Shows
Founders#414 How SpaceX WorksSpaceX is one of the most dominant companies on the planet and their performance gap just keeps getting bigger. In 2025, SpaceX launched more mass to orbit than every other provider on Earth combined. MUCH MORE: every payload from China, Russia, Europe, and all American launchers wasn’t even a fifth of what SpaceX put into orbit. They’re the only company producing rockets at an industrial scale. The practices that made SpaceX dominant aren’t unique to rockets. They’re a blueprint for building anything hard. This episode — and the essay it is based on — explores How SpaceX Works. Read the full ess...
2026-03-0840 minFounders#413 How To Run Down A DreamRunning Down A Dream: How to Succeed and Thrive in a Career You Love by Bill Gurley has been one of the most valuable talks I've heard. For years I have been using ideas from that talk to build this podcast. Bill has written a new book based on that talk: Runnin' Down a Dream: How to Thrive in a Career You Actually Love. This episode explores the most valuable ideas from the book and talk. Episode sponsors: Ramp gives you everything you need to control spend, watch your costs, and optimize your financial operations —all on a single platform. Make history's g...
2026-03-0331 minFounders#412 How Roger Federer WorksWhat I learned from reading The Master: The Long Run and Beautiful Game of Roger Federer by Chris Clarey. Episode sponsors: Ramp gives you everything you need to control spend, watch your costs, and optimize your financial operations —all on a single platform. Make history's greatest entrepreneurs proud by going to Ramp.com to learn how they can help your business save time and money. Automate compliance, security, and trust with Vanta. Vanta helps you win trust, close deals, and stay secure—faster and with less effort. Find out how increased security leads to more customers by going to Vanta. Tell them David from Founders sent you and you'll get $100
2026-02-1948 minFounders#411 Tortured Into Greatness: The Life of Andre AgassiAndre Agassi's autobiography is a brutally honest story about a tennis legend who hated the game that made him famous. Agassi traces his journey from a harsh, obsessive childhood training regimen to superstardom, burnout, rebellion, and eventual redemption—revealing the psychological cost of greatness, the search for identity beyond winning, and how he ultimately found purpose on his own terms. This book was as good as everyone says it is. You should read it. Episode sponsors: Ramp gives you everything you need to control spend, watch your costs, and optimize your financial operations —all on a single platform. Make history's greatest entrepreneu...
2026-02-041h 01Founders#410 Excellent Advice for LivingOn his 68th birthday, Kevin Kelly began to write down for his young adult children some things he had learned about life that he wished he had known earlier. Kelly’s timeless advice covers an astonishing range, from right living to setting ambitious goals, optimizing generosity, and cultivating compassion. Excellent Advice for Living is the ideal companion for anyone seeking to navigate life with grace and creativity: Episode sponsors: Ramp gives you everything you need to control spend, watch your costs, and optimize your financial operations —all on a single platform. Make history's greatest entrepreneurs proud by going to Ramp and learni...
2026-01-2537 minFoundersThe Singular Life of Rick RubinThere's no one like Rick Rubin. He's a legendary music producer known for his minimalist approach and relentless pursuit of greatness. This episode is what I learned from reading Rick Rubin: In The Studio by Jake Brown. Episode sponsors: Ramp gives you everything you need to control spend, watch your costs, and optimize your financial operations —all on a single platform. Make history's greatest entrepreneurs proud by going to Ramp and learning how they can help your business control your costs and save time and money. Go to Ramp.com to learn how they can help your business save time and money. Automate compliance, secu...
2026-01-161h 20Founders#409 The Creative Genius of Rick Rubin"I set out to write a book about what to do to make a great work of art. Instead, it revealed itself to be a book on how to be.” —Rick Rubin. This episode is what I learned from reading The Creative Act: A Way of Being by Rick Rubin. Episode sponsors: Ramp gives you everything you need to control spend, watch your costs, and optimize your financial operations —all on a single platform. Make history's greatest entrepreneurs proud by going to Ramp.com and learn how they can help your business control your costs and save time and money. Automate compliance, security, and...
2026-01-0842 minFounders#408 How to Make a Few MORE Billion Dollars: Brad JacobsIn 2024 Brad Jacobs wrote the book How to Make a Few Billion Dollars. In the book Brad explains how he built 8 separate billion dollar companies and other lessons from his 40+ year career as an elite entrepreneur. In the two years since Brad has made a few MORE billion dollars and so the sequel to his first book is: How to Make a Few MORE Billion Dollars. In this episode I share some of Brad's ideas on raising tons of money (Brad has raised over $50 billion), mastering his integration playbook, ideas for organizational integration, org chart design, and how Brad keeps...
2025-12-2943 minFoundersThe Life of JesusThe Life of Jesus as told in the book Jesus: A Biography of a Believer by Paul Johnson. This episode was originally published on Christmas Eve 2023.
2025-12-2534 minFounders#407 Bruce Springsteen Repairs the Hole in HimselfA viciously unhappy childhood causes Bruce Springsteen to retreat into work in an extreme way as he searches for success (and control). He channels his pain into focus and drive and gets everything he thought he wanted. He didn’t yet know he was lying to himself. He will find that out soon. He falls into a deep depression. One that almost leads to s*icide. With the help of his true friend Jon Landau he seeks professional help. This help helps immediately. The lie he was telling himself was that work was the most important thing in his life. Wh...
2025-12-151h 12Founders#406 Christian von KoenigseggChristian von Koenigsegg is unapologetically in the pursuit of greatness. Koenigsegg builds some of the fastest and most expensive cars on Earth, has a cult-like following, and relentlessly seeks out challenges he can innovate on. After building his company for more than 30 years, his love and passion for his craft is still as strong as ever. This episode explores some of the most important ideas I found from studying his life and career. It's perfect for anyone that wants to live their dream. Episode sponsors: Ramp gives you everything you need to control spend, watch your costs, and optimize your financial operat...
2025-12-0345 minFoundersRed Bull's Billionaire Maniac FounderI'm reposting one of my favorite founder stories. If you listened to this first time I recommend listening again. If you missed this before, you're about to hear one of the wildest founder stories of all time. A few surprising things I learned from reading about Dietrich Mateschitz, founder of Red Bull: 1. He started the company when he was 41 years old. 2. He was making $500 to $800 million a year and his 49% stake is worth $20 to $30 billion. 3. He still prioritized fitness deep into his 70s and liked driving fast, piloting his planes, and competing in off-road motorcycle races. 4. The company was started...
2025-11-2559 minFounders#405 How Rockefeller WorkedThis episode covers the insanely valuable company-building principles of John D. Rockefeller—and nothing else. I spent over 40 hours reading (and rereading) this obscure biography of Rockefeller that costs $1,000 I then spent several days editing down 25 pages of notes from the book. I deleted everything that was not How Rockefeller Works Episode sponsors: Ramp gives you everything you need to control spend, watch your costs, and optimize your financial operations —all on a single platform. Make history's greatest entrepreneurs proud by going to Ramp and learning how they can help your business control your costs and save time and money. https://ramp.com Automate complia...
2025-11-1757 min
FoundersMy conversation with Todd GravesTodd Graves is one of my favorite living founders. He owns over 90% of Raising Canes — a business that is worth at least $20 billion. Todd's maxim is "Do one thing and do it better than anyone else." It is impossible not to be inspired by his terminator levels of determination. I hope you enjoy our conversation as much as I did. Episode show notes: https://www.davidsenra.com/episode/to... Made possible by Ramp: https://ramp.com HubSpot: https://hubspot.com Function: https://functionhealth.com/senra Chapters (00:00) The Entrepreneurial Mindset: Sleep and Business Obsession (02:13) The Birth of Raising Cane's: Overcoming Skepticism (03:29) Inspiration from In-N-Ou...
