Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future
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- Author：Peter Thiel
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Summary
If you want to build a better future， you must believe in secrets。
The great secret of our time is that there are still uncharted frontiers to explore and new inventions to create。 In Zero to One， legendary entrepreneur and investor Peter Thiel shows how we can find singular ways to create those new things。
Thiel begins with the contrarian premise that we live in an age of technological stagnation， even if we’re too distracted by shiny mobile devices to notice。 Information technology has improved rapidly， but there is no reason why progress should be limited to computers or Silicon Valley。 Progress can be achieved in any industry or area of business。 It comes from the most important skill that every leader must master: learning to think for yourself。
Doing what someone else already knows how to do takes the world from 1 to n， adding more of something familiar。 But when you do something new， you go from 0 to 1。 The next Bill Gates will not build an operating system。 The next Larry Page or Sergey Brin won’t make a search engine。 Tomorrow’s champions will not win by competing ruthlessly in today’s marketplace。 They will escape competition altogether， because their businesses will be unique。
Zero to One presents at once an optimistic view of the future of progress in America and a new way of thinking about innovation: it starts by learning to ask the questions that lead you to find value in unexpected places。
The great secret of our time is that there are still uncharted frontiers to explore and new inventions to create。 In Zero to One， legendary entrepreneur and investor Peter Thiel shows how we can find singular ways to create those new things。
Thiel begins with the contrarian premise that we live in an age of technological stagnation， even if we’re too distracted by shiny mobile devices to notice。 Information technology has improved rapidly， but there is no reason why progress should be limited to computers or Silicon Valley。 Progress can be achieved in any industry or area of business。 It comes from the most important skill that every leader must master: learning to think for yourself。
Doing what someone else already knows how to do takes the world from 1 to n， adding more of something familiar。 But when you do something new， you go from 0 to 1。 The next Bill Gates will not build an operating system。 The next Larry Page or Sergey Brin won’t make a search engine。 Tomorrow’s champions will not win by competing ruthlessly in today’s marketplace。 They will escape competition altogether， because their businesses will be unique。
Zero to One presents at once an optimistic view of the future of progress in America and a new way of thinking about innovation: it starts by learning to ask the questions that lead you to find value in unexpected places。
Reviews
Georges DeChausay
，
Incredible if you have a new idea you want to share
Steve Dragon
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This is a weird book。 It starts off pretty sensibly， some interesting ideas presented in a coherent manner。 I didn't agree with all of them， but the case being built was decent。 Then， very rapidly， that sense of coherence deteriorated into something strange and surreal。 A very eccentric book。 I don't know what to make of it， if I'm honest。 Entertaining for sure， especially because you're so clearly in the head of someone with conviction who has a background founding successful companies。 Within This is a weird book。 It starts off pretty sensibly， some interesting ideas presented in a coherent manner。 I didn't agree with all of them， but the case being built was decent。 Then， very rapidly， that sense of coherence deteriorated into something strange and surreal。 A very eccentric book。 I don't know what to make of it， if I'm honest。 Entertaining for sure， especially because you're so clearly in the head of someone with conviction who has a background founding successful companies。 Within that context， I enjoyed reading it， not because there are any takeaways but because it's almost as if I read this to understand the fascinating world Peter Thiel lives in。 Not very useful in terms of tips and the like。 Kind of philosophical， but some of the ideas he tries to discredit aren't discussed with nuance so it feels like a lot of strawmanning is happening。 （Kind of ironic， I suppose。 Which adds to the fascination）。 Read with caution。 。。。more
Rachel Gregory
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I don’t feel I really gained anything new by reading this book。 My only take away is that if you are slightly weird embrace it， maybe you will be a founder of a start up。
NIHARIKA1811
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The best book 😁
Nabela
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One of those great books that changed my perception。 Will definitely recommend who admire different perception。
Sina Pahlevan
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I wish I had read this book right after when it was published because back then I was about to start my own business and surely had not asked myself any of the key questions for which I needed to know the answers。 Anyway I think the book is very informative and helpful for those who want to start something new。
