787 books
—
1,526 voters
Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read.
Start by marking “Founders at Work: Stories of Startups' Early Days” as Want to Read:
Founders at Work: Stories of Startups' Early Days
by
Founders at Work: Stories of Startups' Early Days is a collection of interviews with founders of famous technology companies about what happened in the very earliest days. These people are celebrities now. What was it like when they were just a couple friends with an idea? Founders like Steve Wozniak (Apple), Caterina Fake (Flickr), Mitch Kapor (Lotus), Max Levchin (PayPal
...more
Get A Copy
Hardcover, 456 pages
Published
January 1st 2007
by Apress
(first published 2001)
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Reader Q&A
To ask other readers questions about
Founders at Work,
please sign up.
Recent Questions
Community Reviews
Showing 1-30
Start your review of Founders at Work: Stories of Startups' Early Days
Feb 13, 2007
Otis Chandler
rated it
it was amazing
Recommends it for:
entrepreneurs
Shelves:
nonfiction,
business
Loved every second of this book. Each chapter is a different story of a startup founder. I read it slowly so it wouldn't end, and read many chapters twice. My biggest take was that most founders didn't necessarily know what they were doing - or even that they were on to something big. But they were all determined to start a company - that was the only thing they all had in common.
Here are some good quotes from the book:
"I'd say determination is the single most important quality in a startup foun ...more
Here are some good quotes from the book:
"I'd say determination is the single most important quality in a startup foun ...more
Another great book, so great I decide to write this post even if I have not finished reading it: Jessica Livingston in Founders at Work has interviewed 32 entrepreneurs about their story. The lessons are convincing, fascinating. Without asking for copyright, I copy here some quotes. The book is just a pleasure to read even if sometimes the Q&A are too specific about the start-up, but I assume it is part of the exercise. A Must-Read.
Paul Buchheit, creator of Gmail about Risk Taking
As I say, for p ...more
Paul Buchheit, creator of Gmail about Risk Taking
As I say, for p ...more
No structure, no themes, but 30 odd interviews with tech business founders, and yet it worked and made for a great read.
The business media usually distills fundamental concepts such as team building, creating a good product and perseverance to the point where you either get a generic phrase or a string of dull paragraphs where a single generic phrase would do; the effect is that reading about business becomes a boring activity, but Founders at Work was different.
It's not a how-to book but narrat ...more
The business media usually distills fundamental concepts such as team building, creating a good product and perseverance to the point where you either get a generic phrase or a string of dull paragraphs where a single generic phrase would do; the effect is that reading about business becomes a boring activity, but Founders at Work was different.
It's not a how-to book but narrat ...more
A bit outdated but really inspiring. It's interesting to note the patterns between the different founders stories. The most unexpected being that many were unaware of the importance or enormity of the project they were in the process of undertaking.
A wonderful inside look at how a number of different startups were created. The book reinforced a few interesting trends for me:
1. Very few founders knew what they were doing when they first started; many of the ideas emerged accidentally, after many failures or experiments.
2. You *can* get more done with crazy hours and virtually all successful startups require them.
3. VC funding seemed to be an ingredient in the success if most startups, but was often a double edged sword, causing problems l ...more
1. Very few founders knew what they were doing when they first started; many of the ideas emerged accidentally, after many failures or experiments.
2. You *can* get more done with crazy hours and virtually all successful startups require them.
3. VC funding seemed to be an ingredient in the success if most startups, but was often a double edged sword, causing problems l ...more
everyone has a bad day/week/month.
I didn't read all the chapters -- I only read the ones that interested me. I didn't read about startups I'd never heard of because they got killed by a late-comer, or startups that dealt with very esoteric subjects like parallel supercomputers. If I'd read those, maybe my rating would have differed.
As a sort of note-to-self, these were the chapters that I read:
1
2
4
6
7
8
9
12
15
16
18
19
26
27
29
33 (the parts that interested me)
I should probably read the questions that interest me from the chapters I haven't ...more
As a sort of note-to-self, these were the chapters that I read:
1
2
4
6
7
8
9
12
15
16
18
19
26
27
29
33 (the parts that interested me)
I should probably read the questions that interest me from the chapters I haven't ...more
Great read. An insightful look into the experiences of successful founders. One thing I learned is that even the best venture capitalists turn down unicorns.
This is like a small-time capsule that makes you aware of each and every person who has contributed to the growth of human experiences collectively. The book is about founders but it touches the lives of VC Mafias to Sharks and pretty much everyone involved. Master of Scale podcast by Reid H. will sure takes you back to the stories of people you will find somewhere in this book.
