• Delivering Happiness

  • A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose
  • By: Tony Hsieh
  • Narrated by: Tony Hsieh
  • Length: 8 hrs and 17 mins
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (8,106 ratings)

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Delivering Happiness  By  cover art

Delivering Happiness

By: Tony Hsieh
Narrated by: Tony Hsieh
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Editorial reviews

Tony Hsieh is a really nice guy. This is what makes him a very unusual CEO, which is what makes his company so interesting. It also makes him a writer who doesn't use much corporate lingo, and a terrifically casual reader of his own book on the growth and development of Zappos, his unique company. One part memoir, one part philosophy, one part corporate handbook, and all silly optimism, Delivering Happiness will appeal to a surprisingly wide audience.

Hsieh begins with his business history, which adequately conveys his wackiness. First, there was the worm farm in elementary school. All the worms escaped, and he lost money. Then there was the mail order button business in middle school, so successful that he passed it along to his younger brothers in succession. In high school, he learned a bunch about programming, thereby combining his instincts with an appropriate knowledge base. He laughs out loud at his own computer club lunchtime antics, and so will you. Then there was the pizza business in his dorm at Harvard, where Hsieh found innovative ways not to attend any classes, and a high-paying corporate gig after graduation where he once again did as little as possible.

This is a man who likes to take business risks, and as he explains how he made decisions that caused him to grow from slacker into a Red Bull-pounding, 24-hour working machine, you'll be amazed that it sounds like he's smiling the entire time. From his first major start-up, which was subsequently sold to Microsoft, to his repeated close calls where Zappos almost went under before it was eventually bought out by Amazon, this true story of one man's corporate odyssey will leave you believing that anything really is possible. It will also at least make you want to shop at Zappos, if it doesn't make you want to move to as Vegas to work there.

Shot through with brief guest-narrations using the actual participants relevant to Hsieh's fast-paced world of entrepreneurship, there are a wealth of memos, emails, and testimonials that all serve as evidence to his weird intellect. And if you played a drinking game where you drank a shot every time Hsieh mentions having a drink, you'd be drunk before the book is half finished. From the tone of his voice to the story he tells, this is clearly a guy who needs his work to be fun and challenging. Just as Zappos has done, Hsieh's book casually fires the opening volley in a new era of corporate culture and management.

This eye-opening treatise on how to be happy at work has the added bonus of an hour-long conversation between Tony Hsieh and Warren Bennis, who has been universally considered one of the most significant leadership gurus for the past 40 years. Much of what Hsieh says is a more concise version of what he says in the book, though insights from the aging but still hilariously astute Bennis do offer something extra exciting. They discuss happiness in a way that is useful to all people, not just corporations. Megan Volpert

Publisher's summary

In this, his first audiobook, Tony Hsieh - the widely admired CEO of Zappos, the online shoe retailer - explains how he created a unique culture and commitment to service that aims to improve the lives of employees, customers, vendors, and backers. Using anecdotes and stories from his own life experiences, and from other companies, Hsieh provides concrete ways that companies can achieve unprecedented success. Even better, he shows how creating happiness and record results go hand-in-hand.

He starts with the "Why" in a section where he narrates his quest to understand the science of happiness. Then he runs through the ten Zappos "Core Values" - such as "Deliver WOW through Service", "Create Fun and A Little Weirdness", and "Build a Positive Team and Family Spirit" - and explains how you and your colleagues should come up with your own.

Hsieh then details many of the unique practices at Zappos that have made it the success it is today, such as their philosphy of allocating marketing money into the customer experience, thereby allowing repeat customers and word-of-mouth be their true form of marketing. He also explains why Zappos's number-one priority is company culture and his belief that once you get the culture right, everything else - great customer service, long-term branding - will happen on its own.

Finally, Delivering Happiness explains how Zappos employees actually apply the Core Values to improving their lives outside of work - and to making a difference in their communities and the world.

©2010 Tony Hsieh (P)2010 Hachette

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What listeners say about Delivering Happiness

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Outstanding!! Very practical and inspiring!

I couldn't stop listening! I will be listening to this one many times. Very practical with many real life examples of how the author came to realize how important company culture is, how important it is to pursue the right WHY, and how his company currently goes about delivering happiness to the world! These principles apply to business and personal success and happiness. I can't say enough about how thrilled I am with this book!!

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Better than I thought

Would you consider the audio edition of Delivering Happiness to be better than the print version?

Only did the audio version

What did you like best about this story?

Gives the history of the struggles to grow a company and the amount of money it takes

Which scene was your favorite?

Selling it all to keep it going.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

No but it kept me hooked.

Any additional comments?

Tony is a capable author and does a good job with the audio as well.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Brand culture

Loved the story and journey Tony went through and explained, no doubt he was a great leader and there’s a lot to learn from.

Above all the core values, prioritization & determination led him and Zappos to become massive success, highly recommend if you want to learn and get some insights behind the development of great company with strong values and amazing culture & purpose.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Best audible i ever listen to

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I would recommend any one that's has business to listen to this

What did you like best about this story?

How zappos made such a awesome couture .

What does Tony Hsieh bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

He made me fell like he was talking to me.

Any additional comments?

I'm not that great in reviewing stuff and I usually don't.but this audible change the way I'm run my business to the better.thanks tony hsieh!

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

The Company Role model of this decade!

Would you consider the audio edition of Delivering Happiness to be better than the print version?

The audio was entertaining and informative. I liked the subject so much I bought the hardcover.

What does Tony Hsieh bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

I like audio books where the author is the speaker...it enables them to place meaning where intended.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The culture discussion was great!

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Some amazing stories! highly recommended

If you could sum up Delivering Happiness in three words, what would they be?

Interesting, inspiring, intelligent

What other book might you compare Delivering Happiness to and why?

Not sure. But there are great stories in here.

Have you listened to any of Tony Hsieh’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

No but it was very inspiring and interesting. Really explains why culture is so important in a great company.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

A Successful Timeless Approach To Business

Really enjoyed the openness and honesty of Tony's situations as he moved from college to working and then to something far more challenging, interesting, passionate and risky without really dwelling on the possible down side. Also the how he dealt with thebig decision moments that could have short fused things for him and stuck it out to the end or the next gear or level in moving forward.

Thank you for sharing,

Bill

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Fantastic.

Great story, plus a boatload of practical applications for any business. A must read book for anyone with a job

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

glad I read this!

long story but enjoyed over all message. It's not about finding your self it's about creating yourself.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Pleasantly Surprised

It started slow but got better and better and ended up being quite good overall

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