In the tradition of Phil Knight’s Shoe Dog comes the incredible untold story of how Netflix went from concept to company-all revealed by co-founder and first CEO Marc Randolph. Once upon a time, brick-and-mortar video stores were king. Late fees were ubiquitous, video-streaming unheard was of, and widespread DVD adoption seemed about as imminent as flying cars. Indeed, these were the widely … Indeed, these were the widely accepted laws of the land in 1997, when Marc Randolph had an idea. It was a simple thought-leveraging the internet to rent movies-and was just one of many more and far worse proposals, like personalized baseball bats and a shampoo delivery service, that Randolph would pitch to his business partner, Reed Hastings, on their commute to work each morning.
But Hastings was intrigued, and the pair-with Hastings as the primary investor and Randolph as the CEO-founded a company. Now with over 150 million subscribers, Netflix’s triumph feels inevitable, but the twenty first century’s most disruptive start up began with few believers and calamity at every turn. From having to pitch his own mother on being an early investor, to the motel conference room that served as a first office, to server crashes on launch day, to the now-infamous meeting when Netflix brass pitched Blockbuster to acquire them, Marc Randolph’s transformational journey exemplifies how anyone with grit, gut instincts and determination can change the world-even with an idea that many think will never work.
What emerges,though, isn’t just the inside story of one of the world’s most iconic companies. Full of counter-intuitive concepts and written in binge-worthy prose, it answers some of our most fundamental questions about taking that leap of faith in business or in life: How do you begin? How do you weather disappointment and failure? How do you deal with success? What even is success?
From idea generation to team building to knowing when it’s time to let go, That Will Never Work is not only the ultimate follow-your-dreams parable, but also one of the most dramatic and insightful entrepreneurial stories of our time.
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Brilliantly written. Funny, witty and a real eye-opener as to what it truly means to be an entrepreneur and go-getter!
As a ghostwriter, I often read books for background research that I think I’ll hate, like this one. Why should I care about Marc Randolph, who co-founded Netflix? Sure, I stream Netflix, but I have zero business background and even less experience in founding a startup company that ends up making buckets of money.
To my intense surprise, however, Randolph’s business memoir turned out to be one of the best books I’d read in a while: engaging, funny, and personable. It’s highly informative, too, not only about the founding of Netflx, but about what it takes to be an entrepreneur–a combination of guts, luck, and thousands of hours of long days and nights. Even if you do have that combination, guess what? You might fail.
But we can learn from failure, too, of course, and failing at something you try is itself a worthy goal. As Randolph writes, “The most powerful step that anyone can take to turn their dreams into reality is a simple one: you just need to start. The only real way to find out if your idea is a good one is to do it. You’ll learn more in one hour of doing something than in a lifetime of thinking about it.”
If you’re looking for wisdom and inspiration in turning your own good idea into a reality, this is definitely the book for you.
Ever wondered how Netflix got its start? Look no further than the book That Will Never Work by Marc Randolph, the founder of Netflix and first chief executive officer. Randolph, a visionary in his own regard, writes about the humble beginnings of the beloved entertainment media giant of today and how an idea so small and yet so revolutionary would forever change the technology and media landscapes. Faced with the odds of becoming a laughingstock in the digital era, Randolph writes with clarity and simplicity of the decisions and focus points he made during the early days to not only launch Netflix from the ground, but to take it to new heights. Within the words of Randolph and the story of Netflix are relevant business lessons that anyone can take away and learn from. Along with his inner circle, including angel investor at the time, Reed Hastings, Randolph proves that he got the last laugh in That Will Never Work. It is highly recommended that for those wanting to learn more about Netflix read this book first and then follow it with Hastings, Meyers book No Rules Rules and Netflixed by Gina Keating.
Excellent Look at Netflix’s Early Days. This book by one of the Founders – and first CEO – of Netflix, Marc Randolph, is a very well written glimpse into the early days of one of the world’s leading media empires just 20 years later – that is now facing new challenges Randolph could have never foreseen. Part history, part business and investing advice, and part memoir, it shows how Randolph influenced Netflix and how Netflix influenced Randolph. Very easy to read, with Randolph frequently (briefly) explaining business terms to those who may be less knowledgeable of them. Poignant at times, profound at times, ultimately this is the very down to earth, by the bolts story of how an idea while driving down the road in a beat up Volvo became a multi-billion dollar company that beat out many competitors… and even spawned a few. Very much recommended.