Gowtham
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It was a quick read。 It has Some good insights about starting and running a business successfully。
Ben Freshwater
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Peter starts off with some good points on the value of being the first to disrupt or introduce a new idea。 But personally I felt it just became a bunch of rambling of opinions towards the later chapters。The most off putting part of this was the lack of data to back the claims。 Graphs are often simplified with no data sources。 This becomes more of a joke where Peter claims "CEOs in suits won't be as successful as those who don't" and slaps a picture of Elon Musk next to a failed green company's C Peter starts off with some good points on the value of being the first to disrupt or introduce a new idea。 But personally I felt it just became a bunch of rambling of opinions towards the later chapters。The most off putting part of this was the lack of data to back the claims。 Graphs are often simplified with no data sources。 This becomes more of a joke where Peter claims "CEOs in suits won't be as successful as those who don't" and slaps a picture of Elon Musk next to a failed green company's CEO。 There's a level of virtue from success in Peter's notes which I now know to be off putting。 There's much better reads out there like The Lean Startup。 。。。more
Kaspar Minosiants
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Most memorable for me in this book is PayPal Mafia structure :） https://en。wikipedia。org/wiki/PayPal_。。。 Most memorable for me in this book is PayPal Mafia structure :） https://en。wikipedia。org/wiki/PayPal_。。。 。。。more
Ricardo Motti
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First half is five stars。 Lots of insights even if you'd never dream of founding a startup （I wouldn't）。 Second half feels like they needed to pad it with 80 more pages。 First half is five stars。 Lots of insights even if you'd never dream of founding a startup （I wouldn't）。 Second half feels like they needed to pad it with 80 more pages。 。。。more
John Bond
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This book is all about inspiring you to think about grand ideas and not for those who are looking to merely tinker。 Unsolved problems are hotbeds of opportunity。 Conventional education leads to conventional choices。 So his Thiel Fellowship program funds smart people who are under 20， to forgo their college education and start their own companies。 Peter Thiel is a billionaire entrepreneur （he started Paypal in 1998 as a way to create an alternative to the dollar）， turned venture capitalist turned This book is all about inspiring you to think about grand ideas and not for those who are looking to merely tinker。 Unsolved problems are hotbeds of opportunity。 Conventional education leads to conventional choices。 So his Thiel Fellowship program funds smart people who are under 20， to forgo their college education and start their own companies。 Peter Thiel is a billionaire entrepreneur （he started Paypal in 1998 as a way to create an alternative to the dollar）， turned venture capitalist turned author taught a class on entrepreneurship at Stanford。 He was the first outside investor in Facebook。 He studied philosophy at Stanford University before going on to Stanford Law School， and working in a law firm in New York and then as a derivatives trader on Wall Street。The book starts by asking Thiel’s favorite interview question， “What important truth do very few people agree with you on？” This book is about asking you to think， “What valuable company is no one building？” If the company you are thinking of will show diminishing rate of return， your idea is not original enough。 An original idea （like LinkedIn， says Thiel） will give progressively higher rate of returns。 All the “zero to one” ideas like Facebook follow four rules。1。They are bold ideas and not about taking baby steps and making incremental progress。2。The founder has a clear plan。 A wrong plan is better than no plan。 See how you can leverage technology。3。Try to create a small monopoly。 That is where profits lie。 But never declare yourself as one。4。Product is important but so is Sales。 Nerds often do not get this when they come up with a great product – someone has to sell it。There is no such thing as luck – it is all about skills and a great team。 A lone genius cannot create a startup。 He quotes Jack Dorsey， the founder of Twitter who said， “Success is never accidental”。 A founder must have a long term view。 Steve Jobs designed Apple’s future with a series of ground breaking new products every few years。 That’s where the Power Law kicks in。 Those who can think of a Zero to One idea will create monopolies and leave pennies for those who will be inspired to follow。 That’s a strong warning to all those who imitate Steve Job’s arrogance without having his vision。Thiel has seven questions that he thinks every start-up must answer:1。Can you create breakthrough technology that is at least 10x better？2。Is now the right time to start your business？3。Are you starting with a big share of a small market？ Think monopoly。4。Do you have the right team？5。