Category Archives: 1-By Laksh

All these articles are from Laksh’s desk

1-By Laksh, Directing Business, Etc., Leadership

Super interview with Amazon Jeff Bezos

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Interesting points

  1. Classic Amazon  Refund principle demonstrated at the beginning of the video by Jeff Bezos (Mentioned by a user below)
  2. Amazon model of Customer obsession, as opposed to Competition focus (imitiate the best in competition s etc), explained in detail. “Don’t just listen to customer, invent for them, as it is not the job of customers to invent for themselves or in most cases do not even know what they want ” (Steve Jobs used to say something very similar)
  3. “Invention is a result of experimentation and experiments are dotted with failures. But you should take the chance.”
  4. “Invention is not Disruptive, only customer adoption is.” Similar to Malcolm Gladwell’s Tipping Point?
  5. “At Amazon we invented a lot of things, that customers did not care about.”
  6. “Good to have stellar quarterly results, but these are pre-decided about 2 years ago. Planning for future and putting in efforts for a few years ahead is the way to go. I am more interested in what could happen in 2020 than in my upcoming quarter.”
  7. “Rich get slowly isn’t a good theme for infomercials.”
  8. “Half of our sales is third-party sales, coming from a lot of small businesses we work with. There are many who make 100KUSD a year. With Kindle Direct, we created the environment and many authors have found a readership that otherwise didn’t exist for them. Same with AWS too.” Platform, services, eco-system.
  9. “I have noticed all overnight successes take about 10 years.”
  10. “Hope our approach doesn’t change–customer obsession, the willingness to invent, the patience in letting things develop, accepting failure as a path to getting success.”
  11. “Acceptable Failure should be out of an experiment, where you accept beforehand that you do not know the outcome. Not that results out of a poor execution, a result of bad operational excellence. For instance, it isn’t a failure if we botch up a new fulfillment center, as we have 134 worldwide and our tech is in Generation 8 maturity level.”
  12. “The main job of a senior leader is to identify 2 or 3 important, BIG ideas and then enforce great execution against those ideas. Good news is it is incredibly easy to identify these BIG ideas. For Amazon, the consumer business, the BIG ideas are low prices, fast delivery, and vast selection. The BIG ideas should be obvious. You need to steer away from distractions and get back to these. And they will be stable over a period of time. “
  13. “Basically there is no institution in the world that cannot be improved with machine learning.” Alexa, echo, drones, natural language understanding.
  14. “(On usage of machine learning beneath the surface) Improved search results, improved product recommendations for customers, improved forecasting for inventory management. Most exciting thing is making machine learning more accessible to a lot of companies that cannot afford, through developers etc of AWS.” AI to be easily deployable; Salesforce.com?
  15. “Last year we saved 55000 tonnes of waste as a result of this (internet packaging) program.”
  16. “3.6MN megawatt-hours per year (renewable energy).”
  17. “I love space a lot. I am investing my lottery (Amazon) winnings in Blue Origin which is the space company.”
  18. Internet Vs Space. Entry for admission in space very high. “When I started Amazon, the heavy lifting was in place.”
  19. “Some of you should go to a museum and see a dial-up modem.”
  20. At 80 I would like to be able to say that I created the heavy lifting for space entrepreneurs.
  21. I have won many lotteries, but the best one was with my parents. I got lucky.

Related links:

  1. Package Rage on Wikipedia
  2. Space camp
  3. The Everything Store
  4. LN’s first book on Amazon was a similar one to the interviewer.
1-By Laksh, Movies

Whiplash: Perfect Trio…

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‘Whiplash’ deals with controversial themes…and explores extreme angles of a relationship between a music student and his teacher. How hard an aspiring musician should try for perfection and how hard a teacher can and should push to spot and hone greatness in his disciples….these are a couple of questions that linger in the mind, while watching the film. But, from a cinematic experience, the film is pure joy, with a superb cast making it all believable.

JK Simmons (Fletcher-Teacher) and Miles Tiller (Neiman-Student) compliment each other very well and hold the film together to make sure it doesn’t slip out of the audience belief zone. Mike Tiller displays the range of emotions perfectly, as his character goes through a seesaw of feelings …in quick succession. Worth mention is the initial change in his feelings when Fletcher plays with his psyche, with a bit of unexpected praise and following it up with a chair thrown at full speed.

