• How I Built This

  • The Unexpected Paths to Success from the World's Most Inspiring Entrepreneurs
  • By: Guy Raz
  • Narrated by: Guy Raz
  • Length: 10 hrs and 31 mins
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (117 ratings)

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How I Built This  By  cover art

How I Built This

By: Guy Raz
Narrated by: Guy Raz
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Publisher's summary

The number one Wall Street Journal Business Book Best seller & Top 10 New York Times Best seller

Based on the highly acclaimed NPR podcast, How I Built This with Guy Raz, his book offers priceless insights and inspiration from the world’s top entrepreneurs on how to start, launch and build a successful venture.

Great ideas often come from a simple spark: a football player on the New Zealand national team notices all the unused wool his country produces and figures out a way to turn them into shoes (Allbirds). A former Buddhist monk decides the very best way to spread his mindfulness teachings is by launching an app (Headspace). A sandwich cart vendor finds a way to reuse leftover pita bread and turns it into a multi-million dollar business (Stacy’s Pita Chips).

Award-winning podcast creator Guy Raz has interviewed more than 200 highly successful innovators from across the world, from the founders of Five Guys, Airbnb and Bumble to James Dyson and Reed Hastings of Netflix, to uncover amazing true stories like these.

In How I Built This, he shares tips for every entrepreneur’s journey: from the early days of formulating your idea, to raising money and recruiting employees, to finding your market and, finally, to paying yourself a real salary. This is a must-read for anyone who has ever dreamed of starting their own business or wondered how trail-blazing go-getters made their own dreams a reality.

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Critic reviews

"A must read for anyone who wants to start a business, grow a business, or be inspired by those who do." (Adam Grant, author of Originals)

"These stories of founders and their companies are told with the same energy and openness it takes to be an entrepreneur." (Eric Ries, author of The Lean Startup)

"Guy Raz is supremely himself in this guide for aspiring entrepreneurs: brilliantly perceptive, incessantly curious, infectiously energetic and above all, a master storyteller." (Angela Duckworth, author of Grit)

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What listeners say about How I Built This

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A refresher to the amazing podcast and more

I had misgivings. As a subscriber to Guy Raz's podcast of the same name, would it be a repeat of the same stories.
They were misplaced. Guy, has structured the book by the journey of the entrepreneur or the hero's journey as he calls it.
The book is full of good advice, fast paced narration and is an overall refresher to the excellent podcast.
Read, learn and enjoy

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very inspiring and flowing

Guy Raz is an incredible storyteller. the book is colourful and the stories are so vivid and inspiring

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What a wonderful book!!

An inquisitive and insightful deep dive into entrepreneurship and into human nature (whether deliberately or inadvertently) narrated through the lens of some of the most successful entrepreneurs. Highly recommended listen for someone interested in a dose of inspiration in business and in life.

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Inspirational

Guy tells Inspiring stories that certainly will give you a different perspective on business and life.

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The entrepreneur's path for success.

loved every chapter of this book!. It just helps you to understand how many challenges a person has to face to succeed in business and in life.

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Muy recomendado

Me gustó mucho, todas las historias traen consigo un importante mensaje para la vida y el emprendimiento

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Reassuring as a long time entrepreneur

Hi
I listen to your podcasts snd listened to many a book since then
Now listened to yours

I’m in South Africa
I have run my own business for almost 30 years and it’s been through mountains and valleys of ups snd downs .. even a liquidation and closure and restart
On the rise again
www.aromatic.co.za
One day would love to tell the story of resilience
Self reliance
Opportunity
Etc etc …
Thank you

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Inspirational listening for pre and current entrep

Guys' story telling and ability to weave different stories into themes which are helpful for founders is amazing. This books is very strategic for any founder and founder wannabe. Its also for the ordinary person who is anxious and fearful about starting, this gives really concrete thoughts.

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Thank you!

I’ve listened to your podcasts for many years now! I’ve also started my own company and will be 100% taking on board the advise and tuition you offer through your platforms. I’d recommend this book for its intuitive details and advice if you were or are to ever start a business.

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compressed, distilled learnings from the podcast

A compressed, distilled and refined extraction from the podcast with this same name, added with
great insights and learnings.

It has a behind the scenes about how the podcast originated, a bit of history about how Guy Raz
decided to change his career in the news and risking that to follow up his passion to show the world good histories. that happen to be about entrepreneurs and their journey.

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