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Today's leading real-world retailer, Wal-Mart, uses software to power its logistics and distribution capabilities, which it has used to crush its competition
To bring out a new technology for consumers first, you just had a very long road to go down to try to find people who actually would pay money for something.
Retail banking in Africa is very weak. You can't go to a village and get money from an ATM or visit a branch of the bank. So people have to use the Internet.
I really like the 'Silicon Valley' show. It's good to do a little rib-poking and not take yourself too seriously, so I think it's awesome the show does that.
People can get information - on entertainment, politics, finance - much easier than before. That will change the way people do business, the way people live.
I think the perception of wealth and power is that things just become easier and easier when in reality as you raise the stakes things become more stressful.
The leader of a company needs to have a decision tree in his head - if this happens, we go this way, but if it winds up like that, then we go this other way.
VCs like acquisitions as much as IPOs because the acquiring companies often can rationalize paying large multiples over the current valuation of the startup.
First and deadliest of all is a founder's unwavering belief that he or she understands who the customers will be, what they need, and how to sell it to them.
Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication-- Steve Jobs turned this into the slogan behind an early Mac advertising campaign. Which doesn't make it less true.
It gave a tremendous level of self-confidence, that through exploration and learning one could understand seemingly very complex things in one's environment.
I think right now it's a battle for the mindshare of developers and for the mindshare of customers, and right now iPhone and Android are winning that battle.
We also had good software in the key categories and more focus on the gameplaying capability, so more of the marketing effort was targeted at game customers.
You intentionally start small, because you will not be able to compete with an incumbent... because the incumbent is always going to go for the full solution.
My dad is a chemical engineer, and my mom was a teacher. They were pretty serious about education, but I always thought about things a little bit differently.
To run this business ... you need ... optimism, humanism, enthusiasm, intuition, curiosity, love, humour, magic and fun, and that secret ingredient-euph oria.
People I work with are open to leadership that has a vision, but this vision has to be communicated clearly and persuasively, and always, always with passion.
We never set up Yandex to imitate what others were doing. We've been in the business longer than other search engines and have created many original products.
I believe that miracles happen every day. Every person is a miracle. Every moment is a miracle. If only we can open our eyes, we'll see God's love everywhere.
Most great fortunes are built slowly. They are based on the principle of compound interest, what Albert Einstein called, "The greatest power in the universe."
I think anybody who tries to follow the conventional Hollywood rule, will probably be better liked than the ones who try to think a little bit out of the box.
One of the things young people always ask me about is what is the secret to success. The secret is there is no secret. It's the basics. Blocking and tackling.
(The movie) is the story of my life, but it's not about me. It's about anybody who ever dreamed big and had someone tell them, 'No, you can't do it.' You can.
It's funny: when the press knows someone's gonna say something stupid, they're quick to pass them a mic and put a camera on them, and everybody talk about it.
After PayPal, I never thought I would get interested in payments again. But bitcoin is fulfilling PayPal's original vision to create 'the new world currency.'
I've never regretted anything I've done, even the things that I've failed at. I've often regretted not trying something really big, because you'll never know.
I've never had a business plan. Every project we've ever done was the intersection of somebody with a real need, a real passion to do something, and hustling.
The big success stories - Facebook, Zynga and Twitter - are leading to investing in ideas on a napkin, because no one wants to miss out on the next big thing.
Who cares about 17-21 year olds? Jack Myers does, and you should, too, if you want a front row seat on where the future of business and civilization is going.
I don't play golf or all those things people normally do for business. I do parties. That's where I bring people in, showcase ideas and, in the end, do deals.
No matter how tough the chase is, you should always have the dream you saw on the first day. It'll keep you motivated and rescue you (from any weak thoughts).
Every game, and almost every life situation, has short cuts: ways you can get better without learning the entire literature of the game from beginning to end.
Writing a book makes you an expert in the field. At the very least, when you hand someone a book you wrote, it's more impressive than handing a business card.
I'm interested in listening to the people who walk in the door. If your ego and your accomplishments stop you from listening, then they've taught you nothing.
I have never let gender get in my way. It has taken me over 30 years to get from a garage to the huge campus that we have today. And it's been a long journey.
Today's leading real-world retailer, Wal-Mart, uses software to power its logistics and distribution capabilities, which it has used to crush its competition.
I was in banking because it was high-paying, intense, a real meritocracy, and the afterwork part was fun, but I found everything to do with banking so boring.
Business people get many undeserved prizes - golden parachutes and bonuses even when companies fail. I don't think people should get rewarded for screwing up.
We have just started, and if you compare the number of people using Skype to the number using a telephone network around the world, we're still just starting.
I never had it in mind that I would start a company one day and it would really be successful. I have just been motivated by working on interesting technology
The goal of listening to customers is not to please every one of them. It's to figure out which customer segments serve your needs - both short and long term.
There are lots of new products and new services making adding content easier. But there's not many people on the other side helping users digest that content.
You have to trust in something - your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.
Death is the destination we all share, no one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be because death is very likely the single best invention of life.
When companies get bigger they try to replicate their success. But they assume their magic came from process. They try to use processes to substitute content.
Apple has some tremendous assets, but I believe without some attention, the company could, could, could - I'm searching for the right word - could, could die.
The subscription model of buying music is bankrupt. I think you could make available the Second Coming in a subscription model and it might not be successful.
Building a company isn't that different from climbing a big mountain. You need people helping you traverse treacherous paths and to lift you up when you fall.
From Nike, we buy victory. From Under Armour, we buy protection. From Lululemon, we buy zen. From Patagonia, we buy conservation. From BMW, we buy performance.
Empathy is the bridge to understand those who you may be lucky to one day lead, and it is - in my opinion - the most under-appreciated human skill in business.