Zero to One: Notes on Start Ups, or How to Build the Future by Blake Masters

Zero to One: Notes on Start Ups, or How to Build the Future Reviews

• 
  Peter - The Reading Desk

  In business, we don’t get the panacea methodology to deliver a market dominating business or monopoly, and the methodology for the next big thing likely hasn’t been defined yet. We need to look at each business from multiple perspectives and I do believe Peter Thiel provides another unique perspective – not a replacement perspective but an additional one. The research shows that disruptive innovation typically comes from new start companies and they tend to dominate a new market niche until they grow dramatically or are acquired. Iterative innovation in specific markets tends to be dominated by the incumbents, which are usually large multinational companies if the market is lucrative. So I agree with Peter Thiel, that new start businesses need to consider an order of magnitude value step change over existing solutions, to succeed, which is the zero to one transformation.Doing what we already know how to do takes the world from 1 to n, adding of something familiar. But every time we create something new, we go from 0 to 1. The act of creation is singular, as in the moment of creation, and the result is something fresh and strange.Zero to One suggests a very different method from the lean agile approach proposed by Steve Blank and Eric Ries in The Four Steps to the Epiphany and The Lean Startup respectively. They suggest that Customer Discovery, Validation, Creation and Building are the cornerstones of the startup approach.I believe we need to start with a vision of what a successful business would look like, and we need to see that it will be significantly different (10x) from existing competitive solutions. How do we get there? By understanding and executing a market entry path that is iteratively to build, test & learn. I would also question Thiel’s suggestion that only technology enables that step change. In the cited case of Facebook, there were multiple solutions offering social media platforms and it appears the leadership and marketing of Facebook, were the decisive factors. We could even argue that Facebook is an example of the Eric Ries approach.The example of Paypal and Thiel’s insights into the economy and the investment community around the DotCom boom and bust were very interesting. The investor expectations are a constant challenge as I’ve heard from one investor that he wouldn’t get out of bed if a company wasn’t turning over €40million in 3 years and another saying if you showed me figures like that I’d think I was working with idiots with their heads in the clouds.After the main point of vertical innovation is made, the book rambles and while the discussion points are interesting you often wonder what this has that to do with the main premise of the book. The book does feel a little unstructured and elements seem to be included as they were part of a lecture series rather than an integral part of a framework for achieving that 0 to 1 impact.I would recommend reading this book as it may encourage and inspire you to consider where you want to go with the company and its core solutions. It does, however, need to be tempered with the knowledge that other approaches exist and Peter Thiel may be wrong, at least in parts.
• 
  Sam

  In the beginning the author did sound too sure of himself which put me offbut upon giving the book a second try, I realised that he is actually very well credentialed to write the book mainly due to his real life practical experience founding/being part of world changing companies. Very glad that I stuck with the book, learned some amazing things about economics, and most importantly the author gave me PERSPECTIVE on the industry of business and economics as a whole which I am very thankful for.Would recommend at the least underlining and recapping between readings. Very versatile book to as it caters to not only those who are starting out trying to think of a business idea, but also to those who have a business and are trying to build teams as well as anyone in business who wants to grow.I have a degree, though with this book I learnt some amazing solid principles about economics and how the world works. What prompted me to give with 5 stars in stead of 4 is that for the majority, the author gave substantial evidence (often real life) to back up his theories and thus I really can't dismiss the book.
• 
  Gnana Shekhar Reddy

  Delivery: On promised day which is 2 days from ordered date. Packaging was good. Book came with air tight seal. Bookmark came with the book.Book: Feels original, not a digital copy. But paper quality makes it doubtful.Content: Author express the huge requirement of new ideas and uniqueness. Including success stories of Mark and Musk makes it interesting and inspirational to read.
• 
  Chola Impressions

  The book gives a completely new perspective on how businesses should be run or rather on what basis one should even start a company. Discusses mostly about monopoly and a definition for it. I have come across this measure of monopoly for the first time. The author emphasizes the importance of salesmen. Says the real selling is when customers are not even aware that the selling is happening. And goes on to sell his product, his current investment to the readers not sure how many realised this. At the end, there was too much focus on trivial and uninteresting things like how founders are eccentric may be he wants to show the audience that how cool he is. No credit was given to Sean Parker who introduced Zuckerberg to Thiel the first major outside investment in Facebook. Instead Parker was portrayed as a villain who didn't know what he was doing. It ends with a philosophy called Singularity where there is infinite hope for the future. And according to the author, technology is the only thing that is capable of achieving it with so many helping move the current scenario from 0 to 1. Other factors like psychology, spirituality, and other unknown realms are completely discounted by the author
• 
  R D

  I am an avid reader but even then I don't finish books this quickly. However, I couldn't put this book down and read over Saturday and Sunday (night got in the way else I would have finished in one sitting).I got interested in Peter Thiel's thinking after watching his Stanford lecture "Competition is for Losers" (check out YouTube). It's immaterial whether you agree with Peter's thinking, his political views etc..This is a mind expanding book that makes very good arguments against well established and accepted theories. E.g.go after small markets, monopoly is better, competition is bad (and explains why).We often take things on face value without questioning coz that's how they are taught to us. As I grow old, I think of of the other side of the coin and this book does that job very well.I highly recommend this book and I am glad I got a paperback copy of this. It is one of my favourite books now.Try it and you will learn something from it. Isn't that why we read ? :)