Table of Contents
CHAPTER 1 Max Levchin Cofounder, PayPal
CHAPTER 2 Sabeer Bhatia Cofounder, Hotmail
CHAPTER 3 Steve Wozniak Cofounder, Apple Computer
CHAPTER 4 Joe Kraus Cofounder, Excite
CHAPTER 5 Dan Bricklin Cofounder, Software Arts
CHAPTER 6 Mitchell Kapor Cofounder, Lotus Development
CHAPTER 7 Ray Ozzie Founder, Iris Associates, Groove Networks
CHAPTER 8 Evan Williams Confounder, Pyra Labs (Blogger.com)
CHAPTER 9 Tim Brady First Non-Founding Employee, Yahoo
CHAPTER 10 Mike Lazari ...more
I wish there was a 4.5 on Goodreads. This book came into my hands highly recommended by several people and when I received it as a gift, I devoured it. Most of the advice in this book is timeless, and any fan of Paul Graham's essays will really enjoy this.
However, to me (an 18y old, reading in 2013), a lot of the interviews in the book, while interesting, were a bit dated. Because of how much the VC landscape (how money is raised, how interactions are had with VCs, etc), the cost of technology ...more
However, to me (an 18y old, reading in 2013), a lot of the interviews in the book, while interesting, were a bit dated. Because of how much the VC landscape (how money is raised, how interactions are had with VCs, etc), the cost of technology ...more
This one is a brilliant, brilliant book.
I'm so glad I picked it up and it's worth every paisa of the 450 bucks I paid for it.
If you think you are the entrepreneur kinds, this book is a must read.
If you haven't started your company as yet, it might just push you to do it - and for those who have started it and are getting completely sloshed by the experience, it shines a nice bright light on you - letting you know that eventually everything will work out -- and even the biggest companies today we ...more
I'm so glad I picked it up and it's worth every paisa of the 450 bucks I paid for it.
If you think you are the entrepreneur kinds, this book is a must read.
If you haven't started your company as yet, it might just push you to do it - and for those who have started it and are getting completely sloshed by the experience, it shines a nice bright light on you - letting you know that eventually everything will work out -- and even the biggest companies today we ...more
Fascinating stories about early days of pre-2008 technology companies like Apple, Blogger, TripAdvisor, etc. Some of them were absolute gems worth a 6-star review, others that got into fine details about uninteresting stuff by today's standards (technical aspects of hardware in early '80s) needed faster page flipping. But all in all a must-read for early stage startup founders.
A great book for bedime reading. It's basically impossible to read this book cover-to-cover in one sitting (a lot like the "48 Laws of Power"), but each piece is entertaining and instructive on its own. It does seem like it gets a bit repetitive about halfway through, but I'd highly recommend this book to anyone starting their own business.
Great value. I've always preferred interviews with real people rather than a subjective opinion. This book not only tries to hit a specific topic, but also intentionally tries to just provide comparison data about some of the most successful entrepreneurs.
One of the few books I've yet to finish, while it's great to see the journeys of the entrepreneurs in these stories there is mostly technical and very intricate details and the stories tend to drag on..
probably very helpful for the technical co-founder
probably very helpful for the technical co-founder
Best part of this book for me is seeing how much businesses change as they go from idea to reality.
persistence&perseverance, things never work out right the first time.
...more
...more
Most stories are interesting as a history of Internet and software industry.
I really like chapter 24, interview with Philip Greenspun (ArsDigita), but the rest is hardly inspiring for me.
I really like chapter 24, interview with Philip Greenspun (ArsDigita), but the rest is hardly inspiring for me.
A must-read book on entrepreneurial success stories for the knowledge worker or aspiring entrepreneur.
Why this one is great? I can hear the minds of interviewees as they are, without useless "I know why" abstractions.
This is a great collection of insights from some of the top founders. However, since this was obviously conducted through an interview format, the points are not often described in the most digestible, logical way. That said, since it's an interview format, you can get inside the heads of the founders, which can be revealing, and also just a lot of fun.
Antonio Garcia Martinez author of Chaos Monkeys, recommends this book to aspiring entrepreneurs. In the valley, as he says basically, it's a mus ...more
Antonio Garcia Martinez author of Chaos Monkeys, recommends this book to aspiring entrepreneurs. In the valley, as he says basically, it's a mus ...more
Nobody is the same, but somehow, the struggle is the same. You want to save the world. You try & you fail. But you’ve learned something. Then you try again, differently. And you fail again. And then, you know what? you try again! And this time, maybe, you might succeed. Maybe.
