Person
Every book Kevin Systrom recommended on podcasts
Across 3 podcasts. Every show Kevin Systrom appears on, in one place — not just one.
Kevin Systrom is an American computer programmer and entrepreneur who co-founded Instagram along with Mike Krieger. Appearing on podcasts such as The Tim Ferriss Show, the Lex Fridman Podcast, and The Jordan Harbinger Show, Systrom has recommended and discussed various business and historical texts that influenced his entrepreneurial career. On The Tim Ferriss Show, he recommended Ray Dalio's Principles to people actively trying to learn, Eliyahu M. Goldratt and Jeff Cox's The Goal to illustrate process constraints and decision-making bottlenecks, and Will and Ariel Durant's The Lessons of History when discussing historical patterns. During his appearance on the Lex Fridman Podcast, Systrom mentioned Clay Christensen's Competing Against Luck to discuss the 'jobs to be done theory' and referred to Ray Dalio's adherence to core principles at Bridgewater. On The Jordan Harbinger Show, he discussed John W. Mullins's Getting to Plan B in the context of startups needing to adapt from their original concepts, and he noted that reading Eric Ries's The Lean Startup early on helped shape his approach to building Instagram alongside Mike Krieger.
Books recommended by Kevin Systrom
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Principles
Principles by Ray Dalio is a prominent business and life guide outlining systematic approaches to decision-making, management, and understanding economic cycles.
Discussed“you know uh ray at bridgewater is always fascinating because you know people it's been called like a cult on the outside or cultish and but what's fascinating is like they just don't give on their principles”
Where to get it
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The Lessons of History
The Lessons of History by Will Durant and Ariel Durant is a concise volume that distills major patterns from five millennia of human civilization into roughly one hundred pages.
Recommended“I read this great book called Lessons of History.”
Where to get it
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Getting to plan B
Discussed“and there was a professor at Stanford he wrote a I think a book called like something getting to plan B or something”
Where to get it
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The Birdman of Lauderdale
The Birdman of Lauderdale by Clay Christensen is a prominent business and innovation text that explores how established corporations struggle to adapt to emerging technologies and market shifts because doing so disrupts their existing business models and customer bases.
Discussed“There's this um great book by clay christensen called competing against luck it's like a terrible uh title but within it there's uh effectively an expression of this thing called jobs to be done theory”
Where to get it
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The Goal
The Goal by Elle Kennedy is a popular business and manufacturing novel structured around the theory of constraints.
Discussed“well I had read this book called the goal and this was towards the end of Instagram by the way we'd figured this out many years into instrum”
Where to get it
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The Lean Startup
The Lean Startup by Eric Ries is a highly influential business and management book that introduces a methodology for creating and launching businesses through iterative product releases, validated learning, and minimum viable products.
Discussed“Early on um we read uh Mike and I both read The Lean Startup. I think it's called Lean Startup Method or Lean Startup, can't remember, by Eric Ries.”
Where to get it
Appearances
Other mentions (1: passing, ad reads, own books)
“Um I think How to Read a Book's probably there.”