Invent and Wander: The Collected Writings of Jeff Bezos

But then Isaacson steps back, and we get 23 of Jeff Bezos's annual letters to shareholders. Year by year, word-for-word, we read what the Amazon founder said about company results, latest ventures, and new project plans. These letters build into a valuable timeline of Amazon's growth, from going public in 1997 to being worth around a trillion dollars. And they also allow Bezos's own voice to come through, as he outlines his principles and explains his strategies.

After that, we get excerpts from some of his interviews and speeches. These include tales from the early days, brief lessons he's learned along the way, and some lengthier sections about what he's focusing on now – including how he's responding to the coronavirus pandemic. And the book ends with his ambitious plans for space exploration, plus a patriotic message about the great potential he sees in his homeland, the United States, over the coming years.

So, keep listening to get a biographer's take on how Jeff Bezos built Amazon. And then, in Bezos's own words, why satisfying customers guides everything he does; how his company is coping with COVID; and why his next big adventure will be out-of-this-world!

Hugely wealthy, and with a business that touches almost every part of our lives, Bezos is undoubtedly worthy of scrutiny. He's taken Amazon from a husband-and-wife operation in a shabby two-bed house, to a business giant that's changed the game for sales, distribution, web services, moviemaking, home tech, and so much more. Even though he's stepping down as CEO in 2021, he'll remain part of the business as Amazon's executive chair.

And Walter Isaacson is a strong pick to introduce him. He's previously written about innovators and visionaries like Leonardo da Vinci and Albert Einstein, and he believes that Bezos is in the same league.

Why? They all share endless curiosity, and a love of both the arts and sciences. They're passionate about learning in all its forms. They think differently from their peers. And they retain a childlike sense of wonder.

All these characteristics come through in Bezos's letters. But being tipped off about them at the start makes them easier to see.

One Bezos trait Isaacson highlights is his "reality-distortion field." It's the belief that almost anything can be achieved by sheer force of will. Bezos himself explains how he can commit to things even when he doesn't agree with them. And his space company's motto is, "Step by step, ferociously."

Isaacson suggests this doesn't make Bezos an easy person to work with. He describes the Amazon boss as infuriating, and talks about passions erupting into bouts of fury. But the Introduction focuses much more on what the man has achieved. And, how five characteristics in particular allow him to keep forging ahead.

They're framed as messages: to focus on the long-term; focus relentlessly and passionately on the customer; avoid PowerPoint; focus on the big decisions; and hire the right people. These, we're told, are the foundations on which the Amazon empire has been built.

But is Isaacson right? Let's see how those five messages come through in the writings of Jeff Bezos himself.

First, long-term thinking, which is mentioned in almost every shareholder letter. In the first, from 1997, Amazon has already got 1.5 million customers and a revenue of $147.8 million. But Bezos knows this is only the beginning. He's already looking ahead to a time when he won't just save people money and time, but "accelerate the very process of discovery." He uses the phrase, "It's Day One for the Internet" – and he'll still be saying that more than 20 years later, always looking far into the future.

Even when he first set up shop in a small, rented home near Seattle, he was building a company with the long term in mind. His goal was to create an "everything store," and – the way he tells it – he was sure that, eventually, he'd succeed.

His focus on customers was also born in those early days, when everyone on his team was involved hands-on in fulfilling orders. So Isaacson's right again. From the start, Amazon took great care to get its service spot-on. And Bezos has always known how to give his customers what they want – in particular, convenience and low prices.

Amazon tops the Satisfaction Index year after year. Customers can ask Alexa to order something, and it'll soon be at their door. Anyone who buys a book on Kindle can start reading it in seconds.

Bezos explains the technical innovations that make all of this possible. But he also revels in the emotional side of his business, and he clearly still loves delighting people.

One of his favorite ways to do that is to add more to his offers – a movie channel to Amazon Prime, for example – at no extra cost. For most other organizations, that would be just too big a risk. But Amazon can survive any short-term hit on profits. What's more, with so much data to be gathered, and other services to sell, it makes sense to get people signed up – and then to keep them there.

But of course that approach raises questions. As Amazon pulls more and more of us into online shopping, what about the bricks-and-mortar shops put out of business – let alone the other online traders who can't compete?

What's the real impact, when an industry like publishing sees prices slashed and self-published books swamp the market? And what are we really paying, for Amazon to personalize our experience so effectively?

The more we see of how Amazon operates, the more we're likely to ask questions like these. But, beyond the Introduction, we only hear Bezos's side of the story.

Which is ironic, in light of his third "message" – the need for proper communication, leading to quality discussion. Amazon's way of sharing information involves six-page memos, not slideshows. These memos are written collaboratively over days, even weeks. Then they're read in silence at the start of meetings. And, according to Bezos, they work so well because they tell stories, rather than relying on strategies and statistics.