2025-11-092h 00Founders#404 How Larry Ellison ThinksThis episode covers the unique way Larry Ellison thinks. I spent over 40 hours reading (and rereading) this book on Ellison written by Matthew Symonds. I then spent several days editing down 40 pages of notes into a one-hour nonstop stream of Larry Ellison's ideas. Episode sponsors: Ramp gives you everything you need to control spend, watch your costs, and optimize your financial operations —all on a single platform. Make history's greatest entrepreneurs proud by going to Ramp and learning how they can help your business control your costs and save time and money. https://ramp.com Automate compliance, security, and trust with Vanta. Vanta helps you win trust, close...
2025-11-041h 02
FoundersMy Conversation with Brad JacobsI’ve started a new show where I have conversations with the greatest living Founders. The show is called David Senra. It will be on a separate podcast feed from Founders. So it is very important that you follow David Senra on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, or wherever you're listening to this so you don't miss future episodes. Nothing is changing with Founders. I will never stop making Founders.
2025-10-282h 04Founders#403 How Jensen WorksThis episode covers the insanely valuable company-building principles of Jensen Huang—and nothing else. I spent over 40 hours reading (and rereading) this book on Jensen and Nvidia written by Tae Kim I then spent several days editing down 30 pages of notes from the book. I deleted everything that was not How Jensen Works. List of ideas: 1. Professor Jensen 2. The Whiteboard 3. Complacency Kills 4. Insist on a Flat Organization 5. Public Criticism 6. Tortured Into Greatness 7. Speed of Light 8. Extreme In All Things 9. Top 5 Emails 10. Direct Communication 11. LUA 12. The Mission is the Boss and Pilot-in-Command 13. Strategy is Action 14. Ship The Whole Cow 15. Go To Sc...
2025-10-2055 min
FoundersMy Conversation with Michael DellI’ve started a new show where I have conversations with the greatest living Founders. The show is called David Senra. It will be on a separate podcast feed from Founders. So it is very important that you follow David Senra on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, or wherever you're listening to this so you don't miss future episodes. Nothing is changing with Founders. I will never stop making Founders.
2025-10-131h 31Founders#402 Thomas Peterffy: The $80 Billion Founder Who Automates EverythingI didn’t know who Thomas Peterffy was. I was shocked to learn that he is 81 years old, worth $80 billion dollars, and has built his $120 billion company, Interactive Brokers, into one of the most efficient companies in the world. I discovered Peterffy by reading this incredible profile about him. I couldn’t put it down. That’s what this episode is about. Episode sponsors: Ramp gives you everything you need to control spend, watch your costs, and optimize your financial operations —all on a single platform. Make history's greatest entrepreneurs proud by going to Ramp and learning how they can help your business control you...
2025-10-0531 min
FoundersMy conversation with Daniel Ek: Founder of SpotifyI started a new show so I can have long-form conversations with the greatest living founders. You can watch on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, X, or the web. The new show is on a separate feed so don't forget to follow David Senra so you don't miss future episodes. Nothing is changing with Founders. I will never stop making that podcast. Thanks for the support!
2025-09-282h 10Founders#401 How Bill Gates WorksThis episode is about Bill Gates' obsessive drive and hardcore work ethic. Bill Gates had the rarest entrepreneurial talent—the ability to see the leverage point in a new industry, seize it with relentless intensity, and *will* Microsoft into one of the most successful companies in human history. To make this episode I read Bill's new autobiography, Source Code: My Beginnings, and pulled ideas and notes from 4 more books about his singular career: Hard Drive: Bill Gates and the Making of the Microsoft Empire Overdrive: Bill Gates and the Race to Control Cyberspace Idea Man: A Memoir by the Cofounder of...
2025-09-241h 08Founders#400 The Stubborn Genius of James DysonThis episode covers the extreme perseverance and the stubborn genius of James Dyson. Dyson has a business philosophy which is very different from anything you might have encountered before. A philosophy which demands difference from what exists and retention of total control. For almost four decades, James Dyson has been building one of the most valuable privately-held companies in the world. A company he owns without shareholders — and one that is centered around an obsession with the quality of the product above all. I spent well over 70 hours reading (and rereading) both Against the Odds and Invention: A Life of Le...
2025-09-121h 13Founders#399 How Elon WorksThis episode covers the insanely valuable company-building principles of Elon Musk—and nothing else. I spent well over 60 hours reading (and rereading) the biography of Elon Musk written by Walter Isaacson. I then spent several days editing down 40 pages of notes from the book. I deleted everything that was not about How Elon Works. This episode focuses exclusively on the ideas Elon used to build his companies and his truly singular career. There is no one else like him — living or dead. Episode sponsors: Ramp gives you everything you need to control spend, watch your costs, and optimize your financial operations —all on a si...
2025-08-251h 33Founders#398 Steve Jobs In His Own Words (Make Something Wonderful)A curated collection of Steve’s speeches, interviews, and correspondence, Make Something Wonderful offers a window into how one of the world’s most creative entrepreneurs approached his life and work. In these pages, Steve shares his perspective on his childhood, on launching and being pushed out of Apple, on his time with Pixar and NeXT, and on his return to the company that started it all. Read the book for free courtesy of The Steve Jobs Archive. This episode was originally published April 17, 2023. Episode sponsors: Ramp gives you everything you need to control spend, watch your costs, and optimize your financial operat...
2025-08-142h 01Founders#397 Jiro Ono: Simplicity Is The Ultimate AdvantageJiro Ono is the greatest living sushi chef. He was kicked out his house when he was 9. He started working in a restaurant so he wouldn't have to sleep under a bridge. He never stopped. Over his 75 year career he rose to the very top of his profession. People travel from all over the world to eat at his restaurant. The meal costs $400 per person and lasts 15 minutes. This episode is what I learned from reading the transcript of the documentary Jiro Dreams of Sushi and is full of ideas you can use in your work. Episode sponsors: Ramp gives you everythin...
2025-08-0441 minFounders#396 The Obsession of Enzo FerrariI've read hundreds of thousands of words about Enzo Ferrari. For this episode I distilled down his most important ideas into 1 hour. Ferrari was truly one of history's greatest obsessives. Episode sponsors: Ramp gives you everything you need to control spend, watch your costs, and optimize your financial operations —all on a single platform. Make history's greatest entrepreneurs proud by going to Ramp and learning how they can help your business control your costs and save time and money. https://ramp.com ----- Automate compliance, security, and trust with Vanta. Vanta helps you win trust, close deals, and stay secure—faster and with less effort. ...
2025-07-3057 minFounders#395 How Geniuses and Speed Freaks Reengineered F1 into the World's Fastest-Growing SportThose on the margins often come to control the center. That maxim ties together the three remarkable people profiled in this episode: Colin Chapman, known as “the mad scientist of F1”, did more to influence F1 design than any other person in history. Bernie Ecclestone, known as “Supremo”, Bernie transformed Formula One from a disorganized, rag-tag, chaotic collection of racing teams, into the world’s premier motor racing series. He built the business of F1— and made billions for himself along the way. Dietrich Mateschitz, founder of Red Bull, bought two Formula One teams and insisted on becoming the sport’s foremost disru...