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But ‘Whiplash’ can never be the movie it turned out to be without JK Simmons and he deserves the Oscar every bit of it. Right from the word go, he is unpredictability at its best, which is the core of this character. He has to be both unpredictable and believable at that very moment and he pulls it off with elan.  He keeps the audience guessing as to what his real motives are….and that becomes the driving force of the screenplay.  Worth mention is the scene in the restaurant with Neiman just before the climax, getting him to accept as a drummer in his upcoming programme. It’s tough to be nice without showing any motive and that too after a sonofabitch portrayal he had shown until that point of time and he does it effortlessly.

Of course, Whiplash couldn’t have been possible without the director Damien Chazelle. To conceive and execute such an offbeat story is an extraordinary feat and in the process creates a music-based film that compares with the classic ‘Amadeus’. Interestingly the love-hate relationship of the student-teacher in Whiplash is a tad similar to that of  Salieri-Mozart. In ‘Amadeus’ Salieri’s struggle is more internalized and only comes out as narration…whereas in ‘Whiplash’ it is brought out in several scenes, with ambiguity thrown in, for the sake of driving the plot.

Like any good movie, the heart of the film lies in its climax. All three–Damien Chazelle, JK Simmons and Miles Tiller leave their best to the last. It’s a unique set-up and a mini-movie by itself. If you decide to watch just a portion of the film then this has to be it. And after watching it, there are quite a few takeaways…and it is up to you to pick the version you like. I for one would like to think that Fletcher found both his genius and nemesis.

Related links:

Laksh online on Amadeus

1-By Laksh, Books

Shoe Dog: Perseverance, Risk, and Company Culture

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“Shoe Dog” is a memoir written by Phil Knight, the co-founder and former CEO of Nike. The book provides an inside look at the early days of Nike and Knight’s journey from selling shoes out of the trunk of his car to building one of the most iconic and successful sports brands in the world. It is a compelling story of perseverance, entrepreneurship, and the challenges faced by Knight and his team as they navigate the competitive and ever-changing world of sports footwear.

In the book, Knight shares several key milestones and pivotal moments that shaped Nike’s growth:

  1. The founding of Blue Ribbon Sports: In 1964, Phil Knight and his former track coach, Bill Bowerman, establish Blue Ribbon Sports, a shoe distribution company. Knight begins by selling Japanese running shoes out of his car, laying the foundation for what would eventually become Nike.
  2. The transition to Nike: In 1971, Blue Ribbon Sports rebrands itself as Nike, inspired by the Greek goddess of victory. The company starts manufacturing its own shoes, starting with the iconic Nike Cortez, and begins to gain recognition and popularity in the running community.
  3. The Air Jordan collaboration: In the mid-1980s, Nike faces financial challenges, but a collaboration with basketball superstar Michael Jordan turns the tide. The launch of the Air Jordan line revolutionizes the sneaker industry, propelling Nike to new heights and establishing a powerful brand association with top athletes.
  4. Going public and global expansion: In 1980, Nike goes public, raising significant capital to fund its expansion plans. The company aggressively expands into international markets, particularly in Europe and Asia, solidifying its position as a global leader in athletic footwear.

“Shoe Dog” provides an inspiring and intimate account of the trials and triumphs experienced by Phil Knight and his team as they build Nike from the ground up. It showcases the importance of innovation, determination, and unwavering belief in one’s vision, making it a must-read for entrepreneurs, sports enthusiasts, and anyone seeking inspiration in their own pursuits.

Here are some key takeaways from “Shoe Dog”:

  • Persistence: Phil Knight’s story highlights the importance of perseverance in the face of challenges.
  • Embrace risk and learn from failures: Knight’s willingness to take risks and learn from mistakes played a crucial role in Nike’s success.
  • Strong company culture: Building a strong company culture rooted in shared values is vital for attracting and retaining talented individuals.

If you enjoyed “Shoe Dog,” you may also find the following books relevant and insightful:

  • “Pour Your Heart Into It” by Howard Schultz: In this memoir, the CEO of Starbucks shares his experiences and the principles that guided him in building one of the most recognizable brands in the world.
  • “The Lean Startup” by Eric Ries: This book offers practical advice for entrepreneurs on how to build and launch successful products by utilizing a lean and iterative approach, minimizing waste, and learning from customer feedback.
  • “Start with Why” by Simon Sinek: Sinek explores the power of purpose and provides insights on how to inspire and lead others by starting with a clear understanding of why you do what you do. This book is a valuable resource for understanding the importance of defining and communicating a compelling vision.

These books, like “Shoe Dog,” offer valuable insights into entrepreneurship, leadership, and the challenges faced by businesses on their path to success.