Do you have a way to not just create but to deliver your product？6。Will your market position be defensible 10 or 20 years into the future？7。Have you identified a unique opportunity that others don’t see？Thiel has strong opinions on everything – even how you should dress （hint: don’t wear suits ever！）。 He is a contrarian and is unafraid of offending you by challenging your world view。The book certainly inspired me to abandon incremental thinking。 This book should be read by everyone who wants to be an entrepreneur。 You cannot think short term。 Thiel may know a thing or two about success。 The PayPal core team members went on to start Yammer， LinkedIn， YouTube and Yelp。 In that sense the book will become a handbook that entrepreneurs will read in order to really ask whether their idea really is going to be a “Zero to One” idea just like this book。 。。。more
Christian Compton
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I had read pieces of this during my coursework at business school， and it was good to read the entire thing end to end。 Overall， it gives a great set of frameworks for creating a startup， but also for developing strategies and selecting markets for more established firms。
Andrei Vinatoru
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Interesting hints to take into consideration when coming up with a potentially brilliant idea from a man already building several of his ideas with commitment and success。 Too bad I'm lacking those ideas for the moment。 Interesting hints to take into consideration when coming up with a potentially brilliant idea from a man already building several of his ideas with commitment and success。 Too bad I'm lacking those ideas for the moment。 。。。more
Rayan
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Zero to one（ this review focuses on two main goals : giving the summary of the book and giving it’s pros / cons。SKIP TO THE SECOND PART IF YOU WANT TO SKIP SPOILER）PART ONE :« Every moment in buisness happens only once。。。 »Zero to one is a book writen by the smart investor and entrepreneur Peter Thiel with the help of his student blake masters。 This book is divided into 14 chapters explaining thiel’s thoughts about building a successful and innovative company。 Here is a quick summary of it :Pref Zero to one（ this review focuses on two main goals : giving the summary of the book and giving it’s pros / cons。SKIP TO THE SECOND PART IF YOU WANT TO SKIP SPOILER）PART ONE :« Every moment in buisness happens only once。。。 »Zero to one is a book writen by the smart investor and entrepreneur Peter Thiel with the help of his student blake masters。 This book is divided into 14 chapters explaining thiel’s thoughts about building a successful and innovative company。 Here is a quick summary of it :Preface : zero to one: « The next bill gates will not build an operating system »Peter starts his book with defining : going from 0 to 1: it is creating something completely new like facebook from 1 to n : it is copying something that already existsChapter 1 : the challenge of the future The first chapter starts with the philosophical question that is used in peter’s interviews :« What important truth do very few people agree with you on » To help better understanding the process of going from 0 to 1 he used two graphs in which he associated technology with 0 to 1 and globalization with 1 to n He ，finally， moved to the definition of a startup which is « A startup is the largest group of people you can convince of a plan to build a different future »Chapter 2: party like it’s 1999Peter talked briefly about the Economy of the 90’s。 He mentioned the ‘’dot。com mania ， the lunch of euro， the migration from bricks to clicks’’He concluded then that the future should be treated as ‘fundamentally indefinite’’Chapter 3: all happy companies are differentPeter explains that successful companies are the ones monopolizing the market because competition is deadly for startups He ends the chapter with one of my best quotes :« All happy companies are different: each one earns a monopoly by solving a unique problem。 All failed companies are the same: they failed to escape competition »Chapter 4: the ideology of competition: Thiel answers to his question : « why do we compete ？ » with giving two models （ Marxs model and Shakespeare model ） Then， he likens competition between between companies to the war that if we don’t know how to deal with it ， everyone participating will end up losing Chapter 5: last mover advantage « Moving first is a tactic not a goal »In this chapter， thiel teaches us on how to recognize a monopoly which is based on 4 characteristics : Proprietary technology Netwerk effects Economies of scale BrandingAlso， he gives us some instructions on how to build a monopolyChapter 6: you are not a lottery ticket :From the one hand ，Thiel argues that being successful is not related to being lucky giving us examples of entrepreneurs who had built two or three successful companiesFrom the other hand， he divide the world view of the future into 4 types : Indefinite pessimists : they don’t know what the future will look like so they don’t get ready for it （like europe bureaucracy since 1970）Definite pessimists : they are afraid of the futur so and they get ready for it （ taking china as an example ） Definite optimism : they know that the future will be for them and they get ready for it （ western world before 1960 ）Indefinite optimism : it’s basically the situation of usa nowadays who knows that the world will be a better place in the futur but they don’t know how。