Books

I've been reading a book a month and below are some of my favorites!

The Hard Things about Hard Things

By Ben Horowitz

If you want to see how hard a startup can get, read this book. This man founded a cloud company before the dot com boom. This story navigates his journey building this company after the dot com boom. Some things I learned include (1) be blunt (watered down feedback is worse than direct feedback), (2) hire for strengths not weaknesses, (3) practice giving your opinion on everything, (4) if you eat shit, don't nibble!

Steve Jobs

By Isaac Walterson

I went into this book extremely curious about Jobs, an enigma and revered figure in tech. Some things I learned that I want to take into Leafpress include (1) he never used presentations internally. Presentations are used to persuade, and you don't want that when you're trying to solve hard problems. (2) Whenever a product was about to be released, he asked the hard questions and brought up issues he saw, which would lead to deadlines being pushed. (3) You want to build a team of A players, A players only want to work with A players. (4) He was a great storyteller!

Memories of a Geisha

By Arthur Golden

If you're looking to learn more about Japanese culture in a fun way, I would recommend this book! This book is ultimately a love story that tells fascinating tales of how geisha in Japan used to live. I just loved the way that this woman described the things she noticed in the world (e.g. 'But now I know that our world is no more permanent than than a wave rising on a ocean. Whatever our struggles and triumphs, however we may suffer them, all too soon they bleed into a wash, just like watery ink on paper.')

Speed and Scale

By John Doerr

This novel was impactful in helping me understand where I wanted to take my career. I read this while studying abroad after my trip with the MIT Energy Initiative. I learned a lot about the biggest contributors to climate change. John breaks down the annual 59 gigatons of carbon we emit a year into 5 categories (energy, industry, agriculture, transportation, nature) and details his view of the best plan to decarbonize. Extremely informative:)

Gone with the Wind

By Margaret Mitchell

Be prepared to go through a whirlwind of emotions. The main character, Scarlett, is spoiled and selfish, a perfect representation of the rich in the South before the Civil War. I did not like her at first. But throughout the course of the novel, she began to win my heart. Her growth and ability to survive in the circumstances she was put in during the War surpassed my expectations for her. The conflicts between all the characters stemmed from the ideals of what they represented (the Old South, the New South, the North). The author weaved the conflict between the North and the South into the personalities of the main characters so well, and because of that, it was a really great read.

So Good They Can't Ignore You: Why Skills Trump Passion in the Quest for Work You Love

By Cal Newport

I don't believe that you should follow your passion to find work, I believe that you find passion in work that you're good at. 'Passion is a side effect of mastery.' This book validated that belief and provided some tools to incorporate into my daily life to find passion in my work.