The Exchanges

Q So, so is, is that the trait that you were looking for in the people that you work, like extremely high processing power?

A No, actually, no. Uh, I think that that is somewhat commoditized. A lot of people have that. Um, and a lot of people you end up interviewing who coming out of the top business schools or IOTs or whatever, Processing power intelligence is something you can take for granted. Um, I personally look for intellectual curiosity. So I'm more impressed with someone who is, is, uh, uh, might be an accomplished coder, but is equally interested in Bob Dylan and Shakespeare. I just pick randomly two of my favorites, but, uh, but I over index on that intellectual curiosity. And by the way, I mean, I've had this discussion with a number of My colleagues in senior roles, and they would agree with that because, and particularly when you're dealing with the world of technology, which hopefully you will relate to things change so fast that, uh, that if you have the ability to be many malleable can think on kind of different levels. That's a, that's just an extraordinarily useful characteristic.

AI assessment note: “No, actually, no. Uh, I think that that is somewhat commoditized.”

Q And your five years at SoftBank, right? How did you describe it? You were well prepared to get into that role.

A Well, a lot of what I was doing was, was deal making, and that's what I, that was my professional skill. I was a nursing banker for a long time. So, um, so that came very naturally, and that's, uh, that's a lot of what I was doing. I have to say that there's a lot you have to, or I had to unlearn because the analytical skills you pick up, um, valuation, for example, are frequently not that meaningful in a, um, In, in a, um, in a technology investment universe. So there was a little bit of a, a fair bit of unlearning to do. And, um, you know, because it's frequently, um, once again, as I described in the book, you know, you're kind of putting a price tag on dreams almost.

AI assessment note: “a lot of what I was doing was, was deal making... came very naturally”

Q And, uh, you know, would love to learn from you though you have described it in parts in the book, the vulnerabilities of the three characters you have described the strengths. What are the vulnerabilities?

A I mean, for me, vulnerability, for me, certainly a, um, I'm not as tough as I should be with someone who, And I didn't really, for someone who aspires to power and money, if you want to play that game, you've got to be tough. I never really had that, but to be fair, I never sought that. So treat it as a vulnerability if you want. Um, and there's, um, to the extent there's messages in the book, maybe that's something you want to take away from. If you want to play that game, you better toughen up because people will do all kinds of wicked things in that, uh, in that world, right? I mean, there's that famous quote from, uh, from, uh, Michael Douglas in a wall street eighties movie, but it's a classic. Great quotes. Um, on Wall Street, need a friend, get a dog, right? So you better get used to that. So, um, that's kind of my vulnerability. Um, with, uh, with Sonsan, it's interesting. He unpacks it himself wonderfully. I think his exact words, if I'm not mistaken, I quote this in the book. He made the comment after the setbacks of 2021. His exact words were, I am ashamed of myself for being elated by the successes of the past, right? So the, and there's a, there's something we can all learn from that. It takes a lot of wisdom and self-confidence to make a statement like that. Something we should all learn from that, which is don't get carried away. It's a natural tendency when you'…

AI assessment note: “for me, vulnerability, for me, certainly a, um, I'm not as tough”

Q But do you think that's still true for other dads also, uh, in your peer group?

A I think it is. I, that, that, I made that comment in the book. And a lot of people immediately said, parents, they said, yep, but we, we, we relate to that. Having your, having your kids think that, you know, because as a parent, you're kind of a, uh, you, you, you represent authority or represent discipline. It's what you are most likely as a child to rebel against. But if they start to think, well, you know, kind of my, my, my mom is cool or my dad is cool, then your relationship is on a, Bit of a different plane. Then you, then you begin to have, then you begin to relate to them in a very different way.

AI assessment note: “I think it is. I, that, that, I made that comment in the book.”

Q some of the things that you describe it in the book, right? Uh, for example, you know, uh, the different cultures, you know, the Japanese culture that you would define the Silicon Valley culture. What do you, what do you think where India isn't right now in terms of entrepreneurship culture? Because you are, uh, have been closely associated with it and now still are with Wabo Pincus and others.

A Well, I think the standout characteristic, um, For me with youth in India in particular is this overwhelming desire to learn. I'm just blown away and in the most positive way by the question people ask me and the desire to learn. Even when they read my book, uh, it's, it's quite touching. It's, um, on the one hand, you could criticize me for talking about literary references or words that people don't understand, but Over here, people take that as a huge positive because they see that as an opportunity to learn. And that appetite to, to learn, you know, the search for gyan, as they call it, you look at books that sell well in India, it's completely dominated by books that have an element of imparting knowledge. So that is absolutely fantastic. The, the desire for upward mobility Uh, to become successful, to become rich. There's no stigma associated with that. Uh, the desire to become an entrepreneur, to be successful. It's fantastic. It's not stigmatized. It's encouraged. You're a role model if you do that. Uh, I think that's terrific. Um, you know, the, the Western world, you look at it, the U S is probably going to be a little bit close to immigration. There's very little off note, sadly, that's happened in Europe, uh, by way of, uh, entrepreneurial businesses. It's just never, the environment has never been conducive to entrepreneurs. China is not really going anywhere. It's…

AI assessment note: “the desire to become an entrepreneur, to be successful. It's fantastic. It's not stigmatized.”

Q How, how do you describe these three characters? And you know, if you have to summarize them and you know, uh, the overlaps between them and the conflicts between them.

A Well, um, It's a memoir, and, um, Nikesh, a lot of people feature my parents, my wife, et cetera, but, but you're right in as much as, uh, Nikesh is a very prominent part of the story, and I think the standout quality about him, uh, from my mind anyway, is his processing power, analytical horsepower, and maybe I over index in terms of how I rate that as a quality, it was, was just absolutely awesome. It was just a pleasure To work with him. If you were in a room with him and you were keeping pace with him, you felt that that was, that made you feel good. And, you know, the few occasions when I was able to be slightly ahead of him, that took a, I took a lot of pride in. So he was, uh, um, he was crazily smart. Uh, Sun Silent is different.

AI assessment note: “Nikesh is a very prominent part of the story, and I think the standout quality”