The author also gives us a look on the finance， the politics， the philosophy， the biotech startups， and the software startups to prove that our entire world is indefinite now He ，at the end， criticizes the idefinite optimism of the usa wondering how can the futur get better if no one is planning for it ？ Chapter 7:follow the money « Money makes money »Thiel gives us a brief image on how the famous 80-20 rule is dominating our lifes。 The power law is there in the buisness world too as only 12 companies are worth more than 2 trillion dollars。Thiel tell us that we shouldn’t run several companies wishing for one of them to succeed。 Chapter 8: secretsA secret is every answer to the following question : « what valuable company is nobody building ？ »The author gives us many arguments on why isn’t everyone looking for secrets ranging from the fear of being wrong and alone in the entire world as it is already so hard to be right and alone to assumption that that the smarter and the more creative will discover anything before you do ！ Thiel gives us the example of hp : this company lost all its value when it stopped looking for secrets。 Chapter 9: Foundations« Thiel’s law : a startup messed up at its foundation cannot be fixed »Peter points out that bad decisions at an early stage of founding the company are very hard to fix often impossible He gives us some tips such as having partners who much and the dire need of a small board which requires not getting the company public。«who is not busy being born ， he is dying »Chapter 10: the mechanics of mafiaThis chapter’s purpose is to build a company culture which requires hiring people obsessed with what you are doing and giving them tasks according to their talents。 We should also eliminate the competition between mates。Chapter 11: if you built it will they come ？« Advertising doesn’t exist to make you buy a product right away; it exists to embed subtle impressions that will drive sells later » Thiel insists on the importance of the focus on the selling way of your product as well as the focus on the incredibility of your product。 Otherwise your buisness is going to die soon。Chapter 12: man and machine This chapter offers Thiel’s prespective on the relationship between man and machine : machines are not subtitles for humains， they are their complimentsChapter 13: seeing green This is the most important chapter of the book， it gives us the 7 questions that every company intending to be successful in the futur must answer :1）the engineering questio2 ）the timing question3）the monopoly question 4）the people question5）the distribution question6）the durability question 7）the secret questionHe also show us how Tesla did a great job matching all these points together。The last chapter: the founder’s paradox Thiel gives us some personality traits that every founder of a successful company have。Part twoPROS:+ i liked how short the book is and how easy is the language as i am not a native English speaker。it helped me enjoy reading+ peter gave some great advises with numbers and examples unlike other books of the same type + at some points the book was so funnyCONS:+ i believe that the informations of this book are more easier to forget due to the lack of a logical connection between the chapters 。 + the author didn’t concentrate on one obvious basis。 However， he gave us a lot of seperated notes on startups Rate: 3 stars and a half 。。。more
Ommar H
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Este libro no escuché en formato audiolibro， no lo leí。 Me encanto todo， los ejemplos de los que habla como pone énfasis en crear algo que como dice el título sea de nada a 1 y revolucione el modelo de negocio existente， las 7 preguntas poderosas para saber si la empresa tendrá futura， sus afirmaciones sobre modelos actuales que no serán exitosos porque están basados en farsas aunque sean generalizadas como la industria verde de energía， en fin un súper libro。 Recomendable
Sergio Peña
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Este es un gran libro， no pensé que me fuera a llevar aprendizaje más allá de las ideas sobre innovación y negocios， pero Peter Thiel es una persona muy inteligente y son asombrosas las partes del libro que adquieren tintes filosóficos。 Una lectura que volveré a visitar en el futuro。
Bonkerstone
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I greatly enjoyed this book actually。 I always thought that it would be an utter slog and so delayed reading it over and over again， but it was surprisingly readable。 Thiel's insights are many though， as each chapter is about a new idea （or maybe not， I just don't know because I don't think I've ever read a business book before， and let's add that for that reason it's possible that both my review and rating are useless）， and so you'll have to return to the book from time to time。 I greatly enjoyed this book actually。 I always thought that it would be an utter slog and so delayed reading it over and over again， but it was surprisingly readable。 Thiel's insights are many though， as each chapter is about a new idea （or maybe not， I just don't know because I don't think I've ever read a business book before， and let's add that for that reason it's possible that both my review and rating are useless）， and so you'll have to return to the book from time to time。 。。。more
