瘋狂改變世界：我就是這樣創立 Twitter 的

by 畢茲．史東(Biz Stone)

泛科學創辦人、潮網科技創辦人徐挺耀──專文導讀

康泰納仕樺舍集團數位營運總監老查

TechOrange科技報橘總編輯張育寧

關鍵評論網共同創辦人暨總編輯楊士範

熱情推薦

不夠瘋狂，就沒有Twitter！如果你還不認識Twitter創辦人畢茲·史東，請來聽聽他稀奇古怪的經歷：

．部落格愛好者，架設史上最唬爛的部落格「天才實驗室」，裡面專放一些還沒成功的古怪想法，結果被Blogger創辦人伊凡·威廉斯看上，延攬進Google工作

．大學時，因為獲得出版社美術設計的工作，直接放棄大學學位

．只有高中學歷就能混入充滿博士學位工程師的Google

．史上最窮Google員工，同事還湊錢贊助他買床墊

．與伊凡一起研發出手機廣播系統，離開Google，創立Odeo

．感覺到廣播並非自己的興趣，又與傑克·多西花兩周設計了Twitter，並與伊凡、傑克一起創辦Twitter

．三人帶著作品參加2007年SXSW大會，Twitter一炮而紅，並拿下當年大獎

．Twitter獲頒威比獎（WebbyAwards）

．因與董事會理念不合，離開Twitter，創立Q&A平台Jelly

畢茲說，Twitter的成功秘訣是：

．天馬行空×投注熱誠×聆聽使用者的意見

．當你在工作中投入全部的身心，就有可能獲得成功

&l

Genres: Business, Nonfiction, Biography, Memoir, Technology, Entrepreneurship, Management

157 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 1, 2014

Reviews

[Suzanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't know why, but I love reading about techies. I also love the entrepreneurial spirit. So I found this book both interesting and inspiring. There's nothing super profound in this book, but it's filled with lots of truisms about creativity, passion and empathy. It was a book that I could read in chunks, which I always appreciate. I enjoyed it.

[Samra Muslim · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love twitter and for that reason alone reading this book was a lot of fun for me - how the social network came along, the back stories of the founder and how it evolved were extremely intriguing a read!

At the same time, I enjoyed what Biz Stone had to say, his perspective to work, giving and being user/customer centric are all I personally feel extremely strongly about and thus to me the book connected, touched and brought immense pleasure. A lot of my feelings finally got put into words

The book is a cross between Biz Stone's memoirs and life lessons for wanna be entrepreneurs ... But unlike a lot of books from the same genre it's an easy and pleasant read...

Only issue: the last few chapters were a bit of a drag... Seemed tedious and repetitive! Otherwise is a breeze

Received a copy from Liberty Books for a fair and honest review.

[Joe Kovacs · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first three-quarters of this book are pretty damn perfect. Biz Stone's journey to and through his founding of Twitter with Jack Dorsey, of discovering its potential by observing how others used it (especially during the 2007 SXSW conference) and by watching its national and international ramifications unfold is pretty spellbinding. He is frank about his economic troubles before Twitter, dedicated to his girlfriend and then wife, Livvy, with whom he shared all the challenges and joys of his life, and just a good, humane and empathetic individual. He is pretty darn funny too.

I have to admit, the last quarter of the book disappointed a little. It got slightly preachy with all his thoughts about interconnected humans helping each other. I mean, yes, I agree and Twitter has done all that in spades. But I don't think Biz gives himself enough credit by recognizing how his personal journey already says all those things in a much more powerful way than anything he can tell us by stepping outside that journey and talking at us.

Truly though, Biz Stone is a great and likable guy, exactly the kind of person you want to succeed. I attended an interview with him at the Greater Washington Board of Trade in Washington, DC and left the auditorium inspired and feeling good. I'm glad he wrote a book about his experience. And it's not only about Twitter, and helping others. The first part of the story also taps into what it takes to succeed as an entrepreneur.

Overall, this is biography more than anything. And it was an incredibly memorable and entertaining read.

[Bukola · Rating 3 out of 5]

"I'm a talker", Stone says several times in this book, and you better believe it. I enjoyed reading this book; I laughed and learned valuable lessons about life and business. I also like the author's practice of adding or showcasing the humane side of a business.

