Built to Last

The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in the mind at the same time, and still retain the ability to function.

– F. Scott Fitzgerald

I have finished reading the Built to Last book. And, as promised, sharing my thoughts on it in this blog post.

This book is on a whole other level compared to many other popular business books, such as Zero to One or No Rules Rules.

This book results from a multi-year research project conducted by Jim Collins and Jerry Porras. They have researched 50+ years of history of 36 different companies – 18 visionary companies and 18 comparison companies.

The purpose of the study was to compare the “gold” companies with the “silver” companies and find out what makes the “gold” companies gold. It’s important to note that all company pairs are “twin” companies that were founded in the same period, started in similar conditions and in a similar industry; both existed for quite some time.

The fact that authors have chosen really well-performing, “silver”-tier companies as comparison companies is crucial. If instead of “silver” companies, they had selected a high school soccer team, the research would have been meaningless because when the comparison of “gold” medalists with high school soccer teams would show that everything between them is different, without highlighting the key factors that make visionary companies outstanding.

Some of the companies they have researched are:

Visionary: Sony
Comparison: Kenwood

Visionary: Procter & Gamble
Comparison: Colgate

Visionary: Walt Disney
Comparison: Columbia Pictures

Visionary: 3M – I have learned a lot about 3M from this book; for example, they have invented scotch tape, post-it notes, and waterproof sandpaper
Comparison: Norton

Visionary: Motorola
Comparison: Zenith

The other companies researched in this book that piqued my interest include Ford, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Merck, Marriott, and Pfizer.

This book is an excellent inspiration for and a reminder of great self-management practices (not just from the business perspective).

Also, this book can help restore or support (depending on where you stand currently) your faith in humanity because the authors showed that all visionary companies have a purpose beyond just making money. And consistently act on it. Comparison companies – very rarely.

Highly recommend. This is one of the few books I want to keep to get back to it later. 10/10.