Kat Riethmuller
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Peter Thiel， the founder and original CEO of PayPal， the first outside investor in Facebook and a partner in the venture capital Founders Fund， offers his original perspective on entrepreneurship， investing， future profits and the VC “Power Law。” His illuminating essays began as lectures for his famous class on start-ups at Stanford University。 Thiel contends that doing what’s already been done takes you on a journey to nowhere – from “1 to n，” or zero。 But when you make something new – a busine Peter Thiel， the founder and original CEO of PayPal， the first outside investor in Facebook and a partner in the venture capital Founders Fund， offers his original perspective on entrepreneurship， investing， future profits and the VC “Power Law。” His illuminating essays began as lectures for his famous class on start-ups at Stanford University。 Thiel contends that doing what’s already been done takes you on a journey to nowhere – from “1 to n，” or zero。 But when you make something new – a business， a product or a work of art – Thiel believes you travel from “0 to 1。”Globalization is an example of horizontal progress; technology is an example of vertical progress。 Peter Thiel is convinced that the strategy common wisdom regards as the smartest way to do business is， instead， the surest route to failure。 To innovate， Thiel urges you to shun the usual formulaic solutions。 Success comes from finding or inventing the road never taken and taking it。 This is true， he says， even though creating something new in established organizations is difficult， and creating something new by yourself is even more so。 Thiel says progress takes two forms: horizontal and vertical。 Horizontal progress duplicates or create iterations of something that is already successful。 Globalization is practically the definition of horizontal progress: it does the same tasks in a new location。 In comparison， vertical progress makes something new。 Technological advances often demonstrate vertical progress。 Globalization and technology can exist at the same time， Thiel notes， or dominate markets separately。 The era from 1815 to 1914 experienced both。 But from the end of World War I to 1971 – when Henry Kissinger’s visit opened China to trade with the West – globalization was scant， but technological progress boomed。 Today， as globalization threatens to deplete the world’s resources， Thiel believes that technology has become increasingly crucial。Widely revered lessons from the 2000 dot-com collapse are fallacious。 Thiel may raise eyebrows with his position that the collapse of the dot-com bubble in 2000 generated four fallacious axioms among investors and entrepreneurs。 These assumptions， Thiel makes clear， still dominate Silicon Valley thinking， even though they are incorrect。 Here’s the outdated dogma – and his take on a better idea:“Make incremental advances” – Hubris caused the dot-com bubble and almost sank Silicon Valley。 Anyone who promises grand success is a charlatan or delusional。 Keep your head down， and take one step at a time。 Wrong。 Instead of falling for this myth， risk being bold。 “Stay lean and flexible” – To move with changing events， avoid strategic planning。 You should “iterate，” experiment and shift your goals as events suggest。 No， don’t do that: you need a plan， of course。 Thiel states with conviction that a “bad plan is better than no plan。”“Improve on the competition” – To take clients from existing firms， offer an improved version of something they already know and like。 Don’t attempt to invent an original offering or market。 Today， when “competitive markets destroy profits，” that’s the wrong approach。“Focus on products， not sales” – Technology is for making offerings， not selling them。 Distribution is secondary to developing products。 Like these other bad ideas， this is axiomatic among start-ups。 Wise entrepreneurs know better: Sales， Thiel says， are as important as products。Every successful business is a monopoly。 Thiel views Google as a unique monopoly。 Because it essentially has no competition in the world of search and search-driven advertising， it can devote energy and money to its offerings and how its impact on the world。 Google is a “new monopoly。” It doesn’t crush innovation as old monopolies did because， secure in its position， Google can innovate all it likes。 For Thiel， Google exemplifies his repeated insight that truly successful businesses become monopolies。 A Google-style monopoly can carry out innovation that benefits consumers and insures its own long-term profitability。 Thiel suggests that too much competition – or competition that is too intense – means that just competing， by itself， will consume likely profits and leave each rival winning a market share that is too small to sustain it or to change consumer’s lives。 The more competition in a field， the less profit。 Thiel may surprise readers when he states that competing eats profits， so acquiring or merging with your rival beats fighting。America’s love affair with competition is not good for business or education。 