#179 Jeff Bezos

**David Senra** (0:00)
I want to tell you about a one-time only limited event that I don't think you're going to want to miss. I am doing a live show with Patrick O'Shaughnessy from the Invest Like the Best podcast in New York City on October 19th. Patrick has interviewed over 300 of the world's best investors and founders for his podcast. I've read over 300 biographies of history's greatest entrepreneurs for my podcast. We'll be talking about what we learned from seven years of podcasting, sharing our favorite ideas and stories, and doing a live Q&A. There will also be special event-only swag. If you live in New York City, I think it's a no-brainer. But if not, I think it's a great excuse to fly in. I've already heard from a bunch of people that bought tickets, they're flying in from other cities. Some people are flying in from other countries. That's setting the bar really high, so I will have at least four shots of espresso or four energy drinks before or during the show, so we can make it a night that you'll never forget. If you're interested in attending this unique live event, I will leave a link down below. I highly recommend you get your tickets today, and I hope I get to see you in New York on October 19th. In January 2013, eight months before her death, I received a lengthy email from Joy Covey.
She had been generous with her memories and insights as I crafted the first two chapters of this book and was wondering how my writing was progressing. She was reading the Steve Jobs biography by Walter Isaacson and was thinking about how Bezos' leadership style compared to the late Apple co-founder's famously direct demeanor.
When I rediscovered Covey's email after her death, I was struck by its thoughtfulness and eloquence.
Here it is, lightly edited for clarity.
Hello, Brad. I have been wondering how your writing is coming along. Also, I thought of your project and Jeff while beginning the Jobs biography recently.
I found myself thinking about what it takes to accomplish things as big as they both did. When a lot of what you are doing is unconventional.
It may very well be that the absolute intensity of drive and focus is essential and incompatible with all the nice management thought about consensus and gentle demeanor.
I think about how effective and quick Jeff was and how important it was that he didn't slow down too much or modify his ideas to make others feel comfortable. I think about the early days and the level of clarity, vision, potential and values that Jeff brought. And then I look at Amazon Today and reflect on some of those conversations I had with him in the intervening years.
It's easy to draw a straight line from the vision he had back then to the Amazon of today.
I don't know any other company that has created such a juggernaut that is so consistent with the original ideas of the founder.
It's almost like he fired an arrow and then followed that arc.
Can we really think of any other company approaching Amazon's size or age that continues to move forward with the boldness, risk-taking, innovation, and the long-term perspective that Amazon shows?
Jeff's clarity, intensity of focus, and ability to prioritize is unusual and behind his ability to keep leaping forward versus protecting existing ground.
Seeing the future, he put in place the critical DNA that would help the whole company embody his vision. His focus was on very bright, high-growth potential, and fluid-minded people with the right values as builders. He looked for people that absolutely prioritized customer trust and delight, who at all times were long-term focused and driven to be bold and innovative.
All of this was lived and modeled every day by Jeff and the senior team. Personal wealth was never discussed or really thought about.
I see companies these days where thoughts of exits are foremost in the minds of top management and board, and it is so clear that this value will affect the decision-making down to the smallest choice by the most junior employee.
Do we create something that is good, or just something that seems good, and might get us acquired or funded?
At Amazon, it was always abundantly clear what the goals and values were. And as I reflect on discussions and decisions throughout my time there, it's easy to imagine how different so many small choices might have been otherwise.
We talked a lot about whether Jeff was difficult to work with. Yet Jeff attracted people like me, who really needed to work on things they can internalize and adopt as a mission, who had to leave the path they thought they were on, and who poured their hearts and souls and best efforts into building Amazon.