[Gabriella · Rating 4 out of 5]

(I received a digital copy from NetGalley in return for an honest review.)

"Things a Little Bird Told Me" is not your average business book. I see it more as a creative memoir of Biz's life and times. He was one of the four original co-founders of Twitter (Evan, Jack, and Noah were the others). Biz starts by taking us through his somewhat surreal initial hiring at Google (helped by Evan, who became a close friend), then his jumping ship to Evan's new startup Odeo, and then the birth of Twitter, which began as a two-week hackathon project by Jack and Biz, believe it or not!

There are so many great stories in the book. Biz seems like an unusual character, a self-deprecating "chancer" who bounces quickly from failure to success and is not ashamed to open up about his missteps. He comes off as sunny and warm and willing to look like a fool at times. The story of Ev and Biz driving down to Palo Alto to see Mark Zuckerberg is an awkward classic. (What must Zuckerberg have heard about these guys to have treated them like such morons? One wonders.)

Biz, to me, seems like he has ADHD. He proudly tells the tale of his "No Homework Policy" in high school, for example, where he simply gave up doing it because it took him too long. (The mind boggles. Who could get away with that? Well, someone who doesn't play by the rules and doesn't see the point of structure.) Biz's openness is very nice, but there is a shadow behind this book and that shadow is Nick Bilton's very much darker account of the founding of Twitter, with its quasi-Shakesperean theme of friendships betrayed.

I will admit that I haven't read Bilton's book yet, but I really want to after reading Biz's side of the story. What bothered me most in Biz's account was how he gave Noah Glass short shrift. Noah actually came up with the name "Twitter," but Biz presents it as an almost random incident in the book. Biz's friendship with Jack Dorsey raises some questions as well. Biz spins everything positively but can't quite cover the ouster of Evan Williams as CEO by the Twitter board without giving away what a painful and disillusioning episode this was.

The book shone for me when Biz was talking about how he envisaged Twitter as a collaborative force for good and strove to keep Twitter neutral and nonpartisan, letting the users determine new features. I love using Twitter and, because it has brought so much to my own life, I appreciate where he's coming from. I only hope that Twitter can stay relatively noncommercial as the company continues under a new administration.

So, I give TALBTM four stars because I feel that the account of the dynamics between the founders was somewhat self-serving. On the other hand, I didn't have a dull moment reading it. It was an interesting look into the mind of a creative force who is a genius at creating opportunities for himself!

[Angie · Rating 3 out of 5]

37% memoir
54% self-help/inspiration
33% philanthropy
0% math

Super quick read about the founding of Twitter, its triumphs and failures, touches of Stone's personal life and lots and lots of his personal philosophies.

If you're looking for the big answer as to how to become a giant success in the tech industry, I'll sum it up for you:

Keep trying till something sticks and don't be afraid to walk away from huge opportunities if they don't feel right.Good job at Google? Walk away. Half of a billion dollar offer from Mark Zuckerberg for your company because you jokingly throughout that amount on a whim? Walk away.

No. Really. That's the way Biz Stone lives his life - by following his gut. I get that, I identify with that. I've lived my life that way for the most part (when possible to do so without the story ending with me living in my car). But who among us mere mortals could walk away from 500 million dollars? Not me. Gimme.

There are lots of great takeaways if you're looking for a little inspiration in your life. A little "see! This guy did it!" Overall, Biz seems like a likable guy and has taken advantage of his good luck to give back. The last bit of the book focuses on charity work which is nice is to see. I wasn’t super interested in Stone or the founding of Twitter prior to this book and I still found it to be a really enjoyable read.


The required disclaimer: I received a copy from the publisher for review.


He was so proud of his app.

[Allison · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read Biz Stone's new book cover to cover in one sitting. He shares stories of failing and misstepping yet never straying his instincts, which has inspired me to reevaluate my priorities - personally and professionally.

The last 50 pages focus on his altruism and vision of a better world. He explains how the neutral sharing of information can improve situations for those less fortunate. I found Biz's chapter titled "A New Definition for Capitalism" particularly enlightening. It shifted my view of corporate responsibility from that of a good PR move and culture-generating concept to a catalyst for a better world.

