I'm Feeling Lucky: The Confessions of Google Employee Number 59 by Douglas Edwards

Feb 14, 2012 Mark Rice rated it 4 of 5 stars

If you were entranced watching the stratospheric rise of Google from fringe search engine to one of the largest economies on Earth, you'll enjoy many happy hours immersed in the pages of I'm Feeling Lucky: The Confessions of Google Employee Number 59. If you appreciate Google's dogged insistence on creating a search engine that actually works (rather than simply looking flashy), this book will resonate with you. If you consider the term 'computer nerd' a compliment rather than a put-down, you'll...more

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Jul 02, 2011 Amy L. Campbell rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: netgalley, ebook, advanced-copy, 2011, blogged, non-fiction, reviewed

Note: Review copy provided via Netgalley.

I am going to assume that a few of the things I will mention in my review have been fixed. However, given the expedited publishing schedule (one of the downsides of epublishing, I suppose), I kind of doubt it.

First off, I'm going to fix the subtitle. "I'm Feeling Lucky: or How I Learned to Stop Worrying About My Marketing Mojo and Let the Engineers Experiment." There we go, much more salacious and it even better depicts the contents of the book... which i...more Note: Review copy provided via Netgalley.

I am going to assume that a few of the things I will mention in my review have been fixed. However, given the expedited publishing schedule (one of the downsides of epublishing, I suppose), I kind of doubt it.

First off, I'm going to fix the subtitle. "I'm Feeling Lucky: or How I Learned to Stop Worrying About My Marketing Mojo and Let the Engineers Experiment." There we go, much more salacious and it even better depicts the contents of the book... which is what a subtitle is for. "Confessions" isn't bad, but it implies you are releasing information you'd rather people not actually have and/or that you somehow feel guilty about. Edwards definitely wants everyone to know about his Swagger.

Which is my second problem with the book. He consistently reminds us he has an English degree, which is fine, but if you're going to do that and be a marketing genius, it would also be awesome if you knew your audience. I happen to have several advanced degrees, but even I don't get references to ancient pagan rituals or obscure 1950's cartoons or Alexandrian legend. I just don't have that background. This in addition to the inclusion of several SAT words felt a bit like Edwards trying to impress the reader that he was just as smart as the engineers. The hammer over the head approach just doesn't work for me, and much of the book was repetitive in this manner and could have done with a little more straight reporting and less author interjected analysis and attempts at humor. I'm sure he was trying to capture the "Googley" tone in his writing, but I think the anecdotes and examples stood on their own.

Despite it's problems, I think Edwards did a great job of explaining what it must have been like to work at Google during the start-up years from the perspective of an older person, a non-engineer, and someone more familiar with traditional company bureaucracy and culture. In the beginning there was quite a bit of schadenfreude as Edwards's ideas were ignored and Google succeeded. Most of this probably had to do with the fact that he resisted the (Google) corporate culture, and it wasn't until he accepted and adapted his techniques that his advice began to have merit. The whole idea of his experience having more weight when he did not apply that experience more fluidly felt so obvious to me that the entire book sounded quite a bit like, "These darn kids won't let me do what I want to, even though I was trying to ignore the rules for the game they made up and everyone else was having fun with. And now that I'm playing by the rules, I don't understand why no one wants to play with me." This book isn't necessarily bad, and in fact it's very good at doing what it was supposed to do - convey the frustrations of learning to work in a completely new environment with a bunch of strong personalities - but it could be a little more enjoyable to read with a heavier hand at editing.

For a less "feel of the times" perspective try The Google Story: Inside the Hottest Business, Media, and Technology Success of Our Time, which I've read and covers the same period as I'm Feeling Lucky. Or I'd try In The Plex: How Google Thinks, Works, and Shapes Our Lives, which is at least more recent (note: haven't read this one yet, basing suggestion on other GR reviews).(less)

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Dec 12, 2012 Herve rated it 5 of 5 stars

I thought this might be just another book about Google. It is not. The lessons are amazing. And here are examples. A first illustration comes from a conversation between Douglas and Larry Page: “I realize that more often than not you’ve been right about things. I feel like I’m learning a lot and I appreciate your patience as I go through that process.” […] “More often than not?” [Larry] asked me. “When were we ever wrong?” he didn’t smile as he asked his question or arch an eyebrow to signify an...more

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Oct 04, 2012 Russell Atkinson rated it 3 of 5 stars

This appears to be the most authentic, or perhaps the only, insider account of the creation and rise of Google. That alone makes it worth reading. The author write well enough, but much of the content is only of interest to engineers, financial analysts, or journalists whose jobs are directly or at least tangentially related to Google or the Silicon Valley scene. He spent more time than I would have liked on the personalities and small fiefdom battles. For those of us not in the business it is d...more

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Aug 27, 2012 Ken rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

My daughter started using Google before I did. I was using Yahoo to search the internet.

I asked her what it was she liked about Google. She showed it to me and said she liked

the simplicity and the speed.

