If You're Curious About These Questions...
You should listen to this audiobook
- Did you know that dropping out of law school was the surprising first step in Guy Kawasaki’s journey to becoming a legendary tech icon at Apple?
- What’s the secret to staying resilient and successful through the wild ups and downs of being an entrepreneur, a parent, and a lifelong learner?
- Have you ever wondered how the perspective of a sixty-something surfer can provide the ultimate blueprint for a meaningful career and life?
Listen to Wise Guy — Free Audiobook
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Key Takeaways from Wise Guy
- Learn how embracing the support of observant teachers and loyal friends can unlock life-changing opportunities, just as it propelled Guy to Stanford and Apple.
- Understand the value of maximizing the opportunities you are given, a foundational lesson Guy learned from his hardworking family's pursuit of a better life.
- Discover why quitting isn't necessarily the same as failing, and how walking away from a toxic law school environment pivoted Guy toward his true path.
- Master the fundamental art of salesmanship by exploring how Guy's hands-on experience in the jewelry business taught him essential, real-world persuasion skills.
- Find out how fortune favors the bold by taking audacious leaps in your own life, whether that means championing unproven technology or learning to surf at 62.
Learning Tools
Reinforce what you learned from Wise Guy
Mind Map
Wise Guy
Family & Roots
Immigrant Drive
Moral Foundations
Parental Sacrifice
Education & Mentorship
Teacher Influence
Seeing Potential
Tough Love
Career Pivots
Redefining Failure
Conditional Support
Unexpected Training
The Apple Years (Part 1)
Power of Networking
Software Evangelism
Success Formula
Knowing When to Leave
Saving Apple (Part 2)
Returning to Crisis
Community Building
Bridging the Gap
Parenting Lessons
Empathy
Karma & Words
Surfing & Lifelong Learning
Never Too Late
Overcoming Limits
Unconventional Solutions
Actionable Advice
Foster Connections
Quiz — Test Your Understanding
Question 1 of 8
Why did Guy Kawasaki's father insist he attend Stanford instead of Occidental College?
Wise Guy — Full Chapter Overview
Chapter 1: Recommendation
Chapter 2: Guy Kawasaki’s family left Japan for America in search of a brighter future.
Chapter 3: Guidance from two of Guy’s teachers set him on the road to Stanford University.
Chapter 4: Leaving law school taught Guy that quitting isn’t necessarily the same thing as failure overall.
Chapter 5: Guy was fortunate to land a break at Apple, but he soon proved that he was the right man for the job.
Chapter 6: Guy experienced ups and downs at Apple and ultimately left to start his own business from scratch.
Chapter 7: Guy returned to Apple in the mid-nineties when the company seemed it might collapse soon.
Chapter 8: Parenting taught Guy priceless lessons in empathy and kindness too.
Chapter 9: Starting surfing in his sixties showed Guy it’s never too late to learn new tricks in life.
Wise Guy Summary & Overview
Wise Guy (2019) tells the story of entrepreneur and best-selling author Guy Kawasaki’s life. Born into an ambitious Japanese family living in Hawaii, he went on to shine as one of Apple’s leading lights after dropping out of law school. Kawasaki has seen it all. In these blinks, he guides readers through his ups and downs and the lessons he’s picked up along the way as a student, tech guru, parent and sixty-something surfer.
Who Should Listen to Wise Guy?
- Self-starters and the entrepreneurially minded
- Digital pioneers
- Anyone who loves inspiring true stories
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