Thiel is almost strident when he insists that propaganda about the value of competition corrupts Americans from childhood。 As students compete increasingly for available slots in higher education， Thiel asserts that the mantra of competition turns them into “conformists。” Neither Microsoft nor Google benefited from years of brutal competition。 As they battled， they lost focus on their markets。 Apple’s resurgence left both companies in the dust。 Thiel’s company launched PayPal in 1999。 Elon Musk’s X。com soon followed。 The two spent time and energy fighting one another。 In early 2000， Thiel and Musk came to understand that they faced a larger foe: the coming dot-com meltdown。 They met in a coffee shop – not in one another’s offices， Thiel emphasizes – and worked out an even merger。 Thiel writes with pride about how they rode out the bubble’s crash together by combining resources， and they thrived。Avoid disruption and consider whether your company can be a monopoly。 Why is Twitter valued at 12 times The New York Times’ capitalization？ Thiel says it’s because investors prioritize future cash flows。 Any business’s value is the total revenue it will garner “in the future。” A successful newspaper， for instance， will hold to a certain cash flow for five or six years。 Tech companies will lose money at first， but are likely to earn big a decade later。 Thiel cites， for example， how LinkedIn’s future cash flows will dwarf those of today。 A firm with stellar future cash flows must be a monopoly， like Google。 Thiel offers these characteristics of monopoly for you to consider as you analyze your company:“Proprietary technology” – This， Thiel maintains， is the most significant advantage。 As Google’s search capability proves， true proprietary technology has a ten-fold lead over any competitors。 To gain this advantage， create something new。 Or， as PayPal and Amazon did， perform one crucial task exponentially better than anyone else。“Network effects” – These assets increase your product’s utility as its numbers of users increase。 For example， the more people who join Facebook， the more benefit belonging to Facebook brings you。“Economies of scale” – Monopolies grow stronger as they get larger because， Thiel says， greater sales mean fixed costs have less impact on the bottom line。 Twitter， for one， was ready to scale up from its inception。 It doesn’t need to reshape its product to gain more users。 Conversely， a service business， like a yoga studio， faces myriad obstacles to growing in scale。“Branding” – A powerful brand can bring a company a monopoly。 Take Apple， which has a monopoly。 Others might try to copy it， but only Apple epitomizes technological progress。 However， focusing on branding alone will not generate a monopoly。 When Steve Jobs regained command of Apple， he also ditched many non-performing products to focus on those that brought “10X” improvements。Thiel offers profound advice in stark， bite-sized chunks: start small in a field you can monopolize。 Consider taking over a small market。 Find a community that isn’t served by a likely competitor。 Don’t try to “disrupt” established companies。 Eschew competition。 The “Power Law” emerges when you “follow the money。” Thiel breaks down the venture capital （VC） world so every reader can understand。 Venture capitalists， he writes， seek to spot， invest in and make big money on “early-stage” companies。 Venture funds profit when the firms they invest in become worth much more or a large company buys them。 Most early-stage firms don’t succeed。 These companies align with a Power Law that says only a few will thrive。 As a corollary of the Power Law， Thiel brings the fascinating insight that investors seeking a diverse portfolio will fail to put as much money into likely winners as they should。 Facebook manifests the Power Law。 Thiel’s Founders Fund earned more from investing in Facebook than from all its other investments combined。 He says the Founders Fund follows two hard-learned rules: 1） Only put money into firms with the chance to “return the value of the entire fund，” and 2） There are no other rules。 Invest only in companies with a likely chance for “success on a vast scale。Thiel recommends applying the Power Law to your life。 According to the Law， starting your own company may not be the most profitable choice。 You may earn much more by joining a profitable， rising company。 The Law reveals that differences within a firm are nothing compared to the differences “between companies。” And the Law， Thiel points out， shapes sound start-up strategy: Just as one company is likely to outperform all others exponentially， certain markets will do the same。 Seek a market with the same diligence you apply to seeking an investment。Beginnings shape the life of a company or partnership。Friends of the author named one of his maxims “Thiel’s law。” It holds that a start-up built on dysfunctional foundations will never be put right。 Start-ups， Thiel cautions， depend on their founding partners。 Picking a co-founder is like choosing a spouse， and when founders fight， they kick up all the dreadfulness of a divorce。 Yet， almost no one can effectively run a start-up alone。 To ensure a smoother beginning and ending， Thiel insists you must sort out these ideas:“Ownership” – Determine who has “legal” ownership of the firm’s “equity。”