The Everything Store: Jeff Bezos and the Age of Amazon

by Brad Stone

When I rediscovered Covey’s e-mail after her death, I was struck by its thoughtfulness and eloquence. Here it is, lightly edited for clarity. Hello Brad, I have been wondering how your writing is coming along. Also, I thought of your project (and Jeff) while beginning the Jobs biography recently. I found myself thinking about what it takes to accomplish things as big as they both did, when a lot of what you are doing is unconventional. It may very well be that the absolute intensity of drive and focus is essential and incompatible with all of the nice management thought about consensus and gentle demeanor. I think about how effective and quick Jeff was and how important it was that he didn’t slow down too much or modify his ideas to make others feel comfortable. I think about the early days and the level of clarity, vision, potential, and values that Jeff brought. And then I look at Amazon today, and reflect on some conversations I have had with him in the intervening years. It is easy to draw a straight line from the vision he had back then to the Amazon of today. There were a few little wobbles and detours in places, but really I don’t know any other company that has created such a juggernaut that is so consistent with the original ideas of the founder. It is almost like he fired an arrow and then followed that arc. Can we really think of any other company approaching Amazon’s size or age that continues to move forward with the boldness, risk-taking, innovation, and the ...