust with Bull! by Maggie Mahar. This book delves into the characteristics that define market cycles and examines the events and players that shaped the dot-com 1990s era. We'll be exploring the key themes and takeaways from Bull! and how they resemble today's market, such as FOMO and euphoric extremes, “this time is different” mentalities, accounting trickery, and more! Get ready for an insightful view into one of the biggest cycles of irrational exuberance!
Bull!: A History of the Boom and Bust, 1982-2004 - Maggie Mahar
Bull Market Rhymes - Howard Marks Memo
Ron Chernow's Titan is an epic biography of John D. Rockefeller, the man who defined the oil industry in the late 1800s. We discuss the monumental impact Rockefeller had on modern-day American capitalism and philanthropy, through his monopolization of the booming oil industry, his competitive practices to gain leverage over refiners (the Cleveland Massacre!) and railroads, and his relentless pursuit of delegation in management. In what is both an entertaining and insightful journey, we'll learn about the perils of not controlling your own distribution, why commodity markets rely so heavily on cost, and how antitrust concerns came to be. The story of John D. Rockefeller is one that all businesspeople, entrepreneurs, and investors should study.
Titan: The Life of John. D Rockefeller - Ron Chernow
Kai-Fu Lee’s book AI Superpowers is particularly useful right now as we’re seeing AI reach the mainstream consumer, from ChatGPT to Lensa magic avatars to DALL-E and Stable Diffusion image generators. This episode will serve as a great primer for what’s really going on behind the scenes within AI models, discussing the foundations and history of AI research, current progress in deep learning architectures, China’s competitive tech ecosystem, and how automation will impact our labor markets. This episode is already one of my favorites and I’m certain it’ll be very insightful for those hoping to understand the AI landscape further.
AI Superpowers: China, Silicon Valley, and the New World Order - Kai-Fu Lee
For further learning: MIT Lectures, 3Blue1Brown, Google's Chief Decision Scientist
In The Hard Thing About Hard Things, Ben Horowitz shares some of the key lessons he learned during his entrepreneurial journey, including how to manage, train, and incentivize employees, the importance of courage as a CEO, and the difficult but necessary task of making tough firing decisions. We’ll discuss his early pioneering work in the cloud computing industry as the co-founder of Loudcloud and his later transition to the software business Opsware, which was eventually sold to HP for $1.65 billion. After the sale of Opsware, Horowitz and his business partner Marc Andreessen went on to form the venture capital firm A16Z, sharing the playbook they used to vault into the top tier of VC firms. This is a must-read for all CEOs, entrepreneurs, managers or founders!
The Hard Thing About Hard Things - Ben Horowitz
Tomorrow's Advance Man - The New Yorker (Excellent profile on Marc Andreessen & their strategy behind A16Z)
I’m excited to share my conversation with Jimmy Soni, the author of the incredible book The Founders! In this episode, we discuss the power of the people around you, Brad Stone’s influence on Jimmy’s writing process, the value of network effects in PayPal’s business, Thiel’s developing thoughts around competition, Elon’s skin in the game, and the tumultuous culture of PayPal post-merger. If you’re interested in entrepreneurship, technology, or simply drama-ridden stories set in the dot-com bust era, you’ll love his book!
The Founders: The Story of PayPal and the Entrepreneurs Who Shaped Silicon Valley - Jimmy Soni
Jimmy Soni's The Founders tells the incredible story of the founding of PayPal and the influential characters behind the online payments provider. From monopoly-forming mergers to multiple backstabbings and intense competitive dynamics on another platform’s home turf, this story has it all. We will be weaving between the stories of Confinity and X.com, eventually arriving at the PayPal merger and many of the subsequent innovations in the online payments space. The PayPal founders have had an outsized impact on Silicon Valley, with companies such as Tesla, SpaceX, YouTube, LinkedIn, Affirm, Palantir, Founders Fund, and Yelp all coming from these great entrepreneurs.
The Founders: The Story of PayPal and the Entrepreneurs Who Shaped Silicon Valley - Jimmy Soni
Competition is for Losers - Peter Thiel
Joe Coulombe shares his insightful lessons from founding Trader Joe’s, spanning from his early focus on the overeducated and underpaid customer segment to later innovations across intensive buying and double-entry retailing. We discuss the stories and lessons from his excellent book, Becoming Trader Joe, including his emphasis on paying employees well, having deep product knowledge, selecting prime locations, targeting high sales per SF over pure growth, and leveraging lower SKU counts. Fans of Trader Joe’s and all business entrepreneurs will thoroughly enjoy this episode!