Google Employee Number 59 was Douglas Edwards. In this book, I learn that he wasn't the typical Googler. He was a Marketer and he got hired by a company that didn't use marketing. He had a family and worked at a place with a lot of young single college grads. The founders of Google would hire...more

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Feb 24, 2012 Rebecca rated it 3 of 5 stars

I usually like reading books based on major internet trends. Oddly, this book was too old for my general liking. Look how fast we are now moving when something around 10 years old is considered out of date! This story is written by someone who used to work for Google, back when it was first starting. Maybe I didn't care too much because I didn't start using google until I got Gmail and oddly, that really kicked in after this employee left. Gmail was "invented" around 2004 and this employee left...more

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Nov 29, 2011 Rob Eelkema rated it 5 of 5 stars

This was a well written book and the inside view of the starting of Google. Once I started the book it was hard to put down....I read it on my iPad and the book was over 1100 pages. For some readers, it might be too detailed but, for me, I loved every minute of it.

It brought me back to the early days of TARGUSinfo where your job was "any job that needed to be done". I really enjoy the start up mentality and watching hard effort succeed.

The never share the exact number of stock shares that Doug...more This was a well written book and the inside view of the starting of Google. Once I started the book it was hard to put down....I read it on my iPad and the book was over 1100 pages. For some readers, it might be too detailed but, for me, I loved every minute of it.

It brought me back to the early days of TARGUSinfo where your job was "any job that needed to be done". I really enjoy the start up mentality and watching hard effort succeed.

The never share the exact number of stock shares that Doug Edwards had; however, we know that he was employee 59 and his stock option strike price was $0.20....yes twenty cents. The price of Google today is nearing $600/share so you can imagine he is retired and set for life.

It was kinda of a downer that once Google went public there was no job slotted for Doug. He didn't fight it and knew in his own mind that he was a contributing factor to the success of Google.

Great business book to read as there are always "office politics" involved no matter where you go.

I was somewhat fascinated with Marissa Mayer as she is from Minnesota and is still with Google and the webmaster Karen White was actually a black jack dealer in North Dakota before taking jobs with Google. Both people are multi-millionaires now.

Marissa appears as a tough as nails person...if you said the sky was blue she would give you 100 reasons why she thought it looked black. I have worked with people like that and it doesn't make for a good office/working environment. I'm sure she was a hard working person but had rough interactions with Doug Edwards along the way. I saw an interview with her recently and she discussed the Google Dashboard where you can view all the searches that you have performed.

It is quite interesting that they can link your IP address to your searching and driving directions....I can see why the FBI, CIA and NSA are so interested in the Google logs. If you don't want an electronic record of your searching go to www.google.com/dashboard and check it out.

Overall, a great read but makes you think about all the millionaires that Google produced.....some very talented people and people that contribute to the betterment of society simply retired and never worked again. In the big picture, it doesn't seem to make sense to "waste a talent" and never see them work again because they have enough money to last a life time.

I'm glad that Doug Edwards took the time to write the book and provide the reader an inside view of Google. Ironically, Kristine received an email from a friend that he was moving from Microsoft to Google within the past week....and in my head, I'm thinking "he missed the boat" and all he is going to encounter big business bureaucracy as they have over 30,000 employees now and have to "grow up" and be a real company.

(less)

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Nov 05, 2011 Cornmaven rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: adult, non-fiction

This is a fascinating memoir of someone who worked at Google for 5 years, in its early days. Full disclosure first: I love using Google, like Picasa, Gmail, YouTube (some of it), and other Google products. So imagine my dismay to find at the end of reading this that I am pretty much ashamed to support this company.

Edwards' description of Google's founders had me searching for words: immature, schizophrenic, lazy, disingenuous, paranoid (one that Edwards often uses when talking about Larry Page),...more This is a fascinating memoir of someone who worked at Google for 5 years, in its early days. Full disclosure first: I love using Google, like Picasa, Gmail, YouTube (some of it), and other Google products. So imagine my dismay to find at the end of reading this that I am pretty much ashamed to support this company.

Edwards' description of Google's founders had me searching for words: immature, schizophrenic, lazy, disingenuous, paranoid (one that Edwards often uses when talking about Larry Page), arrogant, and oblivious to a lot of stuff. How else to describe an affinity for frugality but then structure operations so lots of time is wasted? Does Larry Page really believe his engineers' time is so abundant and cheap that he can afford to buy inferior parts for machines, then have the engineers spend enormous amounts of their time fixing them? I saw so many instances of this 'penny wise pound foolish' attitude it made me crazy.

If we are to believe Edwards' version of events, it becomes clear that while Page and Brin believe they built a "different" kind of company, they in essence succumbed to the same old, same old stuff. A claim to equal voice for all is refuted by the many stories of Page and Brin basically deciding things for themselves, after agreeing to other approaches. Which again is another colossal waste of everyone's time. A claim to make it easier to share ideas amongst colleagues by having in house meals - well anyone with a brain can see that's just a ploy to control employees and create peer pressure to stay on the job. I saw much disrespect for Google's employees - no acknowledgement that a life outside of Google could be of any value, or indeed exist. As I read, I felt that Page and Brin had in effect created a world where they could feed their own egos and try to avoid their own insecurities by surrounding themselves with people who were willing to kiss their feet and take their baloney - because they had the 'crack cocoaine' of business seething through them: stock options.