2025-07-221h 04Founders#394 An Orphan Who Built An Empire: Leonardo Del Vecchio and The Founding of LuxotticaYour dad dies before you’re born. Your mom can’t afford to take care of you. You grow up without a family and in an institution. You learn a trade and start working full time at the age of 14. You work all day and go to school at night. You’re precise, meticulous, restless, and work circles around everyone. You’re promoted to run the factory at 18 but the thought of working for anyone else terrifies you. For your entire life you’ll be obsessed with control. You’ll do whatever it takes to escape the harshness of poverty and the pang...
2025-07-131h 07Founders#393 The Marketing Genius of the Michelin BrothersYour family asks you to take over a failing factory in a remote part of France. This “family business” comes with a stack of unpaid bills, a small team of workers who haven’t been paid in months, and a banker refusing to extend any more credit. You cut every unprofitable product and go all in on making rubber tires. You have no experience and don’t know a single thing about rubber manufacturing. You have a genius insight that selling tires is a waste of time and instead you should create the conditions for your product’s success. You organize t...
2025-07-0354 minFounders#392 Michele Ferrero and His $40 Billion Privately Owned Chocolate EmpireYou take over the family pastry shop and transform it into one of the most valuable privately held businesses in the world. Your father dies young. Your uncle does too. Everyone is relying on you and this keeps you up at night. You insist on differentiation and refuse to make me too products. You obsess over quality. You run tens of thousands of experiments. The products you invent will sell successfully for decades. You shroud your entire operation in secrecy. You study your competitors but never tell them what you’re doing. You go to great — almost absurd — lengths to contro...
2025-06-2354 minFounders#391 Jimmy IovineYou grow up in a rough neighborhood in Brooklyn. You drop out of college. Your dad is your best friend but you don’t want to work the docks like him. You’re determined to “do something special.” You get a job sweeping the floor at recording studio. You get fired—twice. You’ll do anything to work in the music business, including working on Easter Sunday. That’s how you meet John Lennon. This is the day your life begins. You focus on being of service. You stay in the room and in the saddle. Bruce Springsteen teaches you what work ethi...
2025-06-1357 minFounders#390 Rare Steve Jobs InterviewI've read this interview probably 10 times. It's that good. Steve Jobs was 29 when this interview was published, and with remarkable clarity of thought Steve explains the upcoming technological revolution, why the personal computer is the greatest tool humans have ever invented, how the computer compares to past inventions, why software needs to be simplified (You shouldn't have to read a novel to write a novel!) why the future is always exciting and unpredictable, what soul in the game looks like and why his competitors don't have any, why slightly insane people are the ones who make great products, the importance...
2025-06-0440 minFounders#389 The Founder of Jimmy Choo: Tamara MellonWhen Tamara Mellon’s father lent her the seed money to start a high-end shoe company, he cautioned her: “Don’t let the accountants run your business.” Little did he know that over the next fifteen years, the struggle between “financial” and “creative” would become one of the central themes as Mellon’s business. Mellon grew Jimmy Choo into a billion dollar brand and her personal glamour made her an object of global media fascination. Vogue photographed her wedding. Vanity Fair covered her divorce and the criminal trial that followed. The Wall Street Journal reported on her relentless battle between “the suits” and “the creatives"...
2025-05-2655 minFounders#388 Jeff Bezos's Shareholder Letters: All of Them!(I fixed the audio and uploaded a new episode!) "To read Jeff Bezos’s shareholder letters is to get a crash course in running a high-growth internet business from someone who mastered it before any of the playbooks were written." That is the best description of Bezos's letters I have ever read. I just finished rereading these letters for the 4th or 5th time. With clear thinking and ferocious intelligence, Bezos provides a masterclass in building a customer-obsessed, enduring franchise. With relentless repetition Bezos teaches us about the importance of invention, risk-taking, wandering, differentiation, technology, judgement, high-standards, customer obsession, long-term ori...
2025-05-151h 19FoundersA conversation on focus and finding your life's workMy friend Patrick O’Shaughnessy asked me to come to New York and record a conversation. Patrick had just finished listening to episode #383 "Todd Graves and his $10 Billion Chicken Finger Dream" and he believed there was an important conversation to have on focus and finding your life's work. This conversation was off-the-cuff and from the soul. I hope you find it useful. If you'd prefer to watch the episode you can do that on Spotify and YouTube. Patrick and I are doing a live show on May 27th in New York. Event details and registration here! ---- Ramp gives you ever...
2025-05-091h 22Founders#387 Jim Simons Built The World’s Greatest Money-Making MachineJim Simons never took a single class on finance, wasn’t interested in business, and didn’t start trading full time until he was 40. The company he founded — Renaissance Technologies — has made over $100 billion in profits. Starting out with the heretical belief that there was a hidden structure in financial markets, Jim decided to staff his “crazy hedge fund” with mathematicians, computer scientists, and physicists. He went to great lengths to collect more historic financial data than anyone else, spent a lot of time recruiting “killers” (people with single minded focus that wouldn’t quit), invested heavily in computers (and the people who ran...
2025-05-011h 08Founders#386 Akio Morita: Founder of SonyAkio Morita was a visionary entrepreneur and co-founder of Sony. Born as the first son and fifteenth-generation heir to a 300-year-old sake-brewing family in Japan, Akio eschewed the traditional path to forge his own legacy in electronics. In post-war Japan, Akio joined forces with Masaru Ibuka to found Sony. They started in a burned-out department store with limited resources—to build their first product they had to buy supplies on the black market. Akio was determined to change the global perception of Japanese goods as poor quality. From day one he set out to build high-quality, differentiated products, targeted at af...
2025-04-221h 11Founders#385 Michael DellThis is one of the most extraordinary founder stories you will ever hear. Michael Dell started his company with $1000 when he was 19 years old. The revenues for the first 16 years of Dell look like this: 1984 $6M 1985 $33M 1986 $67M 1987 $159M 1988 $258M 1989 $388M 1990 $546M 1991 $890M 1992 $2B 1993 $2.9B 1994 $3.5B 1995 $5.3B 1996 $7.8B 1997 $12.3B 1998 $18.2B 1999 $25.3B Dell had been profitable for every quarter of its existence. By 2012 the story had changed. The consensus was that Dell was dead. Michael Dell certainly didn't think so — and besides—he was incapable of giving up on the company that bears his name. As he said at the time "I wi...
2025-04-151h 48Founders#384 Ken Griffin: Founder of Citadel and Citadel SecuritiesBecause of the podcast I get to meet a lot of super successful people. I'm always asking them "Who is the smartest person you know" and "Who do you think has the best business?". "Ken Griffin" is a very common answer. I've heard Ken described in two ways: "Winner" and "Killer". For years I've come across interesting anecdotes about Ken. Like when he appears as a 19 year old kid in Ed Thorp's excellent autobiography A Man For All Markets. Or when John Arnold describe Ken's intense competitive drive following the blowup of Enron. And then consider the fact that I'm o...
2025-04-011h 06FoundersThe Invisible Billionaire: Daniel LudwigDaniel Ludwig was the richest man in the world and no one knew his name. I've read almost 400 biographies of history's greatest founders and this book is one of my all time favorites. Daniel Ludwig started his company at 19 and was working on it well into his 90s. He built a massive conglomerate of over 200 companies operating in more than 50 countries. Spending the time to learn how he did this is a great investment. This episode will tell you what I learned from rereading The Invisible Billionaire: Daniel Ludwig by Jerry Shields. ---- Ramp gives you everything you need to c...