Overall, Biz seems incredibly authentic. His stories are full of honesty, and many of my favorite lines from the book are along the lines of, "That probably wasn't the best idea," or "In retrospect, maybe I shouldn't have done it like that." Yet, he doesn't seem to be apologizing for his actions either - after all, that's how he got where he ended up. He's honest about his experiences and life lessons. I love that.

Great read! I highly recommend finding a copy of this book asap.

[Maryam · Rating 5 out of 5]

I simply loved it! The author not only talked about his life and twitter, he gave really valuable life lessons for us all,he got a great sense of humor too :) Biz Stone is definetly going to be my new inspiration and role model to leave my mark in this world.

[Maudi · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Success isn’t guaranteed, but failure is certain if you aren’t truly emotionally invested in your work."

Nonfiksi yang bikin aku enjoy bacanya. Seru banget tau sejarah terbentuknya twitter. Memotivasi juga. Vibesnya berasa kayak lagi dikuliahi di ruang kelas dan pak dosennya cerita tentang perjuangan dia hingga bisa berhasil “mengubah dunia”! Bahagianya Biz Stone dalam nyiptain twitter ini bener-bener nular banget di aku yang lagi baca. Gimana dia milih nama “Twitter” untuk startupnya, gimana dia memutuskan batasan 140 karakter untuk nge-tweet, gimana akhirnya dia pake kata “follow” untuk orang-orang yang berteman satu sama lain di twitter, gimana dia nyiptain “retweet” dan “hastag”. Semua itu bikin bacanya kayak yang seruuuu banget wkwkwk

Memang ya ternyata kebanyakan orang sukses tuh dulunya sering merasakan jatuhnya kegagalan. Dan untuk mengatasi hal-hal seperti itu, Biz Stone bilang kalau “opportutnities is manufactured”. Di buku ini diceritain gimana Biz waktu dulu pernah bekerja di salah satu perusahaan penerbit sebagai tukang angkut box kemudian dia menciptakan peluang dengan diem-diem bikin book jacket untuk project salah satu buku di penerbit itu. Begitu jadi, ternyata book jacket yang dibuat bagus dan akhirnya desain dia dipake deh! Kemudian dia direkrut kerja fulltime jadi designer di perusahaan itu. Ini salah satu contoh nyata Biz Stone dalam menciptakan peluang. Dan masih banyak lagi cerita yang disampaikan Biz di buku ini hingga bisa berhasil membangun startup besar seperti Twitter.

Sayangnya aku agak gak ngerti di bagian akhir-akhir. Kayak pembahasannya agak berat menurutku :( Padahal kalo bisa paham, nasihat yang diberikan Biz itu bagus banget loh! Mungkin gara-gara aku bacanya pas lagi gak fokus juga kali ya. Overall aku sukaa bukunya 🌸

[Kressel Housman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Biz Stone is one of the founders of Twitter, and though parts of his account of its origin story contradict the account in Hatching Twitter: A True Story of Money, Power, Friendship, and Betrayal, he has such an engaging writing style and admirable message, I couldn’t help but conclude that whatever really happened, he did his best to stay above the fray. He comes across as a really likable guy.

More than just an origin story, the book is Biz Stone’s philosophy of life and business, a combination memoir and self-help book. On its face, some of his advice might seem cliché, but because he backs it up with personal examples, you can see practical ways of applying it to your own life. For example, he says, “Create your own opportunities.” Well, everyone says that, but most of us wait around for an unexpected tip to come out of nowhere. I’ve had a few show up in my life, so I’m always waiting for the next one, but Biz has a point: they don’t show up all that often. Aside from that, rarely are they tailor-made to your interests. Biz is a big believer in “following your passion.”

Here��s an example of an opportunity he created for himself. A child of divorce, money was always tight in his family, so in his college years, he had a part-time job packing boxes in a book publishing firm. He knew the firm was looking at designs for a new book cover, so one day when nobody was around, he turned on one of the computers, designed a cover, and added it to the pile of designs under consideration. When his was chosen, he was offered a full-time job, so he took it. Others might not be so bold as to quit college, but he felt the reason he was going to college was to qualify for a job like that, and now he’d landed it three years before graduation.