Edwards relates Page's worldview that he (Page) and Brin are never wrong. And yet, time after time I read where they WERE wrong. Or they embarked on something that could easily have gone south, and just got lucky. They ignore common sense and the law a lot, believing that they are above that because they are so brilliant. Page's and Brin's lack of real world living and experience shines through here. Yes, they are great visionaries. But they are also lazy; I kind of felt they started the company so they could get other people to do all the work and they could continue to play hockey and act like stupid college students. In the end they are still Peter Pans who don't want to grow up. Mandated ski trips of debauchery? Come on, people. Totally ridiculous and totally dismissive of employees' sensibilities. When I read the part describing Page's reorganization announcement, I wondered why anyone in his/her right mind would have stayed; then I remembered the stock options. Their approaches to employees in my opinion bordered on abuse.

By the time Edwards leaves the company - his position has become irrelevant - Google is a public traded entity that has layers and layers of management. Page and Brin may have hired brilliant people, but did/have they really made good use of them, especially when they ignore the experience,just to be "Googley"? Silly and embarrassing. Announce that you are going to be the publisher of all of the world's information or put all of the world's information out on the web - how ridiculous. That's like saying they're going to harvest everyone's thoughts (maybe Page has an idea of how to do that).

I'll continue to use Google, and say a prayer these two clowns mature at some point and maybe admit they aren't God.(less)

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Tavi

... engineers' time is so abundant and cheap that he can afford to buy inferior parts for machines, then have the engineers spend enormous amounts of

...more
Jan 01, 2012 01:19pm

Cornmaven My son has told me that computer types really like to buy junk parts and just replace them, figuring that there will be something better in a few mont...more
Jan 01, 2012 03:33pm

Oct 10, 2011 Nicolemauerman rated it 3 of 5 stars

A couple of months ago I finished the book Malled and wasn’t a huge fan. I just hated reading a book where a woman complained about her job the whole time. I was a little hesitant to read I Am Feeling Lucky because I didn’t want the same experience. I found I was pleasantly surprised. Edwards writes about his time spent as the brand manager for the new start-up Google. Basically a bunch of kids running a company who hate marketing, making Edward’s job really tough and stressful. One thought coul...more

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Sep 06, 2011 Matt rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: technology, business, podiobooks

Dilemma: Do I normalize the number of stars I give my reviews over all genres? How does a really interesting book on Google compare with A Tale of Two Cities? The answer is obvious. It doesn't. So my four stars is in the context of the business and technologies "shelves" (tags) I've applied.

Douglas Edwards provided an interesting and fun read through the Googleplex from it's infancy to adolescence (IPO). Edwards is candid, clear and works hard at being objective even with the people and decisio...more

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Jul 14, 2011 Readersentertainment rated it 5 of 5 stars

The Confessions of Google Employee Number 59 is a more personal and intimate account of what happened as Google ascended to the top of the Search business. The book, entitled I'm Feeling Lucky by Douglas Edwards is entertaining, insightful and educational in ways I didn't expect.
There are a lot of books out now about Google that are a bit more analytical in nature and though there are bits of analysis discussions here and there throughout this book the author's voice and tale is more about his...more

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Jul 11, 2011 Deirdre rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I got an advanced reading copy. I was giddy, like a kid in a candy store. I read it. ON MY VACATION. I loved it.

Okay, the serious review.

Doug Edwards gives a thorough overview of what it was like in the early days of Google, his acclimation and assimilation into all things "Googley," giving witness and words to Google's rise, covering epic events in our lives, and sharing funny asides that make the book worth every minute.

I enjoyed the personal accounts of the April Fools pages(and only confirm...more

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Jun 28, 2011 Todd rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: kindle

I've been eagerly waiting for this book after reading about it on the ex-Googler mailing list and reading similar stories on the Xoogler blog.

I only met Mr. Edwards once during my 6 or so years at Google. It was at the end of my first week, when I was introduced along with the rest of the "Nooglers" at that week's TGIF. This was the first week that Google had the Nooglers wear beanies with propellors on them, so he ran over at the end of the meeting to see what we all thought about wearing them....more I've been eagerly waiting for this book after reading about it on the ex-Googler mailing list and reading similar stories on the Xoogler blog.

I only met Mr. Edwards once during my 6 or so years at Google. It was at the end of my first week, when I was introduced along with the rest of the "Nooglers" at that week's TGIF. This was the first week that Google had the Nooglers wear beanies with propellors on them, so he ran over at the end of the meeting to see what we all thought about wearing them. I told him I thought it was pretty funny. (Actually, I found it vaguely humiliating but I didn't want to be a bad sport my first week. I usually wait a few weeks for that.)