“Possession” – Decide who is in charge。“Control” – Designate who has “formal” governance over the firm。Thiel provides clear， workable definitions: Usually， “founders， employees and investors” own a company， while the managers and staff members who run it have possession。 And the board of directors – made up of founders and investors – has control。 Spreading these responsibilities among the right people increases functionality， but it also raises the chances of destructive “misalignment。” In the beginning， Thiel clarifies， everyone should work full-time and just for the company。 Having an involved party who lacks stock options or a salary can fuel misalignment。 Outside people will have priorities that don’t align with your firm’s priorities。 Other than possibly needing attorneys or accountants， avoid outside consultants or part-time workers。Thiel recognizes the virtue of paying good people what they’re worth， while remembering one immutable rule: The less a firm pays its CEO， the better it performs。 Never pay a VC-funded start-up’s CEO more than $150，000 a year。 An underpaid CEO will do everything possible to increase “the value of the company，” not just his or her salary。 Given that Thiel showed the world just how high the ceiling can go on VC profit， it’s amusing to read him put a relatively low and perhaps outdated ceiling on CEO pay。Start-ups offer something worth more than a paycheck: partial corporate ownership。 Thiel counsels you to share ownership with care。 Don’t give everyone the same number of shares。 Each person has different tasks and abilities。 Counterintuitively， equality is and will appear inequitable。 Another inequity is that first employees receive more equity， but later workers may add more value。 The artist who painted Facebook’s walls in the early days received stock later valued at $200 million。 An indispensable engineer Facebook hired in 2010 might make $2 million。 Because of inevitable unfairness， always keep compensation a secret。 Any employee who prefers equity over a larger salary， Thiel feels， is vesting in your firm for the long haul。 His or her interests align with yours: increasing the company’s worth。Recruiting is crucial to success; never outsource recruiting。No one， Thiel posits， understands your start-up as well as you do。 No one else can best judge the right people for it。 The best people can work anywhere， so ask why they want to work for you。 The best people will give the best answers， which will pertain to your mission or your people。 Don’t compete on perks。 People should come to you， Thiel makes plain， for the work they will do。 That’s it。 Start-ups change constantly。 Jobs will change constantly。 Give each person a specific area of responsibility no one else shares。 That， Thiel argues， makes it easy to judge someone’s performance and motivation。Even the best product needs superb distribution。 Thiel dissects your “Customer Lifetime Value” （CLV）， the total average profit gained from one customer。 Thus， your “Customer Acquisition Cost” （CAC） – what you spend to gain a customer – must never exceed your CLV。 The more your product costs， Thiel notes， the higher your CAC。 If your product costs as much as， for example， Elon Musk’s SpaceX rocket service， you will spend a lot of time and money finding， cultivating and selling to customers。 At that level， you won’t have salespeople。 Your executives will talk directly with your potential customers’ executives。At start-ups， everyone sells。 As CEO， if you don’t have anyone fulfilling that role， the salesperson is you。 Establish procedures that enable your small sales team to get your product to the largest possible market。 Facebook and PayPal grew at lightning speed because their “core” functions drew investors to urge their friends to join。 Both companies gained monopoly status by achieving what Thiel regards as a crucial position: the “last movers” in their markets。 Tesla correctly handled every aspect of starting up。Wise companies will consider how they performed in each of these crucial areas。 Thiel finds that Tesla mastered them all: “Technology” – Tesla created such superior technology that other car companies either license it or try to copy。 “Timing” – The government was offering subsidies to green businesses。 Many businesspeople thought these payouts would endure， but Musk understood the need to move quickly。 The US Department of Energy loaned Tesla $465 million in January 2010。 Thiel knows that a subsidy that size could never – and didn’t ever – happen again。 “Monopoly” – Tesla’s first product ruled a small niche: electric sports cars。 Fully 3，000 drivers bought one， at $109，000 each， providing astonishing cash flow。 Having only one product let Tesla focus on R&D for its next car， the Model S， which helped it own the upscale electric sedan market。 “Team” – Theil admires Musk as a superb engineer and salesman。 He created a team of people determined to be the best and taught them the level of excellence Tesla would demand。 “Distribution” – Tesla constructed its own distribution chain， with no separate dealers or service personnel。 This incurred enormous start-up costs， but now Tesla absolutely controls its customer and brand experience。“Durability” – Tesla gained a huge lead on potential rivals and gained its long-term market advantage。 