That brings me to the subject of taking risks. Biz is a big advocate of risk-taking, too, saying the usual, “If you want the big pay off, you have to take big risks.” The difference is: he actually explains how to do it intelligently. He gave the example of learning to do a back flip. When he was taught how to do it, he was shown the point in the execution where accidents are most likely to happen. So instead of just “envisioning yourself succeeding,” Biz suggests you also envision yourself failing. Embrace the worst-case scenario. If you’re willing to live with falling on your back, you’re ready to take the risk.

Personally, I’m not willing to risk much. But what I like is that Biz broke down the process for me. Face your fear: can you handle it or not? He’s got a similar approach to work. Does your job excite you? Is it challenging and creative? If not, and you’re not willing to live with the consequences of quitting either, then find something to do within your company to enjoy your job more. That advice has made me a more cheerful worker in these past few days.

So all in all, an excellent book. It’s light in tone, but it packs some big and important ideas from someone who’s really living them.

[Ghislain · Rating 5 out of 5]

J'ai tout simplement adoré. Je me souviens que Biz Stone en 2009 m'avait fait forte impression alors que Twitter n'était qu'à ses débuts (je suis arrivé sur ce réseau en décembre 2009 avant de le quitter en octobre 2014...). Le livre est autant intéressant pour découvrir les premiers pas de l'oiseau bleu ; que pour vivre la naissance de plusieurs start-ups comme Blogger ou Medium ; mais aussi pour mieux se convaincre de l'intérêt du croisement entre humanités et technologie.

[Steve]

Things a Little Bird Told Me: Confessions of the Creative Mind

by Biz Stone

240 pages

This is a feel good business memoir by the founder of Twitter. Will likely appeal to folks who like to read business and/or self-help books. Expect a lots of truisms, like follow your dreams, be persistant, etc. This may reach best-seller status, if well reviewed in popular press.

[Cristiana · Rating 4 out of 5]

An infusion of optimism with a reality check towards the end. A very good book on how to build a "social" brand and a well told story about the power of the consumers to change things for the better, if given the chance.

[Nadia King · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some great messages contained in this book.

My favourite quote:
"I discovered early on that it was better to make my own destiny."

[Chaitanya Bapat · Rating 3 out of 5]

Insightful & inspiring.
Opportunities are created. This is one powerful takeaway for me from this book. Christopher Isaac "Biz" Stone shares an inspiring story of the birth of a present-day technological behemoth, a giant social media company and gives us lot of context on the decisions he took in his life. It's interesting to hear his philosophy towards life in general, especially the societal aspect - his beliefs about animal welfare, philanthropy and happiness. It's pleasing to see successful businesses can be built without adversely affecting yourself and the people around you. Success can be achieved without paying the cost of lives. On the contrary, businesses can thrive by improving lives of others while profiting. He paints capitalism in a good light and shows promise. The thought of a company born out of a hackathon held by a company who's about to be shut down is freaking ridiculous. But after reading this book, it makes me feel even if that hackathon idea would have failed, Biz would have built something else which would have changed the way humans interacted or improved the lives of countless others. It's because of this notion of creating opportunities and giving yourself the chance to fail that needle-moving feats can be achieved.

For more detailed notes - https://medium.com/read-with-chai/thi...

[Alyona E · Rating 4 out of 5]

Almost every book about success is a set of rules you need to follow in order to achieve what you want. This book is not an exception. But something in this book definitely struck my attention.
The whole story presented to us from a perspective of a person who was doing what he loved and enjoyed. Every chapter is a moment of his life which is teaching us simple things like let yourself be free, be kind, act even if you are afraid, surround yourself with smart people. We all heard them from somewhere but who really did try to bring any of these ideas in their life?
Biz Stone, the author, is a person who thought up ideas while thinking in a different way, changing reality.
Throughout the book I noticed for myself that that author wasn’t a smartest or most experienced person. He was a passionate, creative and brave person as all of us. Then what is the difference?

[Debjani Banerji · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had heard such great things about this book and I really do believe in the strength of Twitter, that I had bought this book some years, but managed to read it now.
It's an extraordinary story of a young creative man, who started his career in a publishing House and then in Google and then ended up creating this social media giant called Twitter which is a universe now. I mean Twitter is where the news is and Twitter is where you get your problems solved. Am sure Biz Stone, Evan and Jack (it's founders) did not think that it will be so big today. Every Politician worth its name has a Twitter handle. Every breaking news happens on Twitter! Every problem is solved on Twitter if you rant here.