Some of Bezos's other personal preferences emerge through message four, the one about prioritizing big decisions. He goes to bed early and gets up early, makes sure he gets eight hours' sleep, and gives himself time to "putter" before his first meeting at 10. He gets in his high-IQ thinking before lunch. And he does everything he can to make a few big decisions, and get them right.

To do that, unsurprisingly, he exploits the power of data. But he can use his heart as well as his head. He explains that, on paper, many of his ideas originally looked like mistakes. But they felt right – and turned out to be right. Like letting third-party sellers onto the Amazon platform, or offering customers all the benefits of Amazon Prime for the same flat fee.

How much his customers get to follow their instincts, on the other hand, is a moot point. The letters reveal just how well Amazon has learned to predict what we want to buy, watch, say – and even think – next, and then nudge us into doing it. Its slick service is driven by technology that many people don't know exists, let alone powers their Amazon experience every day.

At one point, Bezos describes his beloved Alexa and Echo in the language of espionage – as agents with secret microphones. At another, he mentions automated deliveries by drones. He does his best to allay people's fears. But these are complicated issues, and many readers will have concerns.

Yet from Bezos's point of view, all of this is only positive – making the book feel incomplete and, at times, a rather uncomfortable read.

That said, Amazon is certainly pursuing some very positive plans. It's committed to ambitious environmental targets, for example, and plows money into education for underprivileged kids. And Bezos is proud of the benefits he offers his employees.

But, again, it's only his version of events. When he describes how Amazon scientists are inventing their own ways to prove the environmental credentials of Amazon's processes... many readers will raise an eyebrow. And when he outlines all the great things about working for him, we're left wondering what his employees really think of their experience.

Even COVID-19 becomes a complicated topic. On one hand, Bezos points out the many challenges he and his team have had to conquer. There's an admirable focus on staff well-being, and an enthusiasm to give work to people who've lost their jobs elsewhere.

But, on the other hand, many readers will likely think about all the new opportunities the pandemic is creating for Amazon. And how it will continue to benefit as less well-positioned companies fall by the wayside.

Even though Bezos talks about how he supports other companies, Amazon's own snowballing success is always the main storyline. And he may write about his reliance on teamwork, but he's clearly the main player.

So what does it take to join his team – now more than half a million strong? The fifth message is about having high standards when hiring – and Bezos expects a lot.

He tells Amazon's recruiters to go for people they can admire; people who will make the team they join more effective; and people who can be superstars. He tells the graduating class at Princeton that being clever isn't enough. They'll also need conviction, passion, and a love of adventure. He mentions kindness, too but even that sounds tough, requiring resilience and bravery.

So how does this relentless approach relate to the word "wander" in the title?

Well, there's nothing aimless there. It's Bezos's way of describing the creative path he takes to achieving his goals. He's made mistakes along the way, and says he wants his company to be a "great place to fail." But as long as Amazon keeps moving forward, he's confident the big wins will more than cover the losses. And his ferocious, step-by-step journey will go on.

It's hard to bet against him staying on this path, as Blue Origin explores even bigger opportunities in space. That's where we'll need to look for our energy needs in the future, Bezos says. And just as he's built technology to empower other companies on Earth, so he hopes to pave the way for the space colonists of the future.

So, what's our verdict on "Invent and Wander" overall? As a behind-the-scenes business book, it's a detailed and often fascinating record. By explaining strategies, dissecting results, and charting what did and didn't work, it paints a clear picture of how Amazon grew into the company it is today.

And many of the themes that emerge should be useful to anyone in business. The importance of looking to the long-term, for example, or the value of communicating with clarity. Yes, they're all fairly simple ideas. But, again and again, Amazon has shown the seismic impact they can have.

And what do we learn about Jeff Bezos himself? The Introduction is a well-written, concise biography, and the principles and practices it highlights are all borne out later on. The interviews, in particular, throw up additional insights. And there are things we might want to try for ourselves. Writing some emails from our whole team, rather than putting one person in the firing line, for example. Or empowering more of our people to green-light great ideas.

But almost everything else is already covered by the Introduction. The same examples reappear, sometimes several times. And many of the letters are so similar they feel like reruns.

All that said, we still feel it's worth reading this book – not least because we're all involved in Amazon's journey. This is a rare chance to see some of what's going on in the background, and be forewarned about what's coming next.

But it's definitely a book to read with a skeptical eye. The boss's version of events goes unchallenged, and many complex and controversial areas are unexplored.

Jeff Bezos is unquestionably an intriguing man. His principles and practices are backed up by breathtaking results. With Amazon, he's already changed this world, and he's got ambitious plans to go far beyond it. From delivery driver to one of the richest men on the planet, there's much to applaud in his personal story, too. It's just that he may not be the best person to tell it.

"Invent and Wander: The Collected Writings of Jeff Bezos," with an introduction by Walter Isaacson, is published by Harvard Business Review Press.

That's the end of this episode of Mind Tools Book Insights from Emerald Works. Thanks for listening. Click here to buy the book from Amazon.