2025-03-2350 minFounders#383 Todd Graves and his $10 Billion Chicken Finger DreamTodd Graves is one of my favorite living entrepreneurs. He's a great example of Charlie Munger's maxim: Find a simple idea and take it seriously. Todd wanted to create a quick service restaurant that only focused on quality chicken finger meals and nothing else. Everyone told him that couldn't possibly work. The college paper that described the idea that would turn into Raising Canes got the lowest grade in the class. Banks wouldn't loan him any money —but nothing could stop Todd from living out his "chicken finger dream." He worked 95 hour weeks as a boilermaker, risked his life on a...
2025-03-171h 08Founders#382 Who Is Michael Ovitz?: The Rise and Fall (and Rise) of the Most Powerful Man in HollywoodAt the core of Michael Ovitz's success is his relentless work ethic and commitment to mastering his craft. 50 years ago he founded Creative Artists Agency. CAA starts out as just five young guys in a run down office and eventually becomes the most powerful agency in the world. Ovitz's autobiography explains how that happened. As the Wall Street Journal wrote: When the history of Hollywood is written, few people will have played a larger role than Michael Ovitz. This episode is what I learned from reading (for the 2nd time!) Who Is Michael Ovitz?: The Rise and Fall (and Rise) o...
2025-03-071h 31Founders#381 I Had Dinner With Michael OvitzWhat I learned from having an intense and fun 3 hour dinner with Michael Ovitz. 1: Mediocrity is always invisible until passion shows up and exposes it. 2: There's no ceiling on where you can push your profession. 3: Don't be unequally yoked. Pick partners that have the same ambition as you. 4: Read biographies. Know everything about the history of your industry. 5. Have a profound sense of belief. The world is very malleable. 6: There’s opportunity hiding in plain sight. 7: By endurance we conquer. 8: Work 10% less. Optimize for the long term. 9. Surround yourself with people who will tell you the truth. 10: Retirement is lame. ---- R...
2025-03-0727 minFounders#380 Four Hundred Pages of Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger In Their Own WordsFor over 30 years the Berkshire Hathaway Annual meetings were recorded. Munger and Buffett answered over 1700 questions from shareholders during that period. Alex Morris watched hundreds of hours of these meetings and then he gathered, organized, and edited the most interesting ideas into 450+ pages — all in Buffett and Munger's own words. I thought it would be fun to rip through a bunch of Munger and Buffett's best ideas very rapidly. It was. This episode is what I learned from reading Buffett and Munger Unscripted: Three Decades of Investment and Business Insights from the Berkshire Hathaway Shareholder Meetings by Alex Morris. ---- Ramp...
2025-02-251h 21Founders#379 Jerry Jones (Dallas Cowboys)Jerry Jones rolled the dice until his knuckles bled. He started working at 7 years old. Jerry could sell, sell, sell. He sold fruit at his father’s grocery store in grade school and sold shoes out of the trunk of his car in college. After failing to sell pizza franchises he tried real estate and insurance. He never met a high risk deal he didn’t like. Jerry got pitched a deal to drill for oil that everyone else had already said no to. Jerry said yes. That well made $4 million. He hit again on the next 14 wells. Jerry decided to d...
2025-02-1859 minFounders#378 The Last Oil Baron: Leon HessYour father goes bankrupt. You work for 50 cents a day to try to help your family survive the Great Depression. At 19 you see an opportunity where others see nothing. You start “a little fuel delivery business” with one used truck. Five years later you have 10 trucks. World War II breaks out and you serve as the fuel supply officer for General Patton. You come back to America and apply what the war taught you about logistics and moving fuel efficiently. You expand from fuel delivery to storage, refining, and open gas stations in 16 states. You take your company public. You merg...
2025-02-1053 minFounders#377 Expanding A Family Dynasty: Marcus Wallenberg Jr.Marcus Wallenberg Jr's impact on Swedish industry was so substantial that during the 1970s, Wallenberg family businesses employed about 40% of Sweden's industrial workforce and represented 40% of the total worth of the Stockholm stock market. The Wallenberg family is one of the most fascinating family dynasties you could read about. The family has survived — and continues to thrive — for 170 years. In a family full of talented entrepreneurs and investors Marcus Wallenberg Jr. stands out. This episode is what I learned from reading Furthering A Fortune: Marcus Wallenberg Swedish Banker and Industrialist by Ulf Olsson. ---- Ramp gives you everything you need to c...
2025-01-271h 03Founders#376 Jensen Huang: Founder of NvidiaWhat I learned from reading The Nvidia Way: Jensen Huang and the Making of a Tech Giant by Tae Kim. ---- Ramp gives you everything you need to control spend, watch your costs, and optimize your financial operations —all on a single platform. Make history's greatest entrepreneurs proud by going to Ramp and learning how they can help your business control your costs and save more. ---- Founders Notes gives you the ability to tap into the collective knowledge of history's greatest entrepreneurs on demand. Use it to supplement the decisions you make in your work. Get access to Founders Note...
2025-01-131h 40Founders#375 The Single Biggest Individual Financier In The World. The Richest Woman In America: Hetty GreenHetty Green bailed out New York City. Her decisions on what interest rates to charge moved markets and were reported in major newspapers. She was a one woman bank and the single biggest individual financier in the world. She took no partners and ran her own money. She built a financial empire of stocks, bonds, railroads, and real estate. She battled the great men of her day and kept a gun on her desk. She did all of this alone. Defiantly independent and ferociously intelligent she built a vast, liquid fortune at a time when women couldn't even vote. She...
2025-01-0653 minFoundersThe Most Inspiring Autobiography I've Read: Chung Ju-yung Founder of HyundaiChung Ju-yung grew up so poor he had to eat tree bark to survive. He founded Hyundai and became the richest person in Korea. When Chung was in his 80s, he wrote an autobiography that tells the devastating reality of growing up in dire poverty, how he escaped through manual labor, and how he founded and grew one of the world's largest conglomerates. Along the way he shares advice like why you should emulate bedbugs, the importance of going where the money is, and why people called him "The Bulldozer." This episode is what I learned from reading Born of...
2024-12-271h 15Founders#374 Rare Jeff Bezos InterviewJeff Bezos on retirement being lame, AI, the electricity metaphor for AI, the good fortune of being alive during multiple golden ages, long term life long passions, refusing to underestimate opportunity, dancing with curiosity, inventing, wandering, crisp documents and messy meetings, willing to be misunderstood, and why he doesn't do many interviews. This episode is what I learned from reading and watching Jeff Bezos at DealBook Summit and Jeff Bezos: The Electricity Metaphor. Another excellent Jeff Bezos interview on Lex Fridman Listen to more Founders episodes on Jeff Bezos: #321 Working with Jeff Bezos and #282 Jeff Bezos’s Shareholder Letters ---- Ramp...
2024-12-1536 minFounders#373 Breakfast with Brad Jacobs + How To Make A Few Billion DollarsBrad Jacobs is one of the most talented living entrepreneurs. Brad has started 8 different billion dollar or multi-billion dollar businesses. He has done over 500 acquisitions and has raised over $30 billion. He started his first company at 23, has over 40 years of experience as an entrepreneur, and is the most energetic person I have ever been around. Earlier this year he published his life story: How to Make a Few Billion Dollars. How to Make a Few Billion Dollars was one of my favorite books that I've read this year and the episode I made about the book was one of the...