Becoming Trader Joe - Joe Coulombe
Trader Joe's: Grocer to the Overeducated & Underpaid - Business Breakdowns
Should America Be Run By... Trader Joe's? - Freakonomics Radio
Ed Thorp is a remarkable figure, achieving great success in the casinos of Las Vegas and Wall Street, while also investing in Berkshire at $1K, contributing the first LP check to Ken Griffin’s fund Citadel, and calling the Bernie Madoff Ponzi scheme 18 years before Madoff was exposed! Thorp advises us to only invest when we have a clear edge, question the commonly held assumptions, attract top talent with superior pay, beware of following the masses, and prioritize physical fitness to ensure longevity. We discuss his life story and wisdom from his enthralling autobiography, A Man for All Markets.
A Man for All Markets - Ed Thorp
Bull Market Rhymes - Howard Marks
In Part 3, we discuss the decline of Kleiner Perkins, the institutionalization of growth equity with DST & Tiger Global, a16z’s emergence, Sequoia’s sustained dominance, and the main takeaways for the VC industry going forward.
The Power Law - Sebastian Mallaby
In Part 2, we discuss Google’s origin story, Brian Arthur’s increasing returns to scale, Peter Thiel’s founder-friendliness & competition is for losers philosophies, Paul Graham’s founding of YCombinator, Neil Shen’s Sequoia China ambitions, and Meituan’s monopolization of the China services industry in “the war of a thousand Groupons”.
The Power Law - Sebastian Mallaby
Increasing Returns to Scale - Brian Arthur
Competition is for Losers - Peter Thiel
Sebastian Mallaby’s The Power Law is an incredible account of the history and evolution of the venture capital industry. We explore how power laws shape returns within a VC fund, where one investment can more than pay off for the entire rest of the fund. In Part 1, we discuss the early founding of liberation capital with Arthur Rock, the formation of historic firms Sequoia Capital & Kleiner Perkins, Apple taking advantage of the innovator’s dilemma, John Doerr dominating the 90s, Accel creating the first specialized firm, the arrival of Masa and growth investing, and Benchmark Capital’s big bet on eBay.
The Power Law - Sebastian Mallaby
Superforecasting describes how we live in a probabilistic and uncertain world, but we seek out certainty and absolutes in our everyday lives. Using examples across Fantasy Football, Inverse Jim Cramer, Inflation, and Chipotle’s future growth, we discuss how hard it is to predict the future, and how we are often flawed in our prediction updating abilities. Beliefs are hypotheses to be tested, not treasures to be protected → we must constantly update our beliefs based on new information and use base rates, devil’s advocates, and premortems to fight off our natural confirmation & identity biases.
Superforecasting: The Art and Science of Prediction - Phil Tetlock & Dan Gardner
Healing Back Pain, by Dr. John E Sarno, is an interesting exploration into the role our repressed emotions play in creating physical pain. The physical pain behind chronic back and neck pain distracts our attention from the true issue, which is our repressed anger & anxiety in our lives. Physical pain is meant to distract us from the hidden emotional pain, and we must bring that emotional pain to the surface in order to relieve our physical suffering. Healing Back Pain is a worthwhile read for anyone experiencing chronic pain and under high levels of stress.
Healing Back Pain - John E Sarno, MD
Zell is a phenomenal real estate investor to study, with core investing tenets that we should all look to emulate. His investment mantras include: failure is not in my lexicon; simplify risk down to its most important variable; if everyone is going left, look right; if there is scarcity, price is no object (thus avoid competition like the plague); leave a little bit of money on the table in any negotiation (seek win-win outcomes); and beware of euphoria bubbles, but go bargain hunting after the crash (the Grave Dancer). Investors from all walks of life will enjoy this episode!
Am I Being Too Subtle? - Sam Zell
In Part 2, we’ll discuss the evolution of the chip industry from the mid-90s to its current state, based on Chris Miller's excellent new book The Chip War. We'll cover ARM's power-efficient chip architecture, Apple's in-house design strategy, ASML's EUV monopoly, Intel's 3 big mistakes over the last 15 years, and the growing geopolitical tensions with China. The chip industry is incredibly competitive, with national dominance at stake, lower wages in a globalized supply chain, exponential rates of innovation, and consolidation as the weak firms die out.
