The Hard Thing About Hard Things cover art

The Hard Thing About Hard Things

Building a Business When There Are No Easy Answers

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The Hard Thing About Hard Things

By: Ben Horowitz
Narrated by: Kevin Kenerly
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About this listen

Ben Horowitz, cofounder of Andreessen Horowitz and one of Silicon Valley’s most respected and experienced entrepreneurs, offers essential advice on building and running a startup - practical wisdom for managing the toughest problems business school doesn’t cover, based on his popular ben’s blog.

While many people talk about how great it is to start a business, very few are honest about how difficult it is to run one. Ben Horowitz analyzes the problems that confront leaders every day, sharing the insights he’s gained developing, managing, selling, buying, investing in, and supervising technology companies. A lifelong rap fanatic, he amplifies business lessons with lyrics from his favorite songs, telling it straight about everything from firing friends to poaching competitors, cultivating and sustaining a CEO mentality to knowing the right time to cash in.

Filled with his trademark humor and straight talk, The Hard Thing About Hard Things is invaluable for veteran entrepreneurs as well as those aspiring to their own new ventures, drawing from Horowitz’s personal and often humbling experiences.

©2014 Ben Horowitz (P)2014 HarperCollins Publishers Business Development & Entrepreneurship Career Success Decision-Making & Problem Solving Entrepreneurship Leadership Management Management & Leadership New Business Enterprises Business Career Inspiring Thought-Provoking Technology Building Business
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Story telling with practical examples of business challenges and explained the thought process to overcome these.

I was stressed just hearing the daunting challenges but now know significantly more than when i started. Now to jump in.

A textbook for new CEO

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I could listen to his hard earned wisdom each and every day. Thank you so much!

Best startup book I've ever read.

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loved every minute of it. a great insight into the struggle. good to know it's not just me

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Covers alot of the real ups and downs of running a business. Open and honest experiences with great advice on how to implement the strategies in your company.

Excellent book.

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Thanks heaps for writing this and sharing your learnings and thoughts with us all. This is a treasure chest.

Easily a classic

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Helped me understand the perspective of someone at the reigns of a growing company. I hold out hope that not all of his advice needs to be taken verbatim as much of it does not sit well with me, but still valuable nonetheless. Thanks Ben.

Insightful

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Having listened to the author speak on the Tim Ferris podcast, I was drawn to this audio book. The narration however isn’t by the expert/author himself but an 80’s porn style voice over toss-pot!
Determined to get through it, I had to listen to it at 1.5 times the speed.
I have no gripes with the content itself as it’s insightful and relevant to those drawn to the subject matter.
Why the hip hop references though? Proceed with caution if u want to endure this audio book.

80’s porn voice intolerable (x1.5 speed makes it bearable)

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This was a fantastic look inside the ropes to running a big business, refreshingly honest and without any BS, one of the best business books I have had the pleasure of reading!

Great book!

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A necessary book for any Founder going through hard times.

This book will give you the light at the end of the tunnel.

“Embrace the struggle”

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I genuinely appreciated the candidness in which Ben H wrote about what life of a CEO is in wartime. There was no sugar coating. It was the honest truth. If you are in an industry during wartime or looking to dominate this book is full of wisdom and insights that you can immediately implement. Highly recommend!

Honest

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