2024-12-061h 33Founders#372: Amancio Ortega: The Genius Behind the Inditex GroupAmancio Ortega is one of the wealthiest people in the world. Ortega is the founder of Inditex, a pioneer of fast fashion, an entrepreneur with over 60 years of experience, and has created a business model that is studied in universities that he could not access. His life story is inspiring, educational, and full of valuable ideas for future generations of founders. This episode is what I learned from reading This is Amancio Ortega: The Man Who Created Zara by Covadonga O'Shea. ---- Ramp gives you everything you need to control spend, watch your costs, and optimize your financial operations —all on...
2024-11-3049 minFounders#371 James J. Hill: The Empire BuilderWhat I learned from rereading James J. Hill: Empire Builder by Michael P. Malone. ---- Ramp gives you everything you need to control spend, watch your costs, and optimize your financial operations —all on a single platform. Make history's greatest entrepreneurs proud by going to Ramp and learning how they can help your business control your costs and save more. ---- Founders Notes gives you the ability to learn from history's greatest entrepreneurs on demand. You can search all my notes and highlights from every book I've ever read for the podcast. Get access to Founders Notes here. ---- Join my fr...
2024-11-1858 minFounders#370 The Founder of IKEA: Ingvar KampradWhat I learned from reading Leading By Design: The Ikea Story by Ingvar Kamprad and Bertil Torekull and The Testament of a Furniture Dealer by Ingvar Kamprad. ---- Ramp gives you everything you need to control spend, watch your costs, and optimize your financial operations —all on a single platform. Make history's greatest entrepreneurs proud by going to Ramp and learning how they can help your business control your costs and save more. ---- Founders Notes gives you the ability to learn from history's greatest entrepreneurs on demand. You can search all my notes and highlights from every book I've eve...
2024-11-121h 05Founders#369 Elon Musk and The Early Days of SpaceXWhat I learned from rereading Liftoff: Elon Musk and the Desperate Early Days That Launched SpaceX by Eric Berger. ---- Ramp gives you everything you need to control spend, watch your costs, and optimize your financial operations —all on a single platform. Make history's greatest entrepreneurs proud by going to Ramp and learning how they can help your business control your costs and save more. ---- Founders Notes gives you the ability to learn from history's greatest entrepreneurs on demand. You can search all my notes and highlights from every book I've ever read for the podcast. Get access to Foun...
2024-11-021h 04FoundersSteve Jobs and Edwin LandWhat I learned from rereading Instant: The Story of Polaroid by Christopher Bonanos. ---- Ramp gives you everything you need to control spend, watch your costs, and optimize your financial operations —all on a single platform. Make history's greatest entrepreneurs proud by going to Ramp and learning how they can help your business control your costs and save more. ---- Founders Notes gives you the superpower to learn from history's greatest entrepreneurs on demand. You can search all my notes and highlights from every book I've ever read for the podcast. Get access to Founders Notes here. ---- Join my free...
2024-10-201h 02Founders#368 Rockefeller's AutobiographyWhat I learned from rereading Random Reminiscences of Men and Events by John D. Rockefeller. ---- Ramp gives you everything you need to control spend, watch your costs, and optimize your financial operations —all on a single platform. Make history's greatest entrepreneurs proud by going to Ramp and learning how they can help your business control your costs and save more. ---- Founders Notes gives you the superpower to learn from history's greatest entrepreneurs on demand. You can search all my notes and highlights from every book I've ever read for the podcast. Get access to Founders Notes here. ---- Join...
2024-10-1555 minFounders#367 Inside the Contrarian Mind of Sam ZellWhat I learned from reading Money Talks, Bullsh*t Walks: Inside the Contrarian Mind of Billionaire Mogul Sam Zell by Ben Johnson. ---- Ramp gives you everything you need to control spend, watch your costs, and optimize your financial operations —all on a single platform. Make history's greatest entrepreneurs proud by going to Ramp and learning how they can help your business control your costs and save more. ---- Founders Notes gives you the superpower to learn from history's greatest entrepreneurs on demand. You can search all my notes and highlights from every book I've ever read for the podcast. Get...
2024-10-0850 minFounders#366 Mr. Beast Leaked MemoWhat I learned from reading How To Succeed in Mr. Beast Production and how ideas from Sam Zell, Charlie Munger, Nick Sleep, Warren Buffett, Sam Zemurray, Bob Kierlin, Steve Jobs, Li Lu, Edwin Land, Larry Ellison, Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, James Cameron, Anna Wintour, Walt Disney, Bernard Arnault, and Brad Jacobs immediately came to mind. ---- Ramp gives you everything you need to control spend, watch your costs, and optimize your financial operations —all on a single platform. Make history's greatest entrepreneurs proud by going to Ramp and learning how they can help your business control your costs and save mor...
2024-09-2744 minFounders#365 Nick Sleep's Letters: The Full Collection of the Nomad Investment Partnership Letters to PartnersThe best investors are not investors at all. They're entrepreneurs who have never sold. — Nick Sleep Nick Sleep’s letters are a masterclass on the importance of understanding the underlying reality of a business — what he calls the engine of its success. I read all 110,000 words of Nick’s letters (twice!) to make this episode and what I found most important is Nick’s ability to develop a deep understanding of “honestly run compounding machines” (like Costco and Amazon) years before everyone else. Nick explains clearly how Jim Sinegal and Jeff Bezos set up their companies for long term success —from the very be...
2024-09-1655 minFounders#364 Nick & Zak's Excellent Adventure: How Nick Sleep and Qais Zaharia Built Their Investment PartnershipHow Nick Sleep and Qais Zakaria built their radically unconventional investment partnership. From the incredible book Richer, Wiser, Happier: How The World's Greatest Investors Win In Markets and Life by William Green. ---- I’m doing a LIVE podcast in New York next Monday with Patrick from Invest Like The Best. It’s FREE to attend because of the great people at Ramp ! Space is limited so register here fast! Ramp gives you everything you need to control spend, watch your costs, and optimize your financial operations —all on a single platform. Make history's greatest entrepreneurs proud by going to Ramp and l...
2024-09-1044 minFounders#363 Li Lu and Charlie Munger and Warren BuffettI sent a friend this text: I'm working on another Li Lu episode but this one is about his remarkable investing career. Can be summarized by: 1. Studied Buffett and Munger. 2. Did that. Last episode was about how Li Lu survived one of the most horrific childhoods imaginable. This episode covers how he thinks about investing and entrepreneurship—in his own words. Sources: The forward to the Chinese edition of Poor Charlie’s Almanack written by Li Lu Li Lu's Colombia Business School lecture 2006 Li Lu’s San Francisco State University lecture 2012 Graham & Doddsville interview with Li Lu 13th Colombia Business Conference...
2024-09-061h 24Founders#362 Li LuCharlie Munger said that Li Lu was the only outsider he ever trusted with his money. Decades before Li Lu made Munger half a billion dollars, Li survived one of the most horrific childhoods imaginable: Born into poverty, abandoned, hungry, beaten, surrounded by death. Persistent. Smart. Disciplined. Intensely curious. Obsessed with reading and learning. Determined to escape. This is a story you absolutely cannot miss. What I learned from reading Moving The Mountain: My life in China from the Cultural Revolution to Tiananmen Square by Li Lu. ---- Ramp gives you everything you need to control spend, watch your costs, an...
