How to Be the Startup Hero by Tim Draper (free on Kindle for 24 Hours)

“I'm a few chapters in and it's hard to keep going.

The idea that I'm left with is that Tim Draper is absolutely insufferable to be in the same room with. In every story, he is the "hero", an amazing crusader who never makes a bad decision and is prescient about tomorrow. Some of the stories are interesting, but if you took Guy Raz's question on "How I Built This" and asked Draper about how much of his success was luck versus skill, the impression is that he does not believe in luck.

Case in point - the chapter on his bucket list, and how many things he has done on it, comes in at 25 pages. The very next chapter is on treating people well, and it is 4 pages.

Which type of person would you admire?

If you want to read stories of an age gone by, where he is the star of the story for being in the right place and the right time, with lots of privilege (including family money to start a venture fund, and a HBS degree), then this is the book. Also, if you want to read poetry that he has written and included at the end of each chapter, this is also the book you are looking for. I just can't imagine that he didn't know someone who had the courage to take him aside and say, "Tim, this is a dreadful idea. Don't put poetry in your book." But having money means you get to do stupid things and people won't stop you.

The current top positive review mentions behind the scenes stories on a bunch of big named companies that he noticed when he "flipped" through the book. That must have been all that he did, or he would have noticed the stories have as much substance as name dropping at a cocktail party. Tesla, Skype, etc. "I met a guy, who knew another guy, and I wrote a check. I'm totally amazing." If he were to compare the stores of the also-rans, the ones that didn't go alongside them, he would have my respect, but this isn't a book worth the digital paper it's printed on.

I had hoped for so much more. If you read the intro and feel similarly, Ben Horowitz's book is likely the one you are looking for.”

https://www.amazon.co.uk/How-Startup-Hero-Textbook-Entrepren...