Category: Books
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The Lesser Known Origin Story of Stock Compensation in Silicon Valley
I just finished reading the book Chip War. It was one of the most interesting read that helped me understand the evolution of chip industry and silicon valley as we know it today. One story that stood out to me was the inception of much debated stock compensation in Silicon Valley. Somewhere in a filing…
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From Book to Business: How ‘Unreasonable Hospitality’ Transformed My Airbnb Hosting
When I first started renting out spare bedrooms in my house on Airbnb, little did I know about hospitality. It quickly became evident to me that my modest offering of a few spare bedrooms simply couldn’t match up competing with larger properties with amenities like pools, spas, and scenic patios. Then, How do I create…
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Book Review: Zero to One
Unusual insight by Peter Thiel – founder of PayPal and Palantir Technologies – from his book Zero to One. On failure of Solyndra and a dozen other cleantech startups between 2008 – 2012: “The most obvious clue was sartorial: cleantech executives were running around wearing suits and ties. This was a huge red flag, because…
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Book Review: The Outsiders
A great tale of lesser known eight unconventional CEOs, who ran their companies to maximize shareholder value. A dollar invested in these companies, on average, became $688 during 25 years these CEOs were at the helm, easily dwarfing the returns from S&P! What these 8 CEOs had in common? They were master capital allocators! Whereas…
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Book Review: The Hard Thing About Hard Things
How NOT to give feedback: Shit Sandwich! Remember those early self help “management” books that suggest if you’re giving someone critical feedback you do it in three steps: 1. Start by appreciating the person – “the bread”2. Critical feedback – “the shit”3. End by talking positive attributes of the person – “the bread” Essentially, shit…