Customer Reviews

Left on Red: How to Ignite, Leverage and Build Visionary Organizations

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"Red lights are meant to slow or stop movement. Taking a left on a red is dangerous, a little crazy, and certainly a lonely sport not for the weak-willed. If you have the guts and smarts to try it, the rewards are well worth it."

I happened to hear author Bill Glynn being interviewed on national radio when his "Left on Red" was released and was compelled to put "Left on Red" at the top of my "must read" list. Glynn, "one of the world's top fifteen innovators" and venture capitalist, has written what I would call a "breezy" book (215 pages of the largest font I have seen in years) based on his experience and observations. The book's cover promises to provide an insider's view and examples of: 1) how great businesses are built; 2) how to create cultures of innovation and creation necessary to survive the systems and markets meant to keep individuals and teams bottled up; and 3) what is the quickest route to innovation.

Topics include The Visionary (Business is War), The Future (Not the New Media - the New Medium), The Art of a Deal (The Two-by-Four and Return on Innovation), and the Strength of Social Capital (Shaking Hands and Kissing Babies and Ideation). The format he uses begins with his observations and examples, followed by Tactical Takeaways (a summary with bullet points), and an Insider's Viewpoint (comments by various innovator's).

For me, the book was a great disappointment. Before I go on, I will admit to a bias as I come from the life science industry which is a world apart from Glynn's very fast paced 5.0 existence. The upfront investment and potential human costs in medical research and commercial development of new medical therapies follows a very different paradigm for innovators.

With the exception of a few Insider's Viewpoints and some aspects of the Strength of Social Capital, the book offers the reader very little other than tiresome glib comments and clichés. Glynn notes that colleagues have commented on his fast-paced style and his ability to get to the endgame before anyone else. I suspect "Left on Red" reflects his overall approach to life.

Glynn is critical of the books, "Who Moved the Cheese" and "One Minute Manager," believing they belong on the shelf in a bookstore. For me, "Red on Left" makes a threesome.

Left on Red is an intense call to action for leaders, managers, investors, and innovators at all levels. Whether you are looking for inspiration, validation, or just a dose of courage, Bill Glynn runs you down a compelling path of the mindset needed to win big in today's hyper-competitive environment. He also demonstrates how what-if thinking along the entire value chain of most any product or service can create bigger opportunities for everyone involved. This book is for anyone who is in the business of thinking ahead, or should be.

I am definitely recommending it to my network and buying it for my partners and direct reports.

If you think that recent events have vindicated Wall Street's vehement defense of privatized profits and socialized losses, then this is the book for you.

With candid reality of what it takes to conquer the tech markets, Glynn lays out his venture capital experience through analogies of military history and primal instincts. It's not for the weak-hearted and Glynn assumes the game isn't for everyone. In fact, he may be intentionally scaring some away, especially with his idea about how leaders are born.

"Let's take a look at the laws of leadership and the multitude of books you can buy like Who Moved My Cheese? and The One Minute Manager among many others, and place them into a pile of rubbish. My theory is that if you have to read about how to be a leader you should go buy some Huggies Pull-Ups."

Glynn compares Left on Red thinkers to the commandos in an army, those able to sneak behind enemy walls in the middle of the night and sever the lifeline of the competition. They single-handedly change the fate of the business landscape. In contrast, but also vitally important, are the infantry who follow the commando and stabilize and manage the landscape. The infantry are followed by the police, who maintain the future operations. In business, Glynn points out that you must know who you are and also how to work with all three.

Commandos, or innovators, breath predictions about the future that will dynamically change the way we think, interact, and communicate. Yet, some things never change. Glynn's future is filled with interactive TV and advertising, life-like virtual worlds, and nano-technology breakthroughs allowing humans to think and communicate as machines do in a flawlessly meshed network. Yet, there is an important distinction between the medium and the content. The medium will change -i.e. the progression of listening to music on an 8-track then to a Walkman to a CD to an iPod - but at the end of the day, the demand for the content keeps the production of music alive. Predicting how the mediums change and how technological business models evolve dominate Left on Red thinking.

Beyond the nascent ideas propelling revolutionary change is getting to market quickly. Glynn's key advice is centered around rapidity and he antagonizes the 'patience is a virtue' mantra. Get to market as quickly as possible with as much force as possible lest your competition will beat you. Speed is the name of the game. Knowing your competition and anticipating your vulnerabilities is also key, so you'd betting have an all-star team, the best money can buy.

Easier said than done? It helps if you know people. Glynn's suggestion: keep your Rolodex filled, constantly massage your professional and social network, and become an individual who people value. Prime examples are what he calls Superconnectors. They are people in the shadows that connect people and drive the catalyst for future deals. They know people from all walks of life who can help others.

The core of Left on Red thinking is innovation, and Glynn notes that the majority of people don't have the will or capability which is required to produce the next Google. Too plugged into consumerism, the status-quo, against change, and thinking big, the masses have difficulty seeing above their comfortable stability. It's the rare combination of brilliance and determination that make entrepreneurs successful. That so, Left on Red thinking should be left for the untamed lion poised to take over the Serengeti watering hole.

If you've met Bill Glynn (I did once, briefly), you see right away he's a real dynamo. Finally a book that bursts with the personality of the author. Fav section is on "The Strength of Social Capital" which is the new currency. If you want to get networked, get connected, then pick up Left on Red. Really enjoyed it.

Bill Glynn is someone who can spot patterns in technology and make use of them. He has a take-no-prisoners strategy toward technology and technology-related enterprises. His book's title, "Left on Red," points to his impatience with the normal rules that constrain many of us. When your speed is as explosive and incendiary as Bill's, you have no time to wait at traffic signals.

With regard to recent technical innovations, Bill always seems to be at the center of the universe. Is it luck that explains how someone can always be at the right place at the right time? Luck doesn't seem to play into it; one gets the feeling that Bill brings the action with him, and innovation orbits him. Although I wouldn't want him to be my sons' Driver's Education instructor, if I were establishing or running a technology-related business, I couldn't think of anyone else I'd rather have on my team. "Left on Red" makes for an energizing (and profitable!) read.

Bill Glynn captures the essence of past business and life successes and blunders from entrepreneurs and corporate executives from around the world and applies it to a bright future that seems inevitable!

Starting out into the entrepreneur/business world, Left on Red gave me some insight that was much needed. Sure, he threw me with a couple of the topics but they were all necessary. So if you are young, bright-eyed with an entrepreneur spirit and unsure which way to go but you know you want to go to the top, this is a must read.

When you meet Billy G you know immediately that he knows something you don't know. Well, maybe a lot you don't know. Here is your opportunity to get into his brain and see what it is that focuses his amazing talents. Anyone who runs a business - or would like to - will benefit from Billy's debunking of many "biz school" and "leadership training" myths (don't expect leaders to be good team players), or even fables that are used to justify doing business the old fashioned way (yes, the hare wins). His perspective is provocative. Even if you disagree with him (he wants you to), you will find valuable insight as to how to compete, if you truly want to compete, in the 21st century business climate.