5 ms·

Groupon founder Andrew Mason's farewell letter to employees (2013)

41 points by bobbiechen 6y ago

imperialdrive 6y ago
Pretty refreshing to read. I can't imagine being 40 lbs overweight and would sacrifice 90% of my wealth to be my normal self if it ever happened... hopefully his destiny led him to a better place.
- deleted 6y ago
  [deleted]
- jjeaff 6y ago
  Ok now... I've been a healthy weight and also 40lbs overweight. While I of course prefer being a healthy weight, it wasn't so bad I would give up nearly everything to get thin.
erikig 6y ago
I remember seeing this and being extremely impressed by his candor, his forethought and his graceful humor. These tidbits especially stood out: - As CEO, I am accountable. - I'm OK with having failed at this part of the journey. - This leadership change gives you some breathing room to break bad habits and deliver sustainable customer happiness – don't waste the opportunity!
swivelmaster 6y ago
For the curious, Mason’s story is really interesting and he did a great interview on the Without Fail podcast a few years ago. https://gimletmedia.com/shows/without-fail/j4hrl8 https://gimletmedia.com/shows/without-fail/j4hrl8
codazoda 6y ago
"My biggest regrets are the moments that I let a lack of data override my intuition on what's best for our customers." I think we can learn something from that quote.
itsoktocry 6y ago
It's funny to go back and read what this forum and the tech world was saying about Groupon a decade ago. It was valued at $30 billion! Everyone likes to point to the "infamous Dropbox comment" whenever people are negative here about a hyped startup, but it seems to me these stories are far more common; "you just don't get it!". This company minted millions (billions?) for SV insiders cashing out on the public, and was heralded as the fastest gowing company ever. All hype. It's still alive, apparently (market cap < $1 billion), and still bleeding money.
- didip 6y ago
  It missed the opportunity of its lifetime by not selling to Google.
accosine 6y ago
Battle Toads is still an awesome game.

41 points by bobbiechen 6y ago

Pretty refreshing to read. I can't imagine being 40 lbs overweight and would sacrifice 90% of my wealth to be my normal self if it ever happened... hopefully his destiny led him to a better place.

deleted 6y ago
[deleted]
jjeaff 6y ago
Ok now... I've been a healthy weight and also 40lbs overweight. While I of course prefer being a healthy weight, it wasn't so bad I would give up nearly everything to get thin.

erikig 6y ago

I remember seeing this and being extremely impressed by his candor, his forethought and his graceful humor. These tidbits especially stood out: - As CEO, I am accountable. - I'm OK with having failed at this part of the journey. - This leadership change gives you some breathing room to break bad habits and deliver sustainable customer happiness – don't waste the opportunity!

swivelmaster 6y ago

For the curious, Mason’s story is really interesting and he did a great interview on the Without Fail podcast a few years ago. https://gimletmedia.com/shows/without-fail/j4hrl8 https://gimletmedia.com/shows/without-fail/j4hrl8

codazoda 6y ago

"My biggest regrets are the moments that I let a lack of data override my intuition on what's best for our customers." I think we can learn something from that quote.

itsoktocry 6y ago

It's funny to go back and read what this forum and the tech world was saying about Groupon a decade ago. It was valued at $30 billion! Everyone likes to point to the "infamous Dropbox comment" whenever people are negative here about a hyped startup, but it seems to me these stories are far more common; "you just don't get it!". This company minted millions (billions?) for SV insiders cashing out on the public, and was heralded as the fastest gowing company ever. All hype. It's still alive, apparently (market cap < $1 billion), and still bleeding money.

didip 6y ago
It missed the opportunity of its lifetime by not selling to Google.

accosine 6y ago

Battle Toads is still an awesome game.