Zero to One: a Better Book on Life Than Startups
Peter Thiel’s famous book, Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future, is often recommended reading for anyone starting a business, but it should also be recommended for anyone seeking a meaningful life. Perhaps I view books with a wide lens, but I promise I’m justified here.
Zero to One is about how to create something new, or go from “zero to one.” It amalgamates Thiel’s first principles and philosophies, enriched by his life experiences and observations.
Before we get started, I’m not a huge fan of Peter Thiel. The person. His political activism and fundraising do more harm than good (although he’s allegedly not donating to anyone in 2024).
With that said, I’m also a firm believer in reading and trying to understand those whom I disagree with (see Elon Musk, for example). Discovering classic gems like Zero to One only validates this perspective.
Allow me to tell you why this book has even better wisdom on life than startups (and it’s pretty insightful on the latter).
“What important truth do very few people agree with you on?”
Thiel framed this as an important “interview question” when hiring candidates. While I think that’s a terribly unfair question to ask someone in an interview (unless maybe it’s for a job at a venture fund), it’s great at eliciting deep truths about life.
It forces the respondent to be contrarian. Bold. Risky.
As Thiel explains, “Good answers are as close as we can come to looking at the future.”
He argues that successful people find value in unexpected places. And that every time we create something new, we go from “zero to one.”
This really resonated with me. Not because I’m some startup entrepreneur (I’m not, at least yet), but because I’m always trying to succeed in the business of doing new things.
Take writing. An activity and lifestyle that I love. This question is the perfect one to ask when I’m trying to decide what to write about next. If I can discover an important truth that few people agree with me on, it will cause controversy, drive engagement, and ultimately, create impact and notoriety regardless of whether I’m right or wrong.
This question is useful in almost any context of life. If you find a truth important enough that few people (currently) agree with you on it, your ability to succeed only depends on the quality of your conviction.
Monopoly is a good thing and necessary for successful startups
Thiel convinced me that monopoly is actually good, and in fact, it’s necessary to monopolize important truths. As someone who studied and handled antitrust matters in my education and career, I almost always viewed monopolies as bad. Now I’m wondering if I was drinking too much of the competition Kool-aid.
“Monopoly is the condition of every successful business.” – Peter Thiel
It may sound counterintuitive, but the more we compete, the less we gain. If competition is cutthroat, it not only means that undifferentiated companies are interchangeable, but it also means their profits will be near, at, or below zero.
One could critique this perspective by arguing that greater monopoly and economic concentration allow for predatory behavior and less innovation. We have certainly witnessed that throughout history from the robber barons to the significant economic concentration today.
Thiel, however, would likely retort – their neglect is someone else’s gain and there are more important truths waiting to be monetized.
I’m not sure if I fully subscribe to these views on monopoly, but I see the benefits. Take a company like Google, for example, which has an effective monopoly on search. Their dominance in this one area has fueled its expansion to many others, including new technologies like artificial intelligence.
Had Google never had a monopoly on search, it would not have been able to afford to even think about anything other than how to make money. It’s similar to Maslow’s Hierarchy in a way – once companies have a monopoly of sorts, they have the freedom to pursue higher goals.
The same is true in our own lives. Once we have stability, shelter, and basic resources, we can think beyond ourselves. Call it a personal monopoly.
Just as monopoly is the condition of every successful business, personal monopoly is the condition of every successful person.
The power of definite optimism
According to Thiel, the best way to achieve monopoly – whether business or personal – is to be a definite optimist. Thiel tells the story of how he dreamed of clerking on the U.S. Supreme Court (which is arguably the highest honor in the legal profession). Had he achieved this goal, he would have likely spent a life in law instead of creating anything new.
As a lawyer who spent almost a decade in the profession, I think about this a lot. It’s a big reason why I quit to be a stay-at-home dad and focus on creating new things. Like Thiel, I didn’t want to look back on my life and reminisce on the great future I had in my past.
The most successful creators, however, do not simply create aimlessly. They have a purpose. Or as Thiel calls it – definite optimism.
He describes how this moniker personified the United States through the 1960s. The country that built great things in short periods (e.g., the Empire State Building was finished in 1931 after starting in 1929). How 20,000 miles of the Interstate Highway System was completed in less than a decade.
We don’t dream big in America, at least regularly, like we once did. We don’t have bold visions fueled by conviction, but we’re still generally optimistic about the future (even if we’re more polarized and divided than ever).
Thiel describes modern-day America as indefinite optimism. How instead of working for years on new products, most of our modern economy rearranges already-invented ones. Management consultants are key. So are bankers, lawyers, accountants, and other professionals who don’t create anything new.
For Thiel, in this type of world money is more valuable than anything you could possibly do with it.
We cannot expect to succeed – whether in our personal lives or business – if we do not have some degree of definite optimism. Having a clear goal with a plan that you’re hopeful enough can succeed is rare in many people today.
Not everyone is meant to be an entrepreneur. I’m still unsure if it will ever be a viable path for me. But that doesn’t mean I won’t create, whether through writing or making movies. If anything though, what Zero to One showed me is that I should have purpose and more importantly, definite optimism behind my creations.
Success is never accidental
This is controversial. As are many of the takes from Zero to One. But for a book published in 2014, it is remarkably accurate even 10 years later.
Thiel was right about the clean energy bubble. The overemphasis on DEI initiatives (i.e., social entrepreneurism) in corporate America. And when describing the Eurozone, he practically predicted Brexit.
But I surprisingly found myself agreeing with Thiel that success is never accidental. Many, including Warren Buffett, will argue that they’re extremely lucky and fortunate. And while that may be true in many respects, guys like Buffett always find ways to succeed no matter their circumstances.
Or as the great quote from A Gentleman in Moscow goes: “A man must master his circumstances or be mastered by them.”
Successful people are not typically showered with 100% good fortune. Many fail miserably along the way. But they keep pushing and working hard. Eventually, the universe works itself out for them.
“A definite person determines the one best thing to do and then does it.” – Peter Thiel
Many will argue that the world is random. Others will say there are structural disadvantages in the system that favor some groups over others.
Nobody should deny these misfortunes and harsh realities.
But a person with a definite plan – no matter their background – will always be underrated in a world where people see the future as random, hopeless, or both.
So what important truth do very few people agree with you on?
Tell me your answer in the comments.
For me, it’s that our current world can grow and prosper despite its challenges.
Many people point to rising deficits, overspending, wars (both real and cultural), polarization, and rising autocracy as evidence of a world (and a world order) in decline.
I disagree. If you look back through human history, there is no better time to be alive and make a difference in the world. Everyone has a microphone now. Use it for good.
And can I just say how grateful I am for such an insightful book from someone whom I don’t agree with regularly. This too gives me hope.
Even if you are not an aspiring startup founder or businessperson, read Zero to One for its insights on building a meaningful life. You may not agree with everything, but that’s not the point.
It will make you think. It will challenge your preconceptions on life and important truths about the world.
That’s far more than we can expect from most books.
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