Tobi Lütke, CEO of Shopify, shares his journey from a German coder to a global e-commerce leader. He discusses the role of cultural differences in innovation, emphasizing how outsiders can be great coders. The conversation dives into why German education stifled him and contrasts craftsmanship with American business agility. Tobi explains the future of retail with AI and VR, and interestingly, he connects business insights from fantasy literature to real-world management. The podcast is a blend of personal anecdotes and profound industry lessons.
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volunteer_activism ADVICE
Stand-Up Meetings
Reintroduce stand-up meetings, especially on Friday afternoons, to accelerate business.
Digital versions using Slack or bots are less effective than in-person meetings.
question_answer ANECDOTE
Learning as an Outsider
Tobi Lutke learned by observing and absorbing information as an outsider, like studying Linux kernel mailing lists.
He uses this outsider mindset in meetings by saying incorrect things to elicit corrections and learn efficiently.
volunteer_activism ADVICE
Balancing Work and Life
Avoid overusing business meeting strategies in your personal life; it can backfire.
Schedule regular "one-on-one dinner appointments" with kids, treating them as adults in conversations.
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The Lean Startup introduces a revolutionary approach to building and scaling businesses, emphasizing continuous innovation, customer feedback, and scientific experimentation. Eric Ries defines a startup as an organization dedicated to creating something new under conditions of extreme uncertainty. The book advocates for 'validated learning,' rapid experimentation, and the Build-Measure-Learn feedback loop to shorten product development cycles and measure actual progress. It also stresses the importance of pivoting or persevering based on data and customer needs, making it an essential read for anyone involved in starting or growing a business[1][2][5].
The Lord of the Rings
J.R.R Tolkien
The Lord of the Rings, written by J.R.R. Tolkien, is an epic high fantasy novel set in Middle-earth. The story follows Frodo Baggins, a hobbit who inherits the One Ring from his uncle Bilbo. The Ring, forged by Sauron, holds the power to control all other Rings of Power and must be destroyed in the fires of Mount Doom to prevent Sauron's return. Frodo is joined by a fellowship of other characters, including Gandalf the Grey, Samwise Gamgee, Aragorn, Legolas, Gimli, and Boromir, as they embark on a dangerous quest across Middle-earth. The novel explores themes of good vs. evil, the corrupting influence of power, and the struggle between fate and free will[3][4][5].
The managerial revolution
James Burnham
Seeing Like a State
How Certain Schemes to Improve the Human Condition Have Failed
James C. Scott
In this book, James C. Scott examines the failures of centrally managed social plans and the destructive consequences of high-modernist ideologies. Scott argues that states often impose simplistic visions on complex societies, ignoring local, practical knowledge and leading to disastrous outcomes. He identifies four conditions common to all planning disasters: administrative ordering of nature and society, high-modernist ideology, authoritarian state power, and a prostrate civil society. The book critiques various utopian projects, including collective farms, compulsory villagization, and urban planning, and advocates for a more nuanced approach that respects local diversity and practical knowledge.
A conflict of visions
Thomas Sowell
In this book, Thomas Sowell explores the fundamental differences in visions of human nature that underlie many political and ideological disputes. He identifies two primary visions: the 'constrained' vision, which sees human nature as inherently self-centered and limited by systemic processes, and the 'unconstrained' vision, which views human nature as malleable and perfectible through societal intervention. Sowell argues that these visions shape opinions on a wide range of issues, from justice and equality to power and social institutions. The book blends history, economics, philosophy, and law to provide a comprehensive understanding of these conflicting visions and their implications for political thought and action.
The Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus
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Ludwig Wittgenstein
Tobi Lütke is the CEO and co-founder of Shopify. 20 years ago, he was just a German coder who emigrated to Canada to launch some ecommerce platform with another German. Now he’s the world-renowned thought and tech leader who has revolutionized online shopping for billions. He’s also the creator of many open-source libraries like Liquid, Active Merchant, and the Typo weblog engine.
Tyler and Tobi hop from Germany to Canada to America to discuss a range of topics like how outsiders make good coders, learning in meetings by saying wrong things, having one-on-ones with your kids, the positives of venting, German craftsmanship vs. American agility, why German schooling made him miserable, why there aren’t more German tech giants, untranslatable words, the dividing line of between Northern and Southern Germany, why other countries shouldn’t compare themselves to the US, Canada’s lack of exports and brands, ice skating to work in Ottawa, how VR and AI will change retailing, why he expects to be “terribly embarrassed” when looking back at companies in the 2020s, why The Lean Startup is bad for retailers, how fantasy novels teach business principles, what he's learning next, and more.
Conversations with Tyler 