Coming back to the book, there are a lot of lessons here, if you want to learn and try making your life and career interesting.

Quoting from the book 'It's a story about making something out of nothing......this book is about how to tap into and harness the creativity in and around us all '

I loved the last lines of the book ' We are all marching together. We're headed towards something big, and it's going to be good. ' Believe in this and you will never be dissapointed and look back.

A must recommend from me for you to read if you want to get inspired by one of the most successful business of the new century. #Twitter #djreads

[FatemehZahra JalaviNezhad · Rating 5 out of 5]

#آنچه‌پرنده‌کوچک‌به‌من‌آموخت
#شایان‌سادات
#انتشارات‌میلکان

پشت سر گذارده های یکی از موسسین توییتر در یک راه پر فراز و نشیب هست...
از فوق العاده ترین کتابهایی بود که خووندم؛ پر از امید و حس خوب و انرژی مثبت و الهام و ....
شک نکنید؛ اگه نخوونیدش قطعا یکی از بهترین کتابهای عمرتون رو از دست دادید، و مطمئن باشید یک کتاب سطحی که فقط الکی انرژی مثبت بده، نیست.
(باید اضافه کنم که گرچه ترجمه کتاب خیلی خوب بود ولی میتونست بهتر هم بشه)

[Rik Schnabel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was given to me by my accountant and i enjoyed Biz's narrative thoroughly. For anyone who is in business and cares about the world they live in - this is a valuable perspective. i highly recommend it. Biz you are a caring and creative genius!

[Narinder Bhatia · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful book which touches on many aspects of Biz and teaches many valuable lessons . for a detailed review visit http://bookmantras.blogspot.in/2018/0...

[Mohammad Kermani · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked some chapters where he was talking more about the Twitter, and in my idea, the book could be better if it was sumerized...

[Pablo Sotomayor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Es un libro fresco, muy agradable de leer, lleno de anécdotas en primera persona que por su sencillez lo hacen miy cercano.

Su técnica de las "No-tareas" me dió una gran lección para mi trabajo como educador.

[Yigit Yilmaz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kitaba başladığım tarihle bitirdiğim arasında tam bir ay geçmiş. Bu zaman diliminin bu kadar büyümesinin nedeni okuma rutinimi kaybetmemle alakalı, aman kitabı beğenmediğime yormayın :)

Gelelim kitaba: Biz ve Ev Google’ın Blogger ürünü üzerinde geliştirme yapan iki çalışanıdır. Bir gün bu işten sıkılırlar ve Odeo isminde bir podcast şirketi kurmaya karar verirler. Şirketi kururlar fakat bir süre sonra bu işin de kendilerine göre olmadığını anlarlar. Şirketi kapatmadan önce şirketin içerisinde bir Hackhathon yaparlar. PHP geliştiricisi Jack Dorsey ve ürün geliştiricisi Biz Stone’dan oluşan takım o an ne yaptıklarını paylaştıkları bir ürün geliştirirler ve Twitter’ın hikayesi böyle başlar.

Kitap boyunca Twitter’ın geçirmiş olduğu evreler ve unicorn bir şirketin nasıl büyüdüğünü kendini geveze olarak nitelendiren bir adamdan okumak harika. Yalnızca Twitter değil Biz Stone’un dünya görüşüyle ilgili ufuk açıcı bir çok düşünceyle de karşılaşmak kendisiyle sanki oturup sohbet ediyormuşsunuz hissi veriyor.

200 sayfadan oluşan bu kitapta herkes kendi için bir şeyler bulabilir.

[Linda Frieh · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wish I could give it a 4.5 instead of 4, and I wish I could finish it faster and read it continuously without interruptions for weeks. That may have affected my review.
It was such an amazing book about Biz Stone (co-founder of Twitter) I start liking those kinds of books. It was not an average business book it was more creative than I thought and it shows Biz’s life in an inspirational way. It shows you the other side of the story of Biz who is a great guy, the kind of person you want to succeed because they care about others as much as they do about themselves. if you are interested in business or tech stuff, you will adore it.
Then, why not 5 out of 5? The first 3 chapters were perfect which took me to another place, but the rest was normal which brought me back to reality. So, it made my expectations higher at the beginning. It was a fun, quick, and interesting book to read.

