Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose
I thought my husband was crazy. He won me an advance copy of Tony Hsieh's (pronounced Shay) new book, Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion and Purpose. All I knew was it was the story of Zappos.com. And the CEO, Tony Hsieh. You can write a review, my husband said.
Why? I said.
Why not? he said.
The book arrived.
I started the book wondering how I would ever connect it to our community. I mean, people with disabilities work at Zappos, but that doesn't mean the book is relevant to us. I did find connections (more soon). But the real moment caught me in the last chapter. He wants to change the way we think about happiness. About business. And by changing how we think, we can change the world.
Sound familiar?
So his perspectives relate to a business model, and an idea where putting people first just might be profitable, too. I hope he inspires a lot of other businesses.
At times I think our world is moving collectively to a better place. Hurrah.
The book is easy-fun-reading where millions of dollars are being earned and lost within months. Tony Hsieh is a dynamic, creative innovator. He made millions soon after leaving college with Link Exchange. However, he soon found the fat bank account was not making him happy. Having things wasn't his magic. Doing things was magic.
The first third of the book chronicles Tony's life up to his involvement at Zappos. A refreshing perspective is how he learned from his mistakes. He is a model of resilience. Which is refreshing, to remember how much work goes into making dreams real.
The second half of the book follows the story of Zappos, a new model of business that focuses on customer service and employee satisfaction. People. Not money. And how that was a radical idea. Until it worked.
And now he hopes to inspire change on a larger scale as well. Spread the good word. I support that word.
The other big connection I saw for our community is the idea of core values. A few years in the development of Zappos, they agreed to core values. Ideas like I Create Fun and a Little Weirdness and Do More with Less. They are touch-stones for real living, not some lofty goals to gather dust on a brass plaque.
I thought this was highly appropriate for our community. What are our core values?
What are the expectations of people outside our community? What core values are projected on us?
And then personally, what are my core values? I'm going to spend some time thinking, because I can get so buffeted by daily life, by new symptoms or fatigue or pain. It can be easy to drift. Get lost in it all.
My core value today: Live Your Truth
Which means bedtime for me. I am so grateful for the opportunity to read this book. I would not have sought it out. It barely seemed relevant to my life. And yet the vision is my vision. The premise, the profound investment in a better world, all that is great reading. And I learned there is a lot to business and investment that I didn't know before.
Tony is an engaging and direct writer who kept the pages turning. Thanks for letting me be part of the experiment and the journey. We can find great ideas in unexpected places. Good stuff.
Thousands of candles can be lit from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared. -Buddha
Disclaimer: I did receive an advance copy of Delivering Happiness and these are my honest thoughts about the book.
On Amazon: Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose
