3 ms·

I've never been that interested in accounts of the lives of entrepreneurs. It strikes me as a genre akin to the autobiographies (or commissioned biographies) of

by advael 5y ago

I've never been that interested in accounts of the lives of entrepreneurs. It strikes me as a genre akin to the autobiographies (or commissioned biographies) of autocrats. This review makes me want to read this book though

paulpauper 5y ago
As a genre they sell poorly, really poorly. worse than even no-name amazon authors of fan fiction and erotica. As it turns out, CEOs are not that interesting , nor are their lives. Their accomplishments may be impressive but this doesn't always make for interesting reading.
- bloodyplonker22 5y ago
  Way to generalize. Maybe it's true if you're Meg Whitman, but it's obviously not true for people like Steve Jobs.
- sharkweek 5y ago
  Is that true? I guess there’s always exceptions but Shoe Dog is an all-time best seller and is basically just the CEO recounting his version of events for 300 or so pages. Still enjoyed it though! Onward by Schultz (zzz), Jobs by Isaacson (not bad), the various Bezos and Ma books, etc. all seem to top lists.
  - paulpauper 5y ago
    it is easy to top a best-seller list with a pre-order push, which is what famous ppl typically do. Staying power however much harder to achieve. Autobiographies are probably going to be worse than having a world-famous, top-talented writer tell the story.
  - skinnymuch 5y ago
    Jobs by Isaacson. Any book by Isaacson or some other famous author will always be exceptions. Autobiographies are also different than either biographies or something in the middle. I’d think the former sell worse. Bezos, Jack Ma, Jobs, Schultz are known as the person not just the company they [co]-founded, but for their industry as a whole while also being revered. Schultz might be an exception there. Not sure since his takes of getting into politics as an out of touch billionaire is the thing that comes to mind now.
  - pchanda 5y ago
    Ride of a Lifetime by Bob Iger is another which was a bestseller and also one I found rather insightful.

by advael 5y ago

paulpauper 5y ago

As a genre they sell poorly, really poorly. worse than even no-name amazon authors of fan fiction and erotica. As it turns out, CEOs are not that interesting , nor are their lives. Their accomplishments may be impressive but this doesn't always make for interesting reading.

bloodyplonker22 5y ago
Way to generalize. Maybe it's true if you're Meg Whitman, but it's obviously not true for people like Steve Jobs.
sharkweek 5y ago
Is that true? I guess there’s always exceptions but Shoe Dog is an all-time best seller and is basically just the CEO recounting his version of events for 300 or so pages. Still enjoyed it though! Onward by Schultz (zzz), Jobs by Isaacson (not bad), the various Bezos and Ma books, etc. all seem to top lists.
- paulpauper 5y ago
  it is easy to top a best-seller list with a pre-order push, which is what famous ppl typically do. Staying power however much harder to achieve. Autobiographies are probably going to be worse than having a world-famous, top-talented writer tell the story.
- skinnymuch 5y ago
  Jobs by Isaacson. Any book by Isaacson or some other famous author will always be exceptions. Autobiographies are also different than either biographies or something in the middle. I’d think the former sell worse. Bezos, Jack Ma, Jobs, Schultz are known as the person not just the company they [co]-founded, but for their industry as a whole while also being revered. Schultz might be an exception there. Not sure since his takes of getting into politics as an out of touch billionaire is the thing that comes to mind now.
- pchanda 5y ago
  Ride of a Lifetime by Bob Iger is another which was a bestseller and also one I found rather insightful.