2024-08-2637 minFounders#361 Estée LauderWarren Buffett and Charlie Munger said it was a crime that more business schools didn't study Henry Singleton. I think it's a crime that more entrepreneurs don't study Estée Lauder. She is one of the best founders to ever do it. This is the story of how she went from a childhood obsession, to a single counter in a beauty salon, to a multibillion dollar empire. This is my third time reading this book. It gets better every time I read it. This episode is what I learned from rereading Estée: A Success Story by Estée Lauder. ...
2024-08-1858 minFounders#360 Robert Kierlin: Founder of FastenalSince its founding in 1967 Fastenal has grown from a small fastener store in Winona, Minnesota, into a multibillion-dollar global organization. How did a small town “nuts and bolts” shop become one of the world's most dynamic growth companies? Whenever asked, company founder Bob Kierlin attributes Fastenal's success to the company's high-quality employees and their commitment to a common goal: Growth Through Customer Service. What I learned from reading The Power of Fastenal People by Robert Kierlin. ---- Ramp gives you everything you need to control spend, watch your costs, and optimize your financial operations —all on a single platform. Make history...
2024-08-1356 minFounders#359 The Russian Rockefellers: The Nobel Family DynastyThe name of Nobel usually calls to mind Alfred Nobel, inventor of dynamite, and the internationally prestigious prizes that bear his name. But Alfred was only one member of a creative and innovative family who built an industrial empire in prerevolutionary Russia. The saga begins with an emigre from Sweden, Immanuel Nobel, who was an architect, a pioneer producer of steam engines, and a maker of weapons. Immanuel's sons included Alfred; Robert, who directed the family's activities in the Caspian oil fields; and Ludwig, an engineering genius and manufacturing magnate whose boundless energy and fierce determination created the Russian petroleum...
2024-08-071h 06Founders#358 I had dinner with John Mackey, Founder of Whole FoodsWhat I learned from having dinner with John Mackey and reading his autobiography The Whole Story: Adventures in Love, Life, and Capitalism. ---- Make history's greatest entrepreneurs proud by going to Ramp and learning how they can help your business control your costs and save more. ---- Founders Notes gives you the superpower to learn from history's greatest entrepreneurs on demand. You can search all my notes and highlights from every book I've ever read for the podcast. Get access to Founders Notes here. ---- Join my free email newsletter to get my top 10 highlights from every book ---- Follow Fo...
2024-07-281h 34Founders#357 Haruki MurakamiWhat I learned from reading What I Talk About When I Talk About Running: A Memoir by Haruki Murakami. ---- Founders Notes gives you the superpower to learn from history's greatest entrepreneurs on demand. You can search all my notes and highlights from every book I've ever read for the podcast. Get access to Founders Notes here. ---- Build relationships with other founders, investors, and executives at a Founders Event ---- (3:01) No matter how mundane some action might appear, keep at it long enough and it becomes a contemplative, even meditative act. (4:00) Pain is inevitable. Suffering is optional. (4:00) The hurt par...
2024-07-2159 minFounders#356 How The Sun Rose On Silicon Valley: Bob Noyce (Founder of Intel)What I learned from reading The Tinkerings of Robert Noyce: How the Sun Rose on Silicon Valley by Tom Wolfe. Read The Intel Trinity: How Robert Noyce, Gordon Moore, and Andy Grove Built the World's Most Important Company by Michael Malone with me. ---- Founders Notes gives you the superpower to learn from history's greatest entrepreneurs on demand. You can search all my notes and highlights from every book I've ever read for the podcast. Get access to Founders Notes here. ---- Build relationships with other founders, investors, and executives at a Founders Event ---- (1:00) America is today in the mids...
2024-07-1258 minFounders#355 Rare Bernard Arnault InterviewWhat I learned from reading The House of Arnault by Brad Stone and Angelina Rascouet. ---- Founders Notes gives you the superpower to learn from history's greatest entrepreneurs on demand. You can search all my notes and highlights from every book I've ever read for the podcast. Get access to Founders Notes here. ---- Build relationships with other founders, investors, and executives at a Founders Event ---- (3:00) While other politicians were content to get their information from a scattering of newspapers, he devoured whole shelves. — Young Titan: The Making of Winston Churchill by Michael Shelden. (Founders #320) (7:00) Arnault had understood before anyone...
2024-07-0444 minFounders#354 Sam Walton: The Inside Story of America's Richest ManWhat I learned from reading Sam Walton: The Inside Story of America's Richest Man by Vance Trimble. ---- Founders Notes gives you the superpower to learn from history's greatest entrepreneurs on demand. You can search all my notes and highlights from every book I've ever read for the podcast. Get access to Founders Notes here. ---- Build relationships with other founders, investors, and executives at a Founders Event ---- (2:30) Sam Walton built his business on a very simple idea: Buy cheap. Sell low. Every day. With a smile. (2:30) People confuse a simple idea with an ordinary person. Sam Walton was no...
2024-06-291h 32Founders#353 How To Be Rich by J. Paul GettyWhat I learned from reading How To Be Rich by J. Paul Getty. ---- Build relationships with other founders, investors, and executives at a Founders Event ---- "Learning from history is a form of leverage." — Charlie Munger. Founders Notes gives you the superpower to learn from history's greatest entrepreneurs on demand. You can search all my notes and highlights from every book I've ever read for the podcast. Get access to Founders Notes here. You can also ask SAGE (the Founders Notes AI assistant) any question and SAGE will read all my notes, highlights, and every transcript from every episode for yo...
2024-06-231h 04Founders#352 J. Paul Getty: The Richest Private Citizen in AmericaWhat I learned from reading As I See it: The Autobiography of J. Paul Getty by J. Paul Getty. ---- Build relationships with other founders, investors, and executives at a Founders Event ---- "Learning from history is a form of leverage." — Charlie Munger. Founders Notes gives you the superpower to learn from history's greatest entrepreneurs on demand. You can search all my notes and highlights from every book I've ever read for the podcast. Get access to Founders Notes here. You can also ask SAGE (the Founders Notes AI assistant) any question and SAGE will read all my notes, highlights, and ev...
2024-06-151h 29Founders#351 The Founder of Rolex: Hans WilsdorfWhat I learned from reading about Hans Wilsdorf and the founding of Rolex. ---- Build relationships at the Founders Conference on July 29th-July 31st in Scotts Valley, California ---- "Learning from history is a form of leverage." — Charlie Munger. Founders Notes gives you the superpower to learn from history's greatest entrepreneurs on demand. Get access to Founders Notes here. You can search all my notes and highlights from every book I've ever read for the podcast. You can also ask SAGE any question and SAGE will read all my notes, highlights, and every transcript from every episode for you. A few q...
2024-06-0457 minFounders#350 How To Sell Like Steve JobsWhat I learned from reading The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs: How to Be Insanely Great in Front of Any Audience by Carmine Gallo ---- Learning from history is a form of leverage. —Charlie Munger. Founders Notes gives you the super power to learn from history's greatest entrepreneurs on demand. Get access to the World’s Most Valuable Notebook for Founders You can search all my notes and highlights from every book I've ever read for the podcast. You can also ask SAGE any question and SAGE will read all my notes, highlights, and every transcript from every episode for you. ...
