In this book, Ben Horowitz shares his personal and often humbling experiences in the tech industry to offer essential advice and practical wisdom. He addresses various hard decisions and challenges that business leaders face, such as firing friends, managing company culture, handling layoffs, and making tough strategic decisions. Horowitz emphasizes the importance of honesty, resilience, and adaptability in leadership, drawing from his experiences with companies like Loudcloud and Andreessen Horowitz.
A book about time management and how to live a more fulfilling life.
In 'Turn the Ship Around!', Captain L. David Marquet recounts his experience as the commander of the USS Santa Fe, a nuclear-powered submarine. Initially trained in the traditional 'know all–tell all' leadership model, Marquet faced significant challenges when he took command of the Santa Fe, which was then one of the worst-performing submarines in the fleet. He realized that the traditional leader-follower approach was ineffective and decided to implement a leader-leader model, where every crew member was empowered to take responsibility and make decisions. This approach led to a dramatic improvement in morale, performance, and retention, transforming the Santa Fe into one of the best submarines in the fleet. The book provides practical insights and strategies for implementing this leadership model in various organizational settings.
In this episode of Think Like an Owner, I sit down with Hill Hamrick, Co-CEO of Central Storage & Warehouse, to explore how he and his team run a complex, high-volume cold storage business that ships hundreds of millions of frozen food products across North America every year.
We dive into how Hill and his co-CEO, Sam, transitioned from first-time owners into strategic leaders of a 24/6, labor-intensive operation. Hill shares how they learned the business from the ground up, why building trust with frontline employees was critical in the early days, and how his experience in the Marine Corps continues to shape his leadership approach.
We also get into:
- How EOS helps align a 200+ person team across multiple locations
- Why data is the backbone of operational decision-making
- Lessons in pushing ownership and problem-solving to the front lines
- The difference between wartime and peacetime CEO mindsets
- Strategies for scaling culture and priorities while still in motion
Hill also opens up about the challenges of system migrations, prioritizing as a CEO, and the discipline required to avoid shiny-object distractions when building long-term value. This episode is a masterclass in leading through complexity and creating alignment in fast-moving, blue-collar businesses.
Links:
Hill on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/hill-hamrick-094807a0/
Central Storage and Warehouse Co. - https://www.csw-wi.com/
Pacific Lake Partners - https://www.pacificlake.com/
Trilogy Search Partners - https://trilogy-search.com/
Topics:
(00:00:00) - Intro
(00:06:55) - Introducing CSW and Hill
(00:08:45) - Priorities Frameworks
(00:12:23) - Most Effective Ways to Build Trust with a Team
(00:18:52) - Challenges in Creating a Synchronous Team
(00:22:37) - Making System and Software Migrations
(00:27:04) - Moving Decision-Making Down the Org-Chart
(00:33:48) - Matching CEO Mindsets with Organizational Needs
(00:44:23) - Board Member Advice
(00:47:42) - Prioritization Evolutions
(01:02:10) - Lessons from the Military
Think Like an Owner 