[[[Actually-actually, now that I think about it, I might have been too freaked out to answer because Sergey stopped the TGIF meeting during my introduction to ask me about my title, which was Technical Marketing Engineer. I understand now why this was waving a red flag in front of a bull, but back then I just felt surprise and the withering attention of the entire company on me. I sort of stammered until I managed to get out that I was working in the Enterprise division, at which point Sergey seemed to lose interest and moved on to the next person.]]]

Aside from that brief meeting my only other awareness of Mr. Edwards at Google was a compilation of his writings about Google's brand that my friend Mickey forwarded to me with an exhortation to read it because this guy is hilarious and a genius. Agreed.

This book covers his time at Google from the nerve wracking interview to an ignominious meeting with a late-model Google drone that no doubt was the catalyst for his departure. It's the perfect companion to In The Plex by Stephen Levy. I'm Feeling Lucky has a much smaller scope, but I have no doubts about the veracity of anything in it.

Until the book warms up about one-fourth the way in, it can be pretty tough going. A fish-out-of-water vibe permeates the book as the author has to unlearn everything he learned in his previous jobs, decipher zen koans from L&S, and learn to completely distrust his instincts. This part is almost painful to read (partly because it's a little overwritten here). When he finally gets his bearings at Google, I couldn't help but wonder if it wasn't Stockholm syndrome kicking in.

As with In The Plex, I learned a bunch about what efforts went on before I joined. I knew most of the names in this book as legends, but I didn't really understand what their legendary feats were until now. I moved to the AdWords team right before the CPM ads were being phased out, and now I get why that was such a big deal for Google. Also, I knew that Google had a relationship with RealNames--I'm friends with the founder--but I never knew about the controversy within Google about it and who took what side.

There isn't much suspense in the book because we all know how Google turns out. Mr. Edwards clearly shows that it wasn't a sure thing or a straight line to success. This book gives the best sense I have ever read of the risk that people take joining early startups.

Throughout the book he endures stress in his family life (something most other people at Google didn't experience, though I sure did with a 4-month-old at home an hour's drive away), enormous sacrifices of time and personal life, and a culture (as described in this book, not necessarily my experience) that almost seems calculated to make people feel insecure about their contributions to the company. And in return for his perseverance and dedication, he has responsibilities slowly stripped from him, gets frozen out of important meetings, is denied access to information necessary to do his job, and has to deal with pretty dirty politics from other departments, mainly product management.

At the end we get a hint of how riches have changed his life, in both big and small ways. I can sort of relate -- though on a much smaller scale -- because the one time that I really felt rich was when I bought a second bike for myself. (I trace this to my childhood, where the "rich" kids owned two bikes.)

Definitely read this book if you are at all interested in Google history. Even if it wasn't about Google, this book is a great primer on Silicon Valley startup culture. (Hint: It has nothing to do with all these posers running around tweeting about what it's like being an entrepreneur.)(less)

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May 18, 2011 D.w. rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: reviewed

I like books on the tech industry, with a historical perspective of how a company is formed and really starts. I have read a great deal, of these and so snagged a copy of Douglas Edwards book through Amazon Vine's program when it was offered.

Where do I start in this review is also probably a question Mr. Edwards should have thought about himself when he started to write this book. Do be fair, he starts with his hiring at Google and his motivation, and even has a timeline in the back of the book...more I like books on the tech industry, with a historical perspective of how a company is formed and really starts. I have read a great deal, of these and so snagged a copy of Douglas Edwards book through Amazon Vine's program when it was offered.

Where do I start in this review is also probably a question Mr. Edwards should have thought about himself when he started to write this book. Do be fair, he starts with his hiring at Google and his motivation, and even has a timeline in the back of the book. But as we read throughout the story, he tells us of a Google initiative that spans a great deal of time, and then in a later chapter, we are reading of a new one that starts earlier than the one I just cited. The narrative jumps around.

Now this is not a business biography, but a personal account of the journey. However who is Douglas Edwards? Is he so important in the Google phenomena that we want to read his biography? No, he is not and he knows that so we learn a great deal about Google, but not enough to whet our appetites. And with a personal journey, we have a lot veiled innuendo, but we don't know how much Mr. Edwards was paid for his contributions, in perspective to the rest of humanity (we know how much Brin, Page and Schmidt make since it is public record, so what size of retirement money does Mr. Edwards have? A nagging unresolved question I am left with.)

So I am left with wanting to know more. More about the early days and how things were done. I am left with a narrative with a great amount of hyperbole. Mr. Edwards cites that he was the only early Googler who had a degree in English. Good for him. It does not mean that I want him to prove how smart he is by using allegory in new and unique ways to show how I will not understand how Google made a programming choice or how Larry and Sergey were autocratic in reversing a community decision at the last moment again and how Mr. Edwards was blindsided because he was 15 years older than the founders.

That creativity of Mr. Edwards in the end adds 100 pages to the tale. He should have taken a note from the programmers he used to work with. He should have read some business histories before delving into writing this. Mr. Edwards should have taken the time to decide if he wanted to do the story justice by taking himself out of this and see what he should have written as a plain autobiography, or a focus on Google. For as an autobiography we have a dozen paragraphs amidst 390 pages of material that deal with any part of his life outside of Google.

