If You're Curious About These Questions...
You should listen to this audiobook
- Have you ever wondered why some of the world's most successful leaders credit their greatest achievements to a partner rather than their own individual talent?
- What’s the secret to building a 'power duo' that can turn a simple idea into a global empire?
- Did you know that your most productive self might only emerge when you stop working solo and find your perfect professional match?
Listen to Working Together — Free Audiobook
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Key Takeaways from Working Together
- Discover why humility and acting as a passionate cheerleader for your partner can eliminate toxic competition and drive mutual business success.
- Learn how embracing a skeptical partner to stress-test your ambitious ideas can help you make better, more grounded decisions.
- Understand the power of a partnership between equals, where sharing vulnerabilities and balancing enthusiasm with caution creates a highly resilient team.
- Find out how outward opposites can forge a powerful alliance by utilizing their different strengths to protect each other while sharing the same core principles.
- Recognize the immense value of checking your ego and willingly accepting a supporting role without envy to focus entirely on the company's success.
Learning Tools
Reinforce what you learned from Working Together
Mind Map
Working Together
Core Principles of Great Partnerships
Myth of the solo leader hides the truth about success
Require mutual respect, integrity, and absolute trust
Never keep score or compare contributions
Eliminate competition to focus entirely on company success
The Cheerleader (Eisner & Wells)
Eisner was creative CEO; Wells kept company grounded
Shared all news and frustrations to bear them easily
Wells enthusiastically promoted and supported Eisner's ideas
Wells showed humility by happily accepting the number two role
The Skeptic (Buffett & Munger)
Munger acts as the ultimate skeptic to Buffett's ideas
Criticisms are used to filter and decide on investments
Munger provides deep knowledge; Buffett turns it into action
Munger lacks envy and admits Buffett is a better boss
The Equals (Bill & Melinda Gates)
Manage their philanthropic foundation with equal power
Read same books to constantly align their thoughts
Share fears and weaknesses on an equal footing
Provide balanced perspectives of enthusiasm and caution
The Opposites (Grazer & Howard)
Outwardly different but share deep inward principles
Grazer handles harsh business to protect Howard's creativity
Split company earnings 50/50 even on solo projects
Financial equality prevents tension and scorekeeping
The Lovers (Garavani & Giammetti)
Partnership founded on romantic love and extreme sacrifice
Giammetti organizes and gatekeeps so Garavani can create
Giammetti yields the spotlight and 51% earnings to Garavani
Both are completely dedicated to Garavani's ultimate success
The Friends (Rubell & Schrager)
Rubell charmed the crowds while Schrager managed the business
Schrager proved loyalty by choosing prison over betrayal
Divided everything equally despite differing personalities
Rebuilt their business together with renewed integrity
Quiz — Test Your Understanding
Question 1 of 8
What is a common misconception about successful business leaders often portrayed in the media?
Working Together — Full Chapter Overview
Chapter 1: Recommendation
Chapter 2: Frank Wells and Michael Eisner: the partner as advocate.
Chapter 3: Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger: the partner who is skeptical.
Chapter 4: Bill and Melinda Gates: a partnership of equals.
Chapter 5: Brian Grazer and Ron Howard: outward opposites, with inward similarities.
Chapter 6: Valentino Garavani and Giancarlo Giammetti: the lovers.
Chapter 7: Steve Rubell and Ian Schrager: the friends.
Working Together Summary & Overview
Working Together (2010) is all about the benefits of strong business partnerships. Some people are most productive when they pair up with someone else, and these blinks use several high-profile examples to outline how different kinds of partnerships work.
Who Should Listen to Working Together?
- Ambitious leaders, bosses and managers
- Anyone who has a great idea and wants it to flourish
- Anyone who wants to make the most of a partnership
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