[Tanvi Chaturvedi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Honest funny account. Lessons are universal & you would already know from other books. So read if you wish to know how twiiter evolved in fun way else you can skip it!

[Nafise · Rating 4 out of 5]

اگه قصد شروع استارتاپ دارین پیشنهاد می‌کنم این کتاب رو بخونید

[Xaad Saud · Rating 5 out of 5]

The struggle. The failure. The ambitions. The creative. The investors. The politicians. The founders.

Some of the great narrations of the very tough and very recent becoming of twitter by the creative co-founder biz stone.

[Sam Angari · Rating 3 out of 5]

*Late-night writing, not refined*
I was first introduced to Biz through my following to Jack Dorsey on Twitter. As Jack is a co-founder of this corporate, I was intrigued to know about the other co-founders. A little Google search did the basic job until, months later, I came across a tweet from Jack introducing Biz's new book!

I find it fascinating, interesting, and so much remarkable knowing about stories of huge successes that grew out from potential failures. It holds comfort to us that stories like these are happening to ordinary people just like us. For a person who tend to see the bigger-picture-perspective of life, I don’t usually buy those books since they all carry the same idea; life didn’t work for the guy, yet he is so smart and persistent that he finally proved everybody else wrong. Those stories are uplifting and nice to hear, but reading them wouldn’t add so much to me. Now, I don’t know why this book was the exception, but I guess it is because I find those guys interesting the more I read about them.
The repetitive pattern we happen to hear these days about people who drop out of school and start exploring their potentials and finding their own leads, just to finally land on a multi-billion-job, reflect how things are just possible in so many forms and ways. That just reminds us of how we created a clichéd culture of false standards that yields no creativity, yet, ironically, manages to get us into prestigious restricted institutions.

Biz’s book is nice, easy to read, and just says how much he was literally smacked by life till he’s gotten to what he’s today. However, it was the consequence of his choices to be honest. I happen to agree with much of his philosophy of life and work, but with a lesser degree of boldness. It was pretty much the whole Steve Jobs’ talk, but from another perspective. I also have to appreciate Livy! I dunno how she tolerated living with a person who is so financially unstable and a heavy risk-taker for years. Hail to Livia! She must be an amazing person.

I liked the parts of the book that talked about the behind-the-scenes-Twitter, how it evolved, the co-founders themselves (Biz, Jack, and Evan), how they grew this startup and how it was so imperfect in a whole lot of times. I wonder how ok it was, on both personal and legal levels, to reveal a lot and talk so openly about your friends and business to the world. I couldn’t take this question off of my mind, that I hit him a tweet yesterday asking about it! That book definitely added something to me. Nonetheless, I finished it little bit frustrated; I have to learn how to code!

[Almas Nasar · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The other thing I ll say about money is that having a lot of it amplifies who you are.I have found this to be almost universally true.If you are a nice person, and then you get money, you become a wonderful philanthropist.But if you are an asshole with lots of money you can afford to be more of an asshole"

Easily a 5 starer!

Its mostly a stroke of amazing luck to find a fulfilling companion during your dark days.I plucked this one during my exams when my patience and attention were seeing themselves cripple under the tedium of education.
This book dished me out light and happy morsels of entertainment with its short chapters.What I love about Biz stone narration is how he concludes every story by bringing it to full circle.There are fresh axioms and yet it does not sound too instructive.It astounds me after every chapter to think that this guy(perhaps because of his natural humbleness) is the face of twitter!That founders and billionaires can actually be such individuals with wacky humor and apparently uncalculated personality.At least I always thought a project as huge as Twitter was backed by a breed of quite,shrewd,measured people who didnt go around quoting a funny several digit value for their company at an official meeting before their other driven and far richer contemporaries.Also because its an atypical rags to riches story,where imperfections of life are openly endorsed, it will resonate with you forever.
And hence the freshness of the read.

With someone like Biz stone writing them, I would like to pick up reads on the invention of other favorites of mine like Tumblr,Goodreads and perhaps the future mega's like Jelly and Medium without thinking twice!

[Dawn Graham · Rating 4 out of 5]

Biz Stone, in his book, Things a Little Bird Told Me: Confessions of the Creative Mind, shares in detail, his journey from growing up in a poor, single-parent household to eventually leading one of the most successful, innovative, and influential businesses in the 21st century. He describes the struggles he endured, how his determination and the power of positive thinking propelled him through seemingly insurmountable situations, and his belief that all one needs to be successful as a leader is to exhibit care and compassion for humankind.