Nearly five years of life would have more than a dozen paragraphs. So in the end, not an autobiography of employee number 59, not a business history for there was not enough subjective meat there, nor was it written with more subjectivity and less prose. For the completest who reads every tech book, this will add to that, for the person who wants to read all about Google, this book will add to your library. But if you want to learn more about the early days of Google, this book is too narrow at times, and much too broad the rest of the time.(less)

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Feb 22, 2012 Sky Thibedeau rated it 3 of 5 stars

Douglas Edwards was employee number 59 at a little silicon valley startup called Google. Doug was a traditional marketing guy who had worked for the San Jose Mercury News who decided to get involved in an Internet Startup.

He was surprised when he showed up for his interview and Google co founder Sergy Brin who showed up wearing Roller Hockey gear. Douglas knew right away that this was not your normal staid business model.

Douglas found that the marketing of 'Search' is totally different than that...more

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Feb 27, 2013 Ariadna73 rated it 5 of 5 stars

To read my review in Spanish; click here: http://lunairereadings.blogspot.com/2...
Working for Google is rewarding; but not near as romantic as it sounds. It sucks the life out of its employees and makes them feel guilty for not giving even more. People there work typically between sixteen and eighteen hours a day; they do not have weekends; they sure have free lunch and dinner; and at some point they also had free massages. They have endless milk; naked juice; cereal; etc. But Google expects mor...more

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Dec 21, 2011 Anne rated it 4 of 5 stars

Occasionally, there was too much detail, but overall, I found it intriguing. Interesting perspective on a slightly older (early 40s) non-techie family man, working in the midst of lots of young, driven, hard-core engineer types. Intriguing study of a "new" workplace. Interesting both to learn more about Google, such a big part of so many of our lives the last several years, but also interesting as a story of a career -- not the rock-star engineers or founders, but someone trying to make a living...more Occasionally, there was too much detail, but overall, I found it intriguing. Interesting perspective on a slightly older (early 40s) non-techie family man, working in the midst of lots of young, driven, hard-core engineer types. Intriguing study of a "new" workplace. Interesting both to learn more about Google, such a big part of so many of our lives the last several years, but also interesting as a story of a career -- not the rock-star engineers or founders, but someone trying to make a living and a difference within a corporate culture.

"Google went through some rough times in 2001, though the hard work and stress paid off -- mostly with Marissa [boss] and I crossed each other's paths with increasing frequency that year. We'd spend weeks toiling in the product fields of perfect harmony, agreeing on significant projects... and then some minor difference of opinion over a word here or there would turn into a flame war that singed every thatched roof in our communal village. ...
Marissa's desire to "fix things" as soon as they came to her attention was a common impulse among engineers, and Marissa was unquestionably productive. But where Urs had emphasized the need not to do tasks that fell below the priority line, Marissa's focus seemed diffuse. Every problem that came along required her immediate solution, even if it belonged in someone else's realm." p. 245-6

"So what did I learn from all this? I learned that obvious solutions are not the only ones and "safe" choices aren't always good choices. I had thought that due diligence meant finding the product most people relied on, then putting pressure on the vendor to cut the price. It never occurred to me to talk to a startup, even though I worked at one. It never occurred to Larry not to do that. We had different tolerances for risk and different ideas about what two smart people working alone could accomplish in a complex technical area -- and that is why I spent seven years working in mainstream media while Larry found a partner and founded his own company. Two smart guys working on complex technical problems, it turns out, can accomplish a hell of a lot. " p.258

"The day after the deal went live, John Bauer added code that boldfaced the keyword a user had searched for when it appeared in an ad, making it obvious that the ad was relevant. That single improvement increased clickthrough rates by 400%. One engineer. One change. Four hundred percent." p.304

Edwards leaves the firm after it goes public and grows in ways that don't seem to have a role for him anymore. "I had practiced the marketing arts in one form or another for 25 years, and I didn't want to do it anymore. The position I left at Google had been the pinnacle -- the best job I could imagine for someone in my field. I had watched over a brand that exploded from obscurity to dictionary definition in five short years. My colleagues were some of the most brilliant people on earth. I traveled the globe and made my fortune. I learned things about my limits and my capabilities. And I like to think that, in some small way, I helped advance the human condition. Or at least that I did more good than harm.
...
I started my career working at ad agencies. It was fun, challenging, and potentially well paying. I quit because I didn't like the idea I might have to sell something that I didn't believe in. I worked in public broadcasting and then newspapers, where I found coworkers who sacrificed material rewards to be part of something connected to the common good. I got that same sense at Google, but with greater intensity and urgency. And stock options. This was no institution continuing a long tradition of public service. This was a headlong rush to reshape the world in a generation. And therein lies the company's biggest flaw, in my estimation: impatience with those not quick enough to grasp the obvious truth of Google's vision.
"When were we ever wrong?" Larry asked me.
Not often. But "not often" is not never. If Google's leaders accepted that reality, they might understand why some people are unwilling to suspend skepticism and surrender to Google's assurances the company can be trusted.
After Google, I find myself impatient with the way the world works. Why is it so hard to schedule a recording on my DVR? Why aren't all the signal lights synched to keep traffic flowing at optimum speed? Why, if I punch in my account number when I call customer service, do I have to give it to them again when I get a live person? These are all solvable problems. Smart people, motivated to make things better, can do almost anything.
I feel lucky to have seen firsthand just how true that is."
p. 389-390(less)