2024-05-2747 minFounders#349 How Steve Jobs Kept Things SimpleWhat I learned from reading Insanely Simple: The Obsession That Drives Apple's Success by Ken Segall. ---- Learning from history is a form of leverage. —Charlie Munger. Founders Notes gives you the super power to learn from history's greatest entrepreneurs on demand. Get access to the World’s Most Valuable Notebook for Founders You can search all my notes and highlights from every book I've ever read for the podcast. You can also ask SAGE any question and SAGE will read all my notes, highlights, and every transcript from every episode for you. A few questions I've asked SAGE recently: What are...
2024-05-2052 minFoundersMichael Jordan In His Own WordsWhat I learned from reading Driven From Within by Michael Jordan and Mark Vancil. ---- Relationships run the world: Build relationships at Founders events ---- Get access to the World’s Most Valuable Notebook for Founders You can read, reread, and search all my notes and highlights from every book I've ever read for the podcast. You can also ask SAGE any question and SAGE will read all my notes, highlights, and every transcript from every episode for you. A few questions I've asked SAGE recently: What are the most important leadership lessons from history's greatest entrepreneurs? Can you give me a s...
2024-05-121h 35Founders#348 The Financial Genius Behind A Century of Wall Street Scandals: Ivar KreugerWhat I learned from reading The Match King: Ivar Kreuger, The Financial Genius Behind a Century of Wall Street Scandals by Frank Partnoy. ---- Relationships run the world: Build relationships at Founders events ---- Get access to the World’s Most Valuable Notebook for Founders You can read, reread, and search all my notes and highlights from every book I've ever read for the podcast. You can also ask SAGE any question and SAGE will read all my notes, highlights, and every transcript from every episode for you. A few questions I've asked SAGE recently: What are the most important leader...
2024-05-071h 15Founders#347 How Walt Disney Built His Greatest Creation: DisneylandWhat I learned from reading Disney's Land: Walt Disney and the Invention of the Amusement Park That Changed the World by Richard Snow. ---- Get access to the World’s Most Valuable Notebook for Founders You can read, reread, and search all my notes and highlights from every book I've ever read for the podcast. You can also ask SAGE any question and SAGE will read all my notes, highlights, and every transcript from every episode for you. A few questions I've asked SAGE recently: What are the most important leadership lessons from history's greatest entrepreneurs? Can you give me a summ...
2024-04-291h 17Founders#346 How Walt Disney Built HimselfWhat I learned from rereading Walt Disney: The Triumph of the American Imagination by Neal Gabler. ---- Get access to the World’s Most Valuable Notebook for Founders You can read, reread, and search all my notes and highlights from every book I've ever read for the podcast. You can also ask SAGE any question and SAGE will read all my notes, highlights, and every transcript from every episode for you. A few questions I've asked SAGE recently: What are the most important leadership lessons from history's greatest entrepreneurs? Can you give me a summary of Warren Buffett's best ideas? (Substi...
2024-04-221h 47Founders#345 George LucasWhat I learned from rereading George Lucas: A Life by Brian Jay Jones. ---- Get access to the World’s Most Valuable Notebook for Founders You can read, reread, and search all my notes and highlights from every book I've ever read for the podcast. You can also ask SAGE any question and SAGE will read all my notes, highlights, and every transcript from every episode for you. A few questions I've asked SAGE recently: What are the most important leadership lessons from history's greatest entrepreneurs? Can you give me a summary of Warren Buffett's best ideas? (Substitute any founder cover...
2024-04-121h 59FoundersSteven SpielbergWhat I learned from reading Steven Spielberg: A Biography by Joseph McBride. ---- Get access to the World’s Most Valuable Notebook for Founders You can read, reread, and search all my notes and highlights from every book I've ever read for the podcast. You can also ask SAGE any question and SAGE will read all my notes, highlights, and every transcript from every episode for you. A few questions I've asked SAGE recently: What are the most important leadership lessons from history's greatest entrepreneurs? Can you give me a summary of Warren Buffett's best ideas? (Substitute any founder covered on the...
2024-04-041h 38Founders#344 Quentin TarantinoWhat I learned from reading Cinema Speculation by Quentin Tarantino. ---- Get access to the World’s Most Valuable Notebook for Founders Some questions other subscribers asked SAGE: I need some unique ideas on how to find new customers. What advice do you have for me? What are some strategies that Cornelius Vanderbilt used against his competitors? How did Edwin Land find new employees to hire? Any unusual sources to find talent? What are the most important leadership lessons from history's greatest entrepreneurs? Can you give me more ideas about how to avoid competition from Peter Thiel? Have any of hist...
2024-03-301h 06Founders#343 The Eternal Pursuit of Unhappiness: David OgilvyWhat I learned from reading Eternal Pursuit of Unhappiness: Being Very Good Is No Good,You Have to Be Very, Very, Very, Very, Very Good by David Ogilvy and Ogivly & Mather. ---- Get access to the World’s Most Valuable Notebook for Founders at Founders Notes Some questions other subscribers asked SAGE: I need some unique ideas on how to find new customers. What advice do you have for me? What are some strategies that Cornelius Vanderbilt used against his competitors? How did Edwin Land find new employees to hire? Any unusual sources to find talent? What are the most impo...
2024-03-2432 minFounders#342 The Lessons of History (Will & Ariel Durant)What I learned from reading The Lessons of History by Will and Ariel Durant. ---- Get access to the World’s Most Valuable Notebook for Founders at Founders Notes ---- Follow Founders Podcast on YouTube ---- (1:00) This is a 100 page biography of the human species (1:00) The Story of Civilization by Will and Ariel Durant (Full Set) (2:30) Generations of men establish a growing mastery over the earth, but they are destined to become fossils in its soil. (4:00) Ruthlessly prioritize how you spend your time. (4:00) The influence of geographic factors diminishes as technology grows. (4:30) ALL OF THE NAPOLEON EPISODES: Napoleon: A Concise Biogr...
2024-03-1853 minFounders#341 Cornelius Vanderbilt (Tycoon's War)What I learned from rereading Tycoon's War: How Cornelius Vanderbilt Invaded a Country to Overthrow America's Most Famous Military Adventurer by Stephen Dando-Collins. ---- Get access to the World’s Most Valuable Notebook for Founders at Founders Notes ---- Follow Founders Podcast on YouTube ---- (0:01) Vanderbilt was only interested in two things: making money and winning (3:00) Cornelius Vanderbilt, the descendant of poor Dutch immigrants, would die in 1877 possessing more money than was held by the United States treasury.(3:00) The First Tycoon: The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt by T.J. Stiles (5:00) The NEW Poor Charlie's Almanack: The Wit and Wisdom of C...
2024-03-111h 05Founders#340 Michael Jordan and Kobe BryantWhat I learned from reading Relentless: From Good to Great to Unstoppable by Tim Grover and Winning: The Unforgiving Race to Greatness by Tim Grover. ---- Get access to the World’s Most Valuable Notebook for Founders at Founders Notes ---- Follow Founders Podcast on YouTube ----(3:00) What I am giving you is insight into the mentality of those who have found unparalleled success by trusting their own instincts. (3:00) Mozart: A Life by Paul Johnson. (Founders #240) (6:00) Michael was the best because he was relentless about winning. No matter how many times he won he always wanted more and he was alwa...
2024-03-011h 23FoundersJay Z's AutobiographyWhat I learned from reading Decoded by Jay Z. ---- Get access to the World’s Most Valuable Notebook for Founders at Founders Notes ---- (1:39) I would practice from the time I woke in the morning until I went to sleep (2:10) Even back then I though I was the best. (2:57) Bourdain: The Definitive Oral Biography (Founders #219) (4:32) Belief becomes before ability. (5:06) Michael Jordan: The Life (Founders #212) (5:46) The public praises people for what they practice in private. (7:28) Lock yourself in a room doing five beats a day for three summers. (7:50) Sam Walton: Made In America (Founders #234) (9:50) He was disappointed in the world, so he...