Its charismatic founder is still CEO， and he has an unmatched sense of mission。 “Secrets” – Thiel never hesitates to give credit where it’s due。 He credits Elon Musk with a rare insight。 Musk understood that the secret of the appeal of electric cars revolved around status and exclusivity more than any desire to drive “green。” Faust， Bob Dylan， The Unabomber and ProfitsNot every world-changing entrepreneurial investor quotes Faust， Bob Dylan and the Unabomber in one book。 Peter Thiel does。 The author is a difficult man， famous for his feuds with the media and his inability to suffer those he regards as fools。 Thankfully， Thiel foments no grudges and tries to settle no scores in his handy， pithy and unsentimental manual for building and holding onto profits in today’s often bewildering financial universe。 Thiel breaks the VC and investment worlds down to specific principles and repeats and repeats that anyone pursuing those principles will prevail。 Though Thiel does not shy away from the first person， the reader comes away with surprisingly little insight into his personality。 Accordingly， while his prose is pedestrian， Thiel’s ideas are likely revelatory for CEOs， investors， entrepreneurs and business students。 。。。more
Matei Oana
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This book really makes you think about the important aspects when you build a startup。 It contains some controversial thoughts that where you really need to go deeper tu understand the logic behind
Shahriar Iqbal
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Concise。 Spectacular。 And a good thrashing of Gladwell。 Thanks。
Gaina
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Best business book on how to create successful businesses and think in creative and contrarian ways。
Jay Matthew
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Disappointing readI was expecting a mind-blowing read from one of the world’s most successful entrepreneurs but instead read quite a convoluted narrative about one man’s world view of everything。 I saw only three things of value but only because I dug deep looking for any reason to justify buying this book。 The author does not explore his zero to one philosophy clearly or completely but instead chose to discuss a little about everything else in a very disjointed manner。
Yauheni Shauchenka
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7 пунктов для проверки может ли твой стартап стать великой компанией。 Люди считают， что наше будущее это глобализация тогда как на самом деле без технологий мы просто загубим всё вокруг。 Монополия - это состояние характерное для любого успешного бизнеса
Sruti Kattoor
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It is interesting to read the perspective of Peter Thiel on how startups should be built/operated。 Don't completely agree with all his views and I felt the book had several contradictions within it， but a good read nonetheless。 It is interesting to read the perspective of Peter Thiel on how startups should be built/operated。 Don't completely agree with all his views and I felt the book had several contradictions within it， but a good read nonetheless。 。。。more
Sepehr
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Be different！ and make the future
Sergey Kochergan
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Startups success stories from Paypal （Palantir） mafia。
Almeer Tacticals
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HOW TO BUILD MY FUTURE？its a 100% recommended book for those who have an entrepreneurial skill and who want to polish their skills and execute on it，，，， must read this book____>Zero to One: Notes on Start Ups， or How to Build the Futurei was being motivated by many authors on the internet，，， then i got my hands on this book，，， i read it and after a lot of difficulties i took action and made this possible to work for my passion that is what i have been thinking to do it for many years，，，， start HOW TO BUILD MY FUTURE？its a 100% recommended book for those who have an entrepreneurial skill and who want to polish their skills and execute on it，，，， must read this book____>Zero to One: Notes on Start Ups， or How to Build the Futurei was being motivated by many authors on the internet，，， then i got my hands on this book，，， i read it and after a lot of difficulties i took action and made this possible to work for my passion that is what i have been thinking to do it for many years，，，， starting from 2015 and onwards，，， now its 2021，，，，， that reading this book somewhere inbetween helped me and encouraged me to do something for myself that gives me happiness and that will build my futre so i buildALMEER TACTICALS， My Love， My child， My business， MY FUTURE it will be，，，， anyway，，，， i always wondered， if I start on an idea and execute on it， will I accomplish what i always wanted？？？？。。。see it for yourself，，，， and check out i did what this book motivated me to do。 。。。more
Mansoor Haider Jawaid
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Well structured and clearly written。 A must read for businessmen or students with an interest in entrepreneurship。
Elise H
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Some interesting ideas， paired with some out there philosophy。 Overall a worthwhile read。
Nero Nguyen
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