Recently finished What It Takes by Stephen Schwarzman, founder of Blackstone, one of the largest alternate investment management company in the world. Was always fascinated by the shear size of the company and their share in grade A retail real estate in India.
The book is an easy and enjoyable read, and I highly value biographies like this one. It reminds me of Phil Knight’s work, where the narrative flows effortlessly despite the surrounding noise, as if the universe itself is conspiring to help the author achieve their intended goals. For obvious reasons of the subject being finance, there has to be an other side to the story, on how his colleagues or competitors saw him throughout his life and would love to read King of Capital to understand that sometime.
Here are some excerpts from the book that I noted down:
- “There is a saying in finance that time wounds all deals. The longer you wait, the more nasty surprises can hurt you. I like to finish work quickly. Even if tasks are not urgent, I like to get them done to avoid the unnecessary risks of delay.
- “To be successful you have to put yourself in situations and places you have no right being in. You shake your head and learn from your own stupidity. But through sheer will, you wear the world down, and it gives you what you want
- “Everyone contributes to the discussion. Risk is systematically broken down and understood. Debate is full and robust. The same small groups of people, who know each other well, go over each investment applying the same rigorous standards. This unified approach to investing has become the backbone of the Blackstone way.”
- “The first was focus. If you ever felt overwhelmed by work, I said, pass on some of your work to others. It might not feel natural. High achievers tend to want to volunteer for more responsibility, not give up some of what they have taken on. But all that anyone higher up in the firm cares about is that the work is done well. There is nothing heroic or commendable about taking on too much and then screwing it up.”
- “The second way to maximize your chances of achieving excellence was to ask for help when needed”
- “The rewards of having a beautiful space that attracted the best people and gave our clients greater confidence in our abilities would far exceed the cost of paying a little extra to close the deal.
- “And the best way to get what you want is to figure out what’s on the mind of the person who can give it to you. ”
- “If you are going to start a business, I told them, I believe it has to pass three basic tests. First, your idea has to be big enough to justify devoting your life to it. Make sure it has the potential to be huge. Second, it should be unique. When people see what you are offering, they should say to themselves, “My gosh, I need this. I’ve been waiting for this. This really appeals to me.” Without that “aha!” you are wasting your time. Third, your timing must be right. The world actually doesn’t like pioneers, so if you are too early, your risk of failure is high. The market you are targeting should be lifting off with enough momentum to help make you successful.”
On to the next one which is The World for Sale
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