Tony Fadell: Innovation Must Never Stop (Even If You’re #1) | E46

Tony Fadell is an amazing and successful engineer, entrepreneur, and investor. He is the father of the iPod, co-creator of the iPhone, founder and former CEO of Nest Thermostat, and the founder of Future Shape, a global investment and advisory company.

In 2014, Tony Fadell was one of the Time Magazine’s 100 most influential people in the world. He is also a NY Times bestselling author with his book Build: An Unorthodox Guide to Making Things Work.

It’s a true pleasure to have Tony on our show and hear how he searched and found his excellence!

(00:28) Introduction

• Learning from his dad about building trust in business (relationships, not transactions build trust)
• 50% is what you know and the other 50% is who you know
• When rejected for a job, don’t take it personally (send follow-ups, keep the line open create the conversation, ask how to improve)

(10:18) Tony’s childhood

• Selling eggs to neighbors as a young kid (money = freedom)
• Degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science studies
• As a sophomore, made an improved processor for Apple 2 – offered it to Apple and Apple bought it!

(16:44) The value of cold calling skills

• The first job in Silicon Valley – got it through cold calling (overcome the fear of cold calling)
• Know how to tell your story to engage people – what value you can bring?

(21:13) Is education worth it?

• Most people attend college in the wrong way
• Tony’s mantra "Do, Fail, Learn"
• The importance of internships (do a lot of things to know what you don’t want to do)
• After college, go and learn from experts

(28:30) Turning disappointments into opportunities

• General Magic – failed
• 6 years in Silicon Valley of failure
• In 2000 Internets stocks tanked, the market froze
• Called to work for Apple when the company was about to bankrupt
• Apple was developing a new generation of Walkman
• Randall’s experience with Apple

(40:25) Tony at Apple

• 6-week contract to research and design the iPod
• The importance of constant improvement
• Innovation must never stop, even if you’re #1 (you must be ahead your competition)

(48:59) What is an entrepreneur?

• Someone who disrupts the market
• Resonate with people in the first 30 seconds
• Start with a pain and offer the painkiller (the development of iPhone – solved the issue of taking three devices with you)

Resources Mentioned:
Build: An Unorthodox Guide to Making Things Worth Making, Tony Fadell
Nest Thermostat
Apple

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