The lesson is though: #nevergiveup #neversurrender. FAIL FORWARD. SUCCEED FORWARD. And since I’m such a @galaxyquest fan: #nevergiveup, #neversurrender! You pick yourself up & you get moving. We’re all too poor to afford b ...more
The lesson is though: #nevergiveup #neversurrender. FAIL FORWARD. SUCCEED FORWARD. And since I’m such a @galaxyquest fan: #nevergiveup, #neversurrender! You pick yourself up & you get moving. We’re all too poor to afford b ...more
I read this book thanks to Blinkist.
The key message in these blinks:
Between the time when Apple made its first computers in the late 1970s and the early 2000s when blogs and user-generated content were all the rage, startups revolutionized business in the United States. In talking to some of the founders of the most successful startups during this time, we can see some interesting commonalities among the many stories. These include the fact that many startups began without any initial idea; that ...more
The key message in these blinks:
Between the time when Apple made its first computers in the late 1970s and the early 2000s when blogs and user-generated content were all the rage, startups revolutionized business in the United States. In talking to some of the founders of the most successful startups during this time, we can see some interesting commonalities among the many stories. These include the fact that many startups began without any initial idea; that ...more
As someone who works in technology, and startups, I feel that it’s heresy to say anything bad about this book. But it is not a book. It is a collection of unedited interviews. This might be useful as archival material, but it does not make for good reading. Having read something similar recently, Tim Ferriss’ Tools of Titans, I know the approach can work, but it requires editing and insight from the author, helping to synthesize common themes, for example. This said, the book is striking for how
...more
This book is not really as much about founders in general as it is about founders of technology companies. Some technical parts that founders talk about might be too dense to absorb for someone who is a non-technie, and make them second guess the value add of this book.Startups in recent years have caught mainstream adoption in all kinds of fields - fashion, ecommerce, media etc. I'm not sure how much value this book will add to them, but if someone reads it purely for perspective on startup min
...more
A great repository of in-depth interviews with Founders and Early-Stage employees of major technological startups which scaled before 2007. While it is common to come across stories about the garage/apartment days of major tech startups such as Apple, Paypal, etc. Jessica has gone a step ahead to throw light on details such as :
- How the founding team came together?
- How historic network (dorm mates, ex-colleagues, classmates) shaped up the journey?
- The good, the bad and the ugly experiences w ...more
- How the founding team came together?
- How historic network (dorm mates, ex-colleagues, classmates) shaped up the journey?
- The good, the bad and the ugly experiences w ...more
Fantastic book. Lots of different stories, from those ones where a tool that the startup made on the side to help them build their real product ended up being an overnight success, to the ones where the business plan was clear from day one and was executed carefully over years of sustained effort. Lots to learn from many different types of businesses and leaders. The information density is high, so I wouldn't recommend trying to read your way through it in one go. Instead, I ended up reading one
...more
Jul 11, 2019
Jung
added it
Between the time when Apple made its first computers in the late 1970s and the early 2000s when blogs and user-generated content were all the rage, startups revolutionized business in the United States. In talking to some of the founders of the most successful startups during this time, we can see some interesting commonalities among the many stories. These include the fact that many startups began without any initial idea; that often finding ways to do more with less can lead to success; that s
...more
This book is entirely made of Livingston interviews with a lot of -mostly tech- entrepreneurs and their story coming from scratch to build huge companies with big revenues and valuations. Some of these companies are still around and some of them are not. These founders don't go into a lot of details of the entire process of building their company, something I found normal due to the small quantity of time and the nature of the interview. In the end it becomes a very big summary of how they achie
...more
There are no discussion topics on this book yet.
Be the first to start one »
Readers also enjoyed
Goodreads is hiring!
Related Articles
San Francisco is a gold rush town. There aren’t many books about people in their 20s who move to Silicon Valley with dreams of earning a living wag...
34 likes · 1 comments
No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »
“Over the years, I've learned that the first idea you have is irrelevant. It's just a catalyst for you to get started. Then you figure out what's wrong with it and you go through phases of denial, panic, regret. And then you finally have a better idea and the second idea is always the important one.”
—
6 likes
“the less energy people expend on performance, the more they expend on appearances to compensate.”
—
3 likes
More quotes…