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Aug 22, 2012 Lord Nouda rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: business, non-fiction, reviewed

4.5 Stars.

I'm Feeling Lucky' is the story of the marketing director who led the charge to humanize what was otherwise a faceless search company that eventually grew to become the foremost industry leader. Google as perceived by the public, with its oft-repeated mantra; 'Don't Be Evil' was due to the effort of one man, who strived to shape user perception through sheer word of mouth, partly because the Google Founders Larry and Sergey were too cheap to spend millions on marketing firms and partl...more 4.5 Stars.

I'm Feeling Lucky' is the story of the marketing director who led the charge to humanize what was otherwise a faceless search company that eventually grew to become the foremost industry leader. Google as perceived by the public, with its oft-repeated mantra; 'Don't Be Evil' was due to the effort of one man, who strived to shape user perception through sheer word of mouth, partly because the Google Founders Larry and Sergey were too cheap to spend millions on marketing firms and partly to legitimize the public perception of Google as a "good" company who genuinely cares about its users. What better way to help spread that "natural branding" than through crowd sourcing and word of mouth?

I'm Feeling Lucky' starts from Douglas Edwards' experience joining Google in 1999 and ends when he finally leaves shortly after Google's IPO, when he finds that the company he helped shape no longer needed him. It's a truly profound and insightful look into the journey of the Search Giant from its early days cobbling together hundreds of cheap, disposable servers to power its search, to its eventual dominance because of its superior search algorithms that actually helped the user find what they were looking for, instead of trying to jack up advertisers' paid ads into the results like Overture (formerly known as GoTo) and Inktomi were doing. In fact, those two former juggernauts were eventually driven extinct because they could not compete with Google which continuously strived to bring relevant results to its search. Larry and Sergey fought the entire time against paid ads, which they saw as being "evil" due to its misleading nature. They believed that if not done right, it could lead to Google selling out their soul and becoming "evil". They did not want to create another Microsoft.

Larry and Sergey were major topics in the book, not only because of their brilliance and farsighted vision of the future (so much so that they pretty much rejected any suggestion that went against their vision, and which later circumstances and success verified the validity of their foresight) but due to the fact that they rejected much of our narrator, Douglas Edwards' suggestions on how to shape the public image of Google. Douglas came from a creative background, a rare individual in a company full of technical engineers. He was also a lot older than the engineers in their twenties that populated the company, who had never worked a day in their life prior to joining the startup. This, along with their brilliance (most of them were Stanford Graduates) was what led them to consider new and untested ideas that made industry veterans like Douglas cringe and cry, "But it's too risky! It goes against everything we've been taught". This built-in mentality through decades of work experience was not an asset, rather than a detriment for a Googler. Douglas had to relearn everything just to fit in at the company and the early pages of the book were full of his complaints that nobody was doing or following his suggestions, and in fact they usually did the opposite. He eventually got over that phase once he learned to move at their speed rather than the old outdated mode of thinking that he brought from his old job. Larry and Sergey, along with their engineer cohorts were naive visionaries. They had no concept of failure or of something being out of bounds for not conforming to the tried-and-tested norm. They dared to dream, and dream big. Even though the Search Market was cornered by Inktomi at the time, they believed that their budding search engine had what it took to beat out the rest. They believed in helping users find information. They believed that everything should be done as efficiently as possible and that Search would help bring about that ideal.

"Efficiency, Frugality, Integrity. I would suppose if you had stitched that onto a flag, most Googlers would have saluted."

That phrase pretty much sums it all up. That's what they stood for in the early days when Douglas was still at the company. It's what made them so successful early on, that, and the tenacity to keep churning out great products that actually had value and were useful instead of the crap you see nowadays with purely intangible e-products that are time-wasters instead of efficiency-boosters. It's why their stock value jumped into the hundreds instead of plummeting to the ground after the IPO like a certain social media giant with all its hype and no substance.

I can't recall how many times I use Google a day, but it's probably the most visited and by far the most useful site on the internet. It's where I go to find stuff I need, articles to read up on and answers to my questions when I need them and nobody else around can give me the info I need. My email goes through Gmail, I write up essays and articles just like this one every day on Google Docs or host them there as backups on Google Drive. Aside from Microsoft, Google is most useful to me for boosting productivity and getting things done.

