Smartcuts: How Hackers, Innovators, and Icons Accelerate Success
Written by Shane Snow
Narrated by Shane Snow and Erik Bergmann
4.5/5
()
About this audiobook
Entrepreneur and journalist Shane Snow (Wired, Fast Company, The New Yorker, and cofounder of Contently) analyzes the lives of people and companies that do incredible things in implausibly short time.
How do some startups go from zero to billions in mere months? How did Alexander the Great, YouTube tycoon Michelle Phan, and Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon climb to the top in less time than it takes most of us to get a promotion? What do high-growth businesses, world-class heart surgeons, and underdog marketers do in common to beat the norm?
One way or another, they do it like computer hackers. They employ what psychologists call ""lateral thinking: to rethink convention and break ""rules"" that aren't rules.
These are not shortcuts, which produce often dubious short-term gains, but ethical ""smartcuts"" that eliminate unnecessary effort and yield sustainable momentum. In Smartcuts, Snow shatters common wisdom about success, revealing how conventions like ""paying dues"" prevent progress, why kids shouldn't learn times tables, and how, paradoxically, it's easier to build a huge business than a small one.
From SpaceX to The Cuban Revolution, from Ferrari to Skrillex, Smartcuts is a narrative adventure that busts old myths about success and shows how innovators and icons do the incredible by working smarter—and how perhaps the rest of us can, too.
Shane Snow
Shane Snow is a New York City–based journalist and Web entrepreneur, and the cofounder and chief creative officer of the media technology company Contently. He holds a master's degree in journalism from Columbia University and is a fellow of the Royal Society of the Arts. Snow contributes regularly to Wired magazine and Fast Company, and has written about innovation for numerous publications, including the New Yorker, the Washington Post, and Advertising Age. Snow is a sought-after speaker at technology and advertising summits, and writes for LinkedIn's Influencer program. His work in technology entrepreneurship has been recognized by the United Nations, the New York Times, Inc., Forbes, Details, and New York City's Economic Development Council.
Related to Smartcuts
Related audiobooks
Be More Pirate: Or How to Take on the World and Win Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5What You Do Is Who You Are: How to Create Your Business Culture Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5You're Invited: The Art and Science of Connection, Trust, and Belonging Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Rebel Talent: Why It Pays to Break the Rules at Work and in Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Change or Die Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Power: Why Some People Have It—and Others Don't Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Creator's Code: The Six Essential Skills of Extraordinary Entrepreneurs Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Long Game: How to Be a Long-Term Thinker in a Short-Term World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Pitch Perfect: How to Say It Right the First Time, Every Time Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Subtract: The Untapped Science of Less Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Reboot: Leadership and the Art of Growing Up Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Competing Against Luck: The Story of Innovation and Customer Choice Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Play Bigger: How Pirates, Dreamers, and Innovators Create and Dominate Markets Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Getting There: A Book of Mentors Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Effective Executive: The Definitive Guide to Getting the Right Things Done Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Stretch: Unlock the Power of Less-and Achieve More Than You Ever Imagined Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Impact Players: How to Take the Lead, Play Bigger, and Multiply Your Impact Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5You Can't Know It All: Leading in the Age of Deep Expertise Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How the World Sees You: Discover Your Highest Value Through the Science of Fascination Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Extreme Productivity: Boost Your Results, Reduce Your Hours Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Little Bets: How Breakthrough Ideas Emerge from Small Discoveries Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How Will You Measure Your Life? Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Flex: Reinventing Work for a Smarter, Happier Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Medici Effect: What Elephants and Epidemics Can Teach Us About Innovation Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Moving the Needle: Get Clear, Get Free, and Get Going in Your Career, Business, and Life! Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Rare Breed: A Guide to Success for the Defiant, Dangerous, and Different Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Simple Rules: How to Thrive in a Complex World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Cognitive Surplus: Creativity and Generosity in a Connected Age Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Loonshots: How to Nurture the Crazy Ideas That Win Wars, Cure Diseases, and Transform Industries Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5
Leadership For You
No Excuses!: The Power of Self-Discipline; 21 Ways to Achieve Lasting Happiness and Success Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Developing the Leader Within You 2.0 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: 30th Anniversary Edition Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The 5AM Club: Own Your Morning. Elevate Your Life. Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/525 Ways to Win with People: How to Make Others Feel Like a Million Bucks Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Dichotomy of Leadership: Balancing the Challenges of Extreme Ownership to Lead and Win Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5How to Win Friends and Influence People: Updated For the Next Generation of Leaders Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The First 90 Days: Proven Strategies for Getting Up to Speed Faster and Smarter Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership 25th Anniversary: Follow Them and People Will Follow You Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Freakonomics Rev Ed Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Extreme Ownership: How U.S. Navy SEALs Lead and Win Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Brain Rules (Updated and Expanded): 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Authentic Leader: Five Essential Traits of Effective, Inspiring Leaders Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Principles: Life and Work Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5How To Win Friends And Influence People Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Hard Thing About Hard Things: Building a Business When There Are No Easy Answers Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Leadership Strategy and Tactics: Field Manual Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Coaching Habit: Say Less, Ask More & Change the Way You Lead Forever Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Introverted Leader: Building on Your Quiet Strength Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking When Stakes are High, Third Edition Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Radical Candor: Be a Kick-Ass Boss Without Losing Your Humanity Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Microstress Effect: How Little Things Pile Up and Create Big Problems—and What to Do about It Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Summary: Dare to Lead by Brené Brown: Brave Work. Tough Conversations. Whole Hearts. Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Failing Forward: How to Make the Most of Your Mistakes Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Anxious Achiever: Turn Your Biggest Fears into Your Leadership Superpower Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Extreme Ownership by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin - Book Summary: How U.S. Navy SEALS Lead And Win Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Spark: How to Lead Yourself and Others to Greater Success Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5WOLFPACK: How to Come Together, Unleash Our Power, and Change the Game Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5
Reviews for Smartcuts
184 ratings9 reviews
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Overall the content is relevant. The cohesion between stories is missing. The book feels more like a collection of short stories that are abruptly interrupted by the author rambling.
If you can maintain your focus and ignore the constant subject changes it has great hidden gems.2 people found this helpful
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5one of the best books I've ever read! HIGHLY recommend!!!
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I thought it was an incredible book. It helped me to just start a project, and keep going and build momentum.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Loved it. Fast paced with plenty actionable takeaways. Had heard some of this before but good to hear again.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This book strings a lot of stories together that helps make the connections of why some people succeed when others don't.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5this book is a must read. stop everything you are doing.WOW
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5More specifics...At the end it seemed like well that's nice for other people, not sure what specifically is needed to apply this. Too often vague.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Very entertaining with lots of examples. There were amazing ideas that lead me to critically think about me own business and process
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Great stories of people rapidly ascending to the top - and doing it the right way to build people up along the way.