image I  can recall the first time I saw this book. It was a few years ago, and we were traveling with Bridget’s parents. Opa and I ended up heading over to the Barnes and Noble to kill some time while the girls “shopped” (e.g. look at stuff for hours that they don’t intend to buy.). I saw the book and it caught my interest, but I was already consumed with a few other reads. So, I passed on it until this year.

Funny thing is that Allie, Jason’s girlfriend in Amsterdam, works for Toms. So, I kept on thinking she’d pop up somewhere. And it made the book all that much closer.

Here were the highlights:

  • The #1 key takeaway – the story is what sells the shoes. It’s the reason we get up in the morning to do our work.
    In other words, and I did the same… I didn’t buy the shoe. I bought the TOMS story.
  • The idea to travel is to lose yourself in the destination’s culture
  • Blake forces himself to go on vacation to take a break from the daily grind.
  • Toms wasn’t the original business. Blake had quite a few, but then went to Argentina and discovered children with blistered feet. He then thought of this idea.
  • You don’t always need to talk with experts. Sometimes that can come from simply the customer
  • Be transparent. TOMS had huge publicity and couldn’t fulfill to deliver thousands of shoes in a few days. They called each customer to tell them it may be 4-6 weeks. Some customers were disappointed, but only one customer cancelled their order.
  • Success does not equal status/money. Success is the ability to have meaning.
  • Have an idea, then a story to tell, and finally a product to sell.
  • Human minds rely on stories as the primary roadmap for understanding.
  • Facts should only support the story. People don’t remember them otherwise.
  • Understand your passion:
    • If money wasn’t a thing, what would you do with your time? What kind of work would you want to do? What cause would you serve?
  • Fear will be with us for the rest of our lives. We must learn to face it.
    • We often worry and fear something that hasn’t happened yet. It’s our brain telling us to pay attention. That’s it.
    • Don’t focus though on the fear. Focus on what you can control.
    • No matter what happens, never forget that life goes on.
  • If you spend all your time learning and studying to be ready, you’ll never stop learning and studying
    • Most venture’s success comes from execution, not  ideas
  • Kaizen – Make one small improvement each day. After a few months, this will be a massive improvement overall.
  • Once you become successful, life can be a little dry – the adventure and danger are reduced.
  • Be Frugal. The most successful ventures start out with nothing. It’s the over-inflated ones that tend to fail quickly. Frugal allows you to be creative an resourceful.
  • Lean on simplicity. Rely on it and make decisions around it.
  • “The happiest people often are those who possess the least.” Blake got rid of his house and lives on a sailboat to keep things simple. Without clutter, I think clearly.
  • Write ideas down. It becomes tangible and it lets your mind off the hook.
  • To be happy Have -> Great friends, good food, and a decent bottle of win
  • Build trust – a company that trusts its employees will have employees that are passionate about the company. I see this today in my own work. Lack of trust makes it a standard job. Some of my better memories was for a company that partnered with us to help grow the company.
  • When mistakes happen, treat them as opportunities to build trust. Don’t look at them as something that impedes workflow.
  • The more you are actively involved in giving, the more fulfilling it will be for you. It will become part of your everyday worklife.
  • Consumers don’t buy products. They buy solutions.
  • Once you start helping others, you will notice a change – you will be less sad, less stressed and more purposeful.