Build: An Unorthodox Guide to Making Things Worth Making by Tony Fadell

My Thoughts

This was a great book, though I don’t agree with every topic discussed. There’s a lot of information here that you simply can’t gain without real-world experience, so I’m glad I decided to read it.

It’s not something I can easily recommend to everyone. If you’re interested in building a company or working somewhere you’re truly passionate about, this book is very insightful. But even if that’s not you, if you’ve worked at a larger corporate-type company, a lot of it will still feel relevant. The book does a great job explaining the various stages companies typically go through.

There are things I’ve seen certain CEOs do or heard of certain companies doing that came up directly in the book, like how compensation is structured or the effort put into guarding company culture. It gave me more insight into why people put so much emphasis on those things. The sections on sales were also surprisingly useful, particularly around structuring commissions and promotions. Even if sales isn’t directly relevant to you, it provides a solid framework for thinking about those dynamics across other areas of a company.