Facebook, Twitter, Zynga and all that lame crap? They're black holes of productivity. It's gotten to a point where their founders and chief engineers have gotten together to discuss the negative effects of spending so much time using their products. Yes, you've read that right. After making billions off of their users, they've finally decided to slow down and look at the bad, bad things they've done to millions of people who are addicted to their products. They've got money in the bank so maybe it's time to reflect? Naaah. It's probably just a PR stunt. They're still evil.

If you're looking for an amazing insider's view of how Google came to be, including all the ups and downs and the pressure of working inside one of the world's top companies, while still being accessible to the masses, this is the book for you. It's an incredible insight on how dreaming big, incredible planning and vision can help bring about the rise of one of a Giant.(less)

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May 07, 2012 Bill rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: real-life, entrepreneur

I fell in love with Google's products over 10 years ago but never knew the story behind the story - that is until I read this book. Doug Edwards was one of Google's earliest employees and reveals an insight into the every day life of a mega-startup. Told from the perspective of someone in marketing made this an easy to read, yet informative look into one of the world's largest technology companies - before they became the giant they are today.

I could relate to Doug's situation in moving from a...more

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Jul 11, 2011 Debbie rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: vine-programme

Doug spends a lot of this book feeling insecure and insignificant in a workplace dominated by go getters, high achievers and astonishing academic brilliance. Taken outside the strange environment of Google he would be an employee which would be an assett to any company.

I think the madness of early years of google would raise a knowing smile of anyone who has ever worked or been part of a family business where motivation, qualification, rules, procedures, accountability, promotion and self worth...more

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Aug 27, 2011 Rick rated it 4 of 5 stars

This was a great book - probably the most informative of all of the google books I have read. Maybe not exactly perfect from a big picture POV but filled with amazing anecdotes, asides, stories and tidbits that I had never read anywhere else. I made like a million notes in Amazon and am totally looking forward to going through them and blogging about some of them. Edwards is a brand marketing guy, so for some people - especially engineers - his perspective on Google might not be the inside story...more

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Jun 28, 2012 Mark rated it 3 of 5 stars

Enjoyed the book. It was an interesting portrait of Google as it went through it's formative stages. The story presents many anecdotes that could be interpreted and used to demonstrate a wide variety of principles such as ethics, quality, organizational behavior, organizational design, and strategy. Since the author doesn't come from a business background, he tends not to use the buzz words people with degrees in business would use - which in some ways is refreshing, but at other times frustrati...more

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Jun 04, 2012 Cristy rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: biography, cultural, humorous, non_fiction, techy-hackers

Wasn’t sure what to expect with this one; although I am Google user, I’m not a “tech geek” nor am I all that tech savvy really…and honestly, typically I’m more of a Fiction Read fan. All that being said, I really, really enjoyed diving into the surprisingly interesting world of start-up Google. Huh, go figure.

Douglas Edwards, an original employee, gives a very easy to follow firsthand account of his time at Google as the small home grown internet search engine company was born into a major mult...more

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Aug 22, 2012 Simon Lipson rated it 5 of 5 stars

Douglas Edwards was a by-the-book steady-Eddie marketing guy who took a punt on a small start-up dotcom company run by two idealistic geniuses. Larry Page and Sergey Brin believed internet search had to be relevant, fast and accurate, none of which qualities, they believed, were offered by the search engines of the late 1990s. So, armed only with their unique search algorithm, they set up Google and built a company employing the hottest, youngest, most prolifically gifted tech engineers in the c...more Douglas Edwards was a by-the-book steady-Eddie marketing guy who took a punt on a small start-up dotcom company run by two idealistic geniuses. Larry Page and Sergey Brin believed internet search had to be relevant, fast and accurate, none of which qualities, they believed, were offered by the search engines of the late 1990s. So, armed only with their unique search algorithm, they set up Google and built a company employing the hottest, youngest, most prolifically gifted tech engineers in the country.

People like Douglas Edwards - steeped in conventional corporate culture and methodology - were brought in under sufferance. Larry and Sergey loved engineers and believed everything should and could be proved by the simple application of relevant data. No data, nothing to discuss. Edwards was a marketing and branding specialist whose initiatives invariably failed through lack of empiricism. Unused to instinctive, idealogical decision-making, he was constantly thwarted in his early days, and doesn't appear to have contributed anything of lasting value until he fully embraced Googly-ness. This uncodified philosophy drove the company forward, underpinned by the overriding principle 'don't be evil.'

Edwards describes the company's transition from start-up to corporate gianthood from the inside. I can only assume he kept a diary because the detail is amazing. The story alone is compelling enough, but Edwards is a charming and wonderfully self-deprecating guide. Several times he describes some carefully prepared, utterly logical proposal or other only for it to be cut down by a word from Larry or Sergey - whose alternative suggestions are almost always proved to be correct.

This is a helter-skelter analysis with the forward thrust of a pacey thriller, allied to abundant humour and pithy characterisations. And, given the competitive arena within which the story unfolds, there is a distinct lack of bitchiness and rancour.

