Jeff Bezos

Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Amazon.com

Who is Jeff Bezos?• Born on Jan 12, 1964 in New Mexico• Graduated from Princeton (electrical engineering & computer

science degrees)• Worked on Wall Street (D.E. & Shaw) after a couple of jobs

– Hired as the youngest senior VP– Described as hard-working, intelligent, driven

• Innovative & visionary– Developed the idea of “Everything Store” when he was at DESCO– Amazon Prime

• Founded Amazon.com in 1995. Sales grew from $510K in 1995 to $155B in 2013!

• The world’s 18th richest man with net worth $31.5 Billion1

• Married to Mackenzie Bezos for 21 years1: As of April 2, 2014Source: Forbes

Integrating his life and applying TL skills:Self & Work

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• Have a clear vision to create Everything Store

• Took risk of leaving high-paying Wall Street job

• Work countless hours to create Everything Store and satisfy customers

Be Real: “I have a vision of where I’m headed, the legacy I want to leave, and how to pursue what is most important in my life.”Be Real: “I make choices about how to spend my time and energy that match what I really care about.”

Integrating his life and applying TL skills:Community & Work

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• Developed the concept of Everything Store with colleagues at DESCO

• Bezos reached out to his friends at DESCO to be introduced to key contacts (e.g. Kaphan - engineer)

• Asked Holden for feedback on beta platform; offered him a position to lead a recruiting team at Amazon later

Be Whole: “I use skills and contacts from different parts of my life to help meet needs and goals in other parts of my life.”

Integrating his life and applying TL skills:Home & Work

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• Mackenzie believed in Bezos’ charisma and supported his decision to work on his start-up from the beginning

• Bezos convinced his parents to invest in his start-up through show of passion and commitment

Be Whole: “I am able to convince people to support me in reaching important goals.”

Integrating his life and applying TL skills:Work

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• Allow customers to email Bezos personally

• Constantly experiment to offer better services to customers (e.g. 3P sellers’ program, free shipping, Kindle & e-books)

Be Whole: “I look for opportunities to help others and build relationships with many different people.”Be Innovative: “I challenge traditional assumptions about how things are done, experimenting to make things better whenever possible.”

Leadership lessons

• Follow your passion!

• Demonstrate qualities that earn trust (charisma, commitment)

• Gain support