Bookstrapping: Trailblazer by Mark Benioff and Monica Langley

Knowledge isn't truly powerful until it's shared!

Trailblazer is a book about the power of business to seed the change and author Marc Benioff is the founder and co-CEO of Salesforce. He has written this book along with writer and columnist Monica Langley. ‘Trailblazer’ is divided into two parts – ‘values create value’ and ‘business is the greatest platform for change.’

The origins of the book lie in the fact that Benioff did not feel fulfilled even though he had a dream job at Oracle, had caught the attention of Larry Ellison, been promoted to vice president with a multi- million dollar salary, stocks and perks! Honestly, sounds like the boy next door’s problem too!

That’s when Larry asked him to take three months off, go take a look around! Trusting Larry Ellison's advice, Benioff looked around. And what he found comprises our #BookStrapping insights.

1. The book narrates Benioff’s encounter with Mata Amritanandamayi, who told him, “in your quest to succeed and make money don't forget to do something for others.” He credits this encounter with the genesis of the idea of SalesForce.

2. Benioff believes that businesses that do good and companies that have a social mission tend to be more successful. He also quotes from Dov Seidman’s book ‘How: Why HOW We Do Anything Means Everything’ to drive home an important point about culture.

3. Benioff says that a CEO can share all his codes and secrets with his employees but if the employees can't count on one another and do not feel that the leadership will stand by them in the trenches, when the going gets tough, then top-down sharing alone will simply not be enough!

4. There is an entire chapter around Benioff's initial conviction that Salesforce should've bought Twitter in 2016 and why the deal fell aside. Very interesting!

5. He also shares a powerful message for business owners. Learning to meditate is the best investment I have made in my life! And he credits the late father of mindfulness Thich Nhat Hahn with teaching him this. Touche!

In the age where sustainability is built into every conversation, this book is extremely relevant. From Benioff’s vantage point, it is evident that one aspect embedded within sustainability is to recognise that everyone has dreams, and that the success of communities is vital to the success of our civilisation. Couldn’t agree more!

And while you’re at it, check out the concept of OHANA!