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3.84 AVERAGE
3.84 AVERAGE
Lyons, a respected technology journalist, is laid off from Newsweek, and ends up joining the marketing department of Hubspot, an "Inbound" marketing organization. Lyons, at 52 is nearly twice as old as most others in the company, a situation I have some familiarity with. Hubspot is a strange organization, not only because it's filled with young people, but because management style is really focused on young people. Lyons paints a sort of grim, though often very funny picture of Hubspot, but you also feel that he's kind of an ass, and not someone you'd necessarily want to work with (young or old) unless you like sitting around and telling dick jokes as he does when he goes to Hollywood to write for Silicon Valley HBO show.
In the second part of the book, Lyons takes kind of a more expansive view, and has a lot of sharp things to say about the changing work environment and people's careers (or, rather, lives). Recommended, if for nothing else than it's sometimes very funny.
In the second part of the book, Lyons takes kind of a more expansive view, and has a lot of sharp things to say about the changing work environment and people's careers (or, rather, lives). Recommended, if for nothing else than it's sometimes very funny.
funny
informative
reflective
medium-paced
This is one of the most entertaining books I’ve ever read. So brilliantly written, I was both informed about the Silicon Valley phenom and start ups in general, and entertained by Lyons plight. I highly recommend!
یکی از بهترین کتابای سال ۹۹ بود برام. شاید از نظر خیلیا حتی خوب هم نباشه ولی برای من چالش برانگیز بود. تمام چیزایی که آرزوشونو داشتم تمام رویاهام و تصوراتم از آینده روشنم تو آمریکا رو زیر سوال برد. حتی تصوراتم از شرکتا و مدیرایی که اسطوره‌هام بودن.
"ما کاربرها محصول هستیم. از دید شرکت‌های سیلیکون ولی، تنها فلسفه وجودی ما این است که دسته دسته به تبلیغ‌کننده‌ها فروخته شویم. نباید از این شرکت‌ها انتظار داشته باشیم مراقبمان باشند."
"ما کاربرها محصول هستیم. از دید شرکت‌های سیلیکون ولی، تنها فلسفه وجودی ما این است که دسته دسته به تبلیغ‌کننده‌ها فروخته شویم. نباید از این شرکت‌ها انتظار داشته باشیم مراقبمان باشند."
Entertaining and subtly informative that you won't realize how much you've learned about Silicon Valley until long after the book is over. Is "academic pulp" a genre? If so, that is where this book belongs.
Recommended for: those who had a terrible boss and didn't get their comeuppance; those who have ever thought about Venture Capital investing; those who enjoy the ending of The Breakfast Club
Recommended for: those who had a terrible boss and didn't get their comeuppance; those who have ever thought about Venture Capital investing; those who enjoy the ending of The Breakfast Club
I have mixed feelings about this book. While there are certainly criticisms that can be made about the tech industry, and maybe HubSpot, as well, Lyons is just so oblivious to how unlikable he is. He commits multiple offenses that one could absolutely be justifiably fired for and doesn't understand why management gets upset. He seemingly didn't do any research about the culture of the company (or the industry in general), and then got upset at his coworkers for not responding well to his behavior. I lost count of how many times he said something like "if this was a newsroom" or "if my journalist buddies were here" in order to justify his often antisocial actions, as if those two industries are anything alike. I certainly understand not enjoying a company's culture and being in a position where you need a job, any job, to pay the bills, but a lot of people genuinely do enjoy that culture, and Lyons just wasn't a good fit. Maybe HubSpot is really a terrible company, but Lyons brought so much of his unhappiness there upon himself.
Quick-witted, comical and intelligent, [b:Disrupted: My Misadventure in the Start-Up Bubble|26030703|Disrupted My Misadventure in the Start-Up Bubble|Dan Lyons|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1454285548s/26030703.jpg|45931891] manages to capture the essence of the start-up culture with the wisdom of a veteran. An entertaining and insightful read for industry veterans and newbies.
I found this book a fascinating peek into the bizarre world of startups and enjoyed the majority of this crazy, intriguing story.
Unfortunately, the author’s over the top sense of self-importance had me rolling my eyes and cringing at his insistence that he was above all the supposed clueless fresh college grads. I also couldn’t help cringe at the way he described his time writing for Silicon Valley, the glee at finally being back in the boys’ club making lewd jokes, while still insisting how he was more mature than anyone else at HubSpot.
All in all this was a well written, entertaining story that had a slightly too cringe-worthy author telling it.
Unfortunately, the author’s over the top sense of self-importance had me rolling my eyes and cringing at his insistence that he was above all the supposed clueless fresh college grads. I also couldn’t help cringe at the way he described his time writing for Silicon Valley, the glee at finally being back in the boys’ club making lewd jokes, while still insisting how he was more mature than anyone else at HubSpot.
All in all this was a well written, entertaining story that had a slightly too cringe-worthy author telling it.
*Won in a Goodreads Giveaway* While not the type of book I normally read, I was excited to read this one. I was already a bit familiar with Hubspot from a few years ago and am fascinated by Silicon Valley/the start up world. This book is funny, but also really informative about start ups in general. I was appalled by the way the author described the culture of Hubspot and the way he was treated as someone older than the average worker there. I'm a Millennial (granted, on the older side of it) but would not want to work at a place like that. I also loved the information about how venture capitalists make money from companies that make no profit, and the overall way these tech start ups are valued at ridiculous amounts despite huge monetary losses. The background on everything was really strong and a great addition to the book. I'll definitely be passing along the book to friends.