From a cursory glance at his credentials, training, and general attitude toward entrepreneurship, and without knowing his story, one would laugh at the possibility of Biz Stone leading a multi-billion dollar business such as Twitter. Yet, with humor, intuition, an abundance of self confidence, and the willingness to take enormous risks, he was able to take Twitter from a joke of an idea between friends, to the powerhouse of social media that it is today. Growing up, Stone was an average student, with just a handful of friends, and few material resources. However, he had the gift to make people laugh, and he had grandiose ideas. While not realizing it at the time, those traits were all he needed to get started. He says his book is about “...making something out of nothing, about merging your abilities with your ambitions, and about what you learn when you look at the world through a lens of infinite possibilities” (Stone xv). He goes on to say that hard work is good, and even important, but that it is creative ideas that inspire. He believes that with all he experienced in his journey, his greatest skill is learning to listen to people, and then using that as a tool to change the world.

His guidance for beginning leaders and entrepreneurs is valuable and credible. From an early age, Stone was able to influence those around him, both peers and those who had authority over him. For example, he found himself at a disadvantage to play any athletic sport in high school. Due to his family’s financial situation, he did not have the same opportunities when young to participate in childhood sports teams. He was often cut from teams as soon as tryouts began. He understood that this was because his peers had years of experience before ever getting into high school. He solved this problem by convincing his high school to start a lacrosse team, although he had never played or attended a lacrosse game. Because lacrosse was not a well known game, he gambled on the idea that his peers also had no experience, which would give him an equal opportunity in the sport. His idea was successful. Not only did he play, but he also became team captain. This tactic became one of his best learned lessons, that “opportunity is manufactured” (Stone 10). Stone used this tactic repeatedly throughout life, landing him unlikely jobs as a graphic designer, an influencer blogger, and eventually to a prestigious position at Google. It was when Stone left Google that he discovered the key to creativity and leadership, and luckily, shares this in his book for others to learn from.

Stone left a stable, well-paying career at Google so that he could begin a new start up company, which later became Twitter. He shares that he had lost interest in what he was doing at Google. Over and over again, Stone uses terms such as “passion” and “joy” when referring to success and creativity, which he believes are critical to any endeavor. He goes into great detail about barriers to success and how those barriers are the “necessary constraints that inspire creativity” (Stone 55). He believes strongly in emotional investment in regards to any task. Through this creative, joyful, and passionate investment, Stone learned to watch and listen to people, and took notice of how humans will flock together toward a cause, much the same as animals will do. Through simple observation, he learned that people, in general, will respond positively to adversity and difficulty if provided with truth and transparency. This became his leadership philosophy. His advice when it seems everything has gone wrong or is broken, is to find what works and build on that strength. He encourages looking for the positive, and to always practice humility by being open and honest with customers. When Twitter first started out, they had constant problems staying online. The servers were crashing on nearly a daily basis. This became such a normal occurrence that Twitter gained the nickname, “Fail Whale” by its users. But because Twitter had been so honest about their issues, the users were patient and forgiving. Stone considers failure an asset and a critical part of growth. He stresses the need to be willing to fail and risk everything in order to move forward and be successful.

Stone strived to make Twitter a tool for people to use as they needed. He didn’t push to make it anything. He allowed it to evolve into whatever the users needed it to be. He encouraged his followers to simply celebrate Twitter for all the great things people did with it. Throughout its life, Stone has seen Twitter evolve into a fast moving, non-official news source, or a gathering place for desperately needed fundraising efforts, or a platform to spread humanitarian ideals and societal justice. He says, “Twitter was proof that leaderless self-organizing systems could be true agents of change.” And this is the heart of his message. As long as a common goal is shared, the approach to it should be flexible. Those in power should not force followers into a plan just because of protocol. People, whether they be consumers or employees or coworkers, are always considered before technology. Value comes before profit, and always strive to do common good in the world. The rest will fall into place. Stone does an excellent job of sharing what he considers to be vital traits and skills to be a successful leader/business, and he willingly uses his setbacks and failures to encourage others to learn from their own mistakes also.