July 30, 2018

Book Reflection: The Upstarts by Brad Stone

Learning about the early days of Uber and Airbnb seems like a good follow up after reading about Amazon/Apple/Facebook/Google. "The Upstarts" is written by Brad Stone who also wrote "The Everything Store" - a book about Jeff Bezos and Amazon.

The book is very well researched and is written in a manner where it seems like you are reading a very long piece of investigative journalism - that is, it hooks you in and doesn't let you go until the end.

The Upstarts by Brad Stone
The Upstarts by Brad Stone
The author clearly had access to the founders and inner circles of both Uber and Airbnb. Not only that, he does a great job of getting the point of view of regulators and other relevant parties. He tries his best to approach the writing of the book with an open mind and tries to paint an unbiased picture of past events for readers.

Here are a few things I learned from the book.

July 13, 2018

Book Reflection: The Four by Scott Galloway

No introductions are needed for the four horsemen that take center stage in this book. As consumers, many of us consider the products and services that these four companies offer as integral in our daily lives. From using Google Maps to get to the nearest Wholefoods, to chatting with friends on WhatsApp using your iPhone.

The Four by Scott Galloway
The Four by Scott Galloway