Funny, sharp, compelling. My only gripe is that Edwards doesn't tell us how much money he walked away with after he cashed in his shares. He is open and honest about everything else. Never mind. It's a great read without that final nugget. (less)

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Sep 06, 2011 Luke Burrage rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: audio-book, non-fiction

This was a really fun listen! It's great to get stories from inside the Googleplex from an outside. Douglas wasn't young, nor was he a startup investor, nor was he a tech genius, nor was he a big idea guy. He wrote marketing copy and developed branding. This makes the stories and concepts very easy to understand, as he was the token non-geek at the company. I know a lot about Google already, but this memoir provided a very interesting point of view.

And it's really funny too! It's full of ironic...more

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Aug 01, 2011 Ferruccio Cinquemani rated it 2 of 5 stars

Interesting inside view of the early years of Google. It can be boring in parts to those who don't especially enjoy tales of corporate politics and power juggles between Brand Managers and Project Managers, but nevertheless Edwards tells a flowing story.

The tone, even though extremely fond of Google's culture and story, is not completely positive. Some controversial sides of the search giant are discussed, such as the cult of personality that seems to surround Google founders, the detachment fro...more

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Jul 21, 2011 Maya Panika rated it 3 of 5 stars

This is a fine, detailed, solidly crafted, if a little unexciting, account of what it was like to be in at the start of the Google phenomenon.

I admit my feelings were coloured by the fact that this is not the book I expected to read. From the cover blurb, I anticipated an amusing, satirical romp through the "Google Experience", something more along the lines of Mike Daisey's '21 Dog Years'. This is definitely not that.

I'm Feeling Lucky is an intermittently funny, sometimes very funny, factual a...more

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Jul 08, 2012 Caroline Cameron rated it 4 of 5 stars

As I'm not a 'techie' (neither is the author), this isn't the type of book I'd usually pick up. However, as a daily user of Google, the title and back cover grabbed my attention and I wasn't disappointed.

Edwards has an entertaining, humorous and easy to read writing style. As a reader I felt like I'd been taken behind the scenes of this legendary company that was swimming against the tide of popular 'how to succeed' approaches used by many other companies in the early 2000s.

This is an honest yet...more

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Jul 22, 2011 Michael rated it 5 of 5 stars

I think you might need to be at least a little interested in computers in order to enjoy what this book has to offer. It is the story of the first 5 years of Google.com told from the perspective of employee no 59 – Douglas Edwards. A fascinating story it is too. I’m sure, like me, barely a day passes without seeking some help and guidance from Google – mostly these days though with irritation, as it rarely seems to bring me what I really want.

The story is told from the perspective of ‘the voice...more I think you might need to be at least a little interested in computers in order to enjoy what this book has to offer. It is the story of the first 5 years of Google.com told from the perspective of employee no 59 – Douglas Edwards. A fascinating story it is too. I’m sure, like me, barely a day passes without seeking some help and guidance from Google – mostly these days though with irritation, as it rarely seems to bring me what I really want.

The story is told from the perspective of ‘the voice of Google’. Douglas Edwards was a newspaper marketer around the time of the .com boom in 1999. He considered himself the least qualified of Google’s employees (most of them appeared to operate around the genius level) and he was taken on in order to create the text that appears on all of Google’s pages. Though back in 1999 that was pretty much just the search engine home page.

I was fascinated by the insights into the personalities of Larry & Sergey, Google’s founders. For instance, Sergey arrived to interview Douglas wearing roller hockey gear: gym shorts, t-shirt and inline skates. That casualness, which pervaded the office environment, never touched the business side of things. But it sounded like a great place to work. Free food, cordon bleu chef, free drinks, things to play with, trips away with the whole company. This was done on the basis that if you didn’t need to go out to get these things - you’d work more hours and benefit Google. The hours were long and the work hard with the engineers frequently sleeping at the office.

I thoroughly enjoyed finding out about this search engine’s origins. Stuff like how they crammed about 10 times the density of servers into the space they were renting on the server farm – just because they were paying by the square foot and electricity was thrown in as part of the package. The ‘war’ that was waged with the other big boys, like Yahoo and AOL, in the early days and how making money was never even thought about because Larry and Sergey knew that when the time was right the ideas would emerge, And they did - adwords and adsense.

Then towards the end of that five years there were some internal battles, life became less comfortable and eventually Douglas was asked to leave – though it seems his share options made him enough to retire.

Don’t want to say more because there is so much good stuff in this book about the birth and growth of this internet monster that seems intent on taking over the world now. But I really liked Google’s core tenet – ‘do no evil’ and this guided it through many decisions in a way that meant Google was all about serving its customers in the highest way it knew how to do.

A great read.
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Sep 22, 2011 Osho rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011

Audible audiobook, not listed in editions.

Fine so far as it goes. Edwards chronicles (often thematically rather than chronologically) his adventures as an early employee in Google's start-up phase. I found it interesting to read about Google, and interesting for a while to read about Edwards's interactions with company personnel and culture. However, the latter topic can be summed up more often than not as, "I suggested something, it was/wasn't adopted, I turned out to be wrong." The moral of th...more

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