2024-02-252h 07Founders#339 Joseph Duveen: Robber Baron Art DealerWhat I learned from reading The Days of Duveen by S.N. Behrman. ---- Get access to the World’s Most Valuable Notebook for Founders by investing in a subscription to Founders Notes ---- Founders merch available at the Founders shop ---- Patrick and I are looking for partners. If you are building B2B products get in touch here. ---- (0:01) Duveen noticed that Europe had plenty of art and America had plenty of money, and his entire astonishing career was the product of that simple observation. (2:30) The great American millionaires of the Duveen Era were slow-speaking and slow-thinking, cautious, secr...
2024-02-201h 04Founders#338 Monty Moncrief Texas Oil BillionaireWhat I learned from reading Wildcatters: A Story of Texans, Oil, and Money by Sally Helgesen. ---- Get access to the World’s Most Valuable Notebook for Founders by investing in a subscription to Founders Notes ---- Founders merch available at the Founders shop ---- Vesto shows you all of your company's finances in one view. Schedule a demo with Vesto's founder Ben and tell him David from Founders sent you. ---- (0:01) Family and business were the same thing to him. (1:00) We're one-hundred percent family owned, unincorporated, and independent, and we intend to stay that way. (1:00) He possessed the directness and...
2024-02-1359 minFounders#337 Napoleon's Maxims and StrategyWhat I learned from reading Roots of Strategy by Thomas R. Phillips and Napoleon and Modern War by Napoleon and Col. Lanza. ---- Get access to the World’s Most Valuable Notebook for Founders by investing in a subscription to Founders Notes ---- Come and build in-person relationships at the Founders Only conference ---- (0:01) Napoleon fought more battles than Alexander, Hannibal, and Caesar combined. (5:00) The Mind of Napoleon: A Selection of His Written and Spoken Words edited by J. Christopher Herold. (Founders #302) (7:00) Insull: The Rise and Fall of A Billionaire Utility Tycoon by Forrest McDonald. (Founders #336) (8:00) No one should believe more...
2024-02-051h 00Founders#336 How To Lose A Few Billion Dollars: Samuel InsullWhat I learned from reading Insull: The Rise and Fall of A Billionaire Utility Tycoon by Forrest McDonald. ---- Get access to the World’s Most Valuable Notebook for Founders by investing in a subscription to Founders Notes ---- Come and build in-person relationships at the Founders Only conference ---- (0:01) Insull had been in the electric business as long as there had been an electric business. (4:00) He awoke early, abruptly, completely, bursting with energy; yet he gained momentum as the day wore on, and long into the night. Sam had near-demonic energy. (5:00) Sam's most obvious attribute was a capacity for rac...
2024-02-011h 25Founders#335 How To Make A Few Billion Dollars: Brad JacobsWhat I learned from reading How To Make A Few Billion Dollars by Brad Jacobs. ---- Get access to the World’s Most Valuable Notebook for Founders by investing in a subscription to Founders Notes ---- Come and build in-person relationships at the Founders Only conference ---- (0:01) I'm what's called a moneymaker. I've started five companies from scratch—seven if you include two spin-offs and turned them all into billion dollar or multibillion-dollar enterprises. (2:00) I love working with outrageously talented people to deliver outsized returns for shareholders in public stock markets. (5:00) All of the successful people I know have rearranged their...
2024-01-231h 12Founders#334 OprahWhat I learned from reading the transcripts of Young Oprah on Her Life and Career and Oprah on Career, Life and Leadership. ---- Get access to the World’s Most Valuable Notebook for Founders by investing in a subscription to Founders Notes ---- Come and build in-person relationships at the Founders Only conference ---- (1:00) Oprah fired her agent and replaced him with a Chicago lawyer named Jeffrey Jacobs. "I heard Jeff is a piranha. I like that. Piranha is good." (3:00) I will just create. And if it works, it works. And if it doesn’t, I’ll create something else. I don’t...
2024-01-161h 09Founders#333 Red Bull's Billionaire Maniac Founder: Dietrich MateschitzWhat I learned from reading The Red Bull Story by Wolfgang Fürweger and Red Bull's Billionaire Maniac by Duff McDonald. ---- Get access to the World’s Most Valuable Notebook for Founders by investing in a subscription to Founders Notes ---- Come and build in-person relationships at the Founders Only conference ---- (1:30) "In literal financial terms, our sports teams are not yet profitable, but in value terms, they are," he says. "The total editorial media value plus the media assets created around the teams are superior to pure advertising expenditures." (2:30) "It is a must to believe in one's product. If t...
2024-01-081h 08Founders#332 JesusWhat I learned from reading Jesus: A Biography from a Believer by Paul Johnson. ---- Get access to the World’s Most Valuable Notebook for Founders by investing in a subscription to Founders Notes ---- (3:00) Churchill by Paul Johnson. (Founders #225) Socrates: A Man for Our Times by Paul Johnson. (Founders #252) Mozart: A Life by Paul Johnson. (Founders #240) Heroes: From Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar to Churchill and de Gaulle by Paul Johnson. (Founders #226) (10:00) Jesus was: -observant -detail oriented -maintained intense eye contact -confident -decisive -charismatic -gifted communicator (11:00) The most important step when starting anything new is recruiting the people who ar...
2023-12-2434 minFounders#331 Christian DiorWhat I learned from reading Dior by Dior: The Autobiography of Christian Dior and Creators by Paul Johnson. ---- Get access to the World’s Most Valuable Notebook for Founders by investing in a subscription to Founders Notes ---- (4:00) The Taste of Luxury: Bernard Arnault and the Moet-Hennessy Louis Vuitton Story by Nadege Forestier and Nazanine Ravai. (Founders #296) (5:00) Opportunity is a strange beast. It frequently appears after a loss. (6:00) Dior was a nobody in his forties, with nothing in his design career to suggest genius. (6:00) When you read biographies of people who've done great work, it's remarkable how much luck is...
2023-12-181h 00Founders#330 Les Schwab (Charlie Munger recommended this book)What I learned from rereading Les Schwab Pride In Performance: Keep It Going! by Les Schwab. ---- Get access to the World’s Most Valuable Notebook for Founders by investing in a subscription to Founders Notes ---- (8:00) I didn't know how to ride a bike. We never had one. All the other young kids delivered newspapers on a bike. He's got no money. He doesn't have a bike. So he ran his routes for two months in order to get enough money to buy his first bike. He’d run nine or 10 miles a day. (8:00) I was too proud to complai...
2023-12-111h 37Founders#329 Charlie Munger (the NEW Poor Charlie's Almanack)What I learned from reading the NEW Poor Charlie's Almanack: The Wit and Wisdom of Charlie Munger. ---- Listen to this incredible conversation between Charlie Munger and John Collison on Invest Like The Best. ---- Get access to the World’s Most Valuable Notebook for Founders by investing in a subscription to Founders Notes ---- (2:00) The practical wisdom of Poor Charlie's Almanack, this ode to curiosity, generosity, and virtue will similarly compound at successive generations of entrepreneurial readers extend his lessons to their own circumstances. (12:00) Education is the process whereby the ability to lead a good life is acquired. — Socrates: A Man f...
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