The Chip War - Chris Miller
Today we’ll discuss the evolution of the chip industry from its founding to its current state, based on Chris Miller's excellent new book The Chip War. We'll cover Fairchild and the early days of semiconductors, Intel and the Japan memory battles, the rise of TSMC and Taiwan's foundry dominance, the Fabless Revolution with winners such as Nvidia and Qualcomm, ARM's power-efficient chips and Apple's in-house design strategy, ASML's EUV monopoly, Intel's 3 big mistakes over the last 15 years, and the growing geopolitical tensions with China. The chip industry is incredibly competitive, with national dominance at stake, lower wages in a globalized supply chain, exponential rates of innovation, and consolidation as the weak firms die out.
The Chip War - Chris Miller
Behavioral economics rejects the idea that all humans are perfectly rational and contends that we make repeated mistakes in decision making. In an entertaining and funny read, Ariely discusses how we are fooled by decoys and relative anchors, we bend over backwards for FREE, we mix social and market norms to our own peril, we prefer instant gratification over long term rewards, we keep too many options open despite our decision paralysis, and we let expectations shape our real experiences.
Predictably Irrational - Dan Ariely
Annie Duke's new thought-provoking book Quit describes how quitting is a superpower - it gives us the ability to experiment and test out new ideas. The problem, however, is that many cognitive biases prevent us from quitting, such as sunk costs, sure loss aversion, identity bias, and status quo bias. Using examples across public works projects, stock market investing, professional sports, semiconductors, and relationships, we discuss how our reluctance to quitting stops us from pursuing higher value opportunities, and lay out some useful tools to combat this cognitive error.
Quit - Annie Duke
Today's episode serves as a comprehensive guide to cognitive biases, reflecting on the 25 biases Charlie Munger highlighted in his famous Psychology of Human Misjudgment speech. We discuss in depth how these biases affect our personal and business lives, and propose frameworks to combat some of our most vicious cognitive errors. We cover incentives, inconsistency, envy/jealousy, reciprocation, addiction, over-optimism, loss aversion, sunk costs, social proof, relativity, authority bias, hindsight bias, and much more. This is an enlightening episode that covers many foundational ideas across the cognitive thinking realm.
The Psychology of Human Misjudgment - Charlie Munger
The Multidisciplinary Approach to Thinking - Peter Kaufman
Today we cover Atomic Habits by James Clear, a foundational book on habit science and behavior change.
Habits are the compound interest of self-improvement, where if we can get 1% better each day then those marginal gains will lead to huge outcomes in time. We must adopt positive identity habits, where we’ll reinforce our identity through actions like exercising or eating healthy to stay consistent with ourselves. We can use tools such as implementation intentions, environmental design, reducing frictions, habit stacking, temptation bundling, accountability partners, selecting the right community, and public commitments to steer us toward the right habits. If we have a bad day, we need to get back on the right path instead of self-sabotaging.
Atomic Habits: https://smile.amazon.com/Atomic-Habits-Proven-Build-Break/dp/0735211299?sa-no-redirect=1
30-Day Habit Challenge: https://jamesclear.com/30-days
We start off with Dopamine Nation, an excellent book by Dr. Anna Lembke on the struggles of addiction and how the neurotransmitter dopamine plays a role in our body. We'll discuss the fundamental pleasure-pain seesaw, which is an easy-to-grasp metaphor explaining how dopamine regulates our motivation and movement when pursuing rewards. We will also go through the DOPAMINE Framework tool that Dr. Lembke uses with her patients to quit their addictions.
We'll touch on multiple tools from habit building and cognitive science that help limit negative habits, such as time restraints, public commitments, environmental design, and temptation bundling. And finally, we see how leaning into the pain side of our seesaw, such as through working out or taking cold showers, forces our body to rebalance with added pleasure released. I highly recommend everyone to read this book - it is crucial in our current world of abundance and non-stop external stimuli!
Dopamine Nation: https://smile.amazon.com/Dopamine-Nation-Finding-Balance-Indulgence/dp/152474672X?sa-no-redirect=1
Dr. Lembke's conversation with the Huberman Lab: https://hubermanlab.com/dr-anna-lembke-understanding-and-treating-addiction/