Great Books Distilled: Summaries of Bestselling Business and Investing Books Outlier Academy

After he was dismissed from Apple in the early 1990s, Steve Jobs turned his attention to a little-known graphics company he owned called Pixar. One day, out of the blue, Jobs called Lawrence Levy, a Harvard-trained lawyer and executive to whom he had never spoken before. He hoped to persuade Levy to help him pull Pixar back from the brink of failure. This is the extraordinary story of what happened next: how Jobs and Levy concocted and pulled off a highly improbable plan that transformed Pixar into the Hollywood powerhouse it is today.

Explore the episode notes.
Search and down a transcript and find links to related books, interviews, lectures, and more: outlieracademy.com/183.

Chapters
(00:00) The Bleak State of Pixar's Business in 1994
(08:06) Steve Jobs' Investment in Pixar
(10:24) The Initial Contract with Disney
(26:27) The Four Pillar Business Strategy
(32:53) Renegotiating the Contract with Disney
(38:10) Don't Engage in Positional Bargaining
(40:36) Understand the Difference Between Strategy and Tactics
(43:11) Analyze Where You Stand in Relation to the Other Party
(45:40) Pixar's Negotiating Power
(48:05) Assessing Strength and Negotiating Terms
(49:27) Knowing What You Want
(51:20) Creative Control and Release Windows
(52:18) Profit Share and Revenue Calculation
(53:42) Building the Pixar Brand
(55:09) Waiting for Maximum Leverage

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Explore my full summary for the book featured this week.
To Pixar And Beyond: My Unlikely Journey with Steve Jobs to Make Entertainment History

For more, explore my full profile on Steve Jobs.
Who is Steve Jobs? Wisdom From The Man Who Built Apple, NeXT, and Pixar

Brought to you by HVMN. With Ketone-IQ, fuel your best anytime with a boost of awesome-feeling energy and clarity. Unlock the power of nature's superfuel—no fasting or keto diet required.
Advertise with Outliers and reach our global community
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After he was dismissed from Apple in the early 1990s, Steve Jobs turned his attention to a little-known graphics company he owned called Pixar. One day, out of the blue, Jobs called Lawrence Levy, a Harvard-trained lawyer and executive to whom he had never spoken before. He hoped to persuade Levy to help him pull Pixar back from the brink of failure. This is the extraordinary story of what happened next: how Jobs and Levy concocted and pulled off a highly improbable plan that transformed Pixar into the Hollywood powerhouse it is today.

Explore the episode notes.
Search and down a transcript and find links to related books, interviews, lectures, and more: outlieracademy.com/183.

Chapters
(00:00) The Bleak State of Pixar's Business in 1994
(08:06) Steve Jobs' Investment in Pixar
(10:24) The Initial Contract with Disney
(26:27) The Four Pillar Business Strategy
(32:53) Renegotiating the Contract with Disney
(38:10) Don't Engage in Positional Bargaining
(40:36) Understand the Difference Between Strategy and Tactics
(43:11) Analyze Where You Stand in Relation to the Other Party
(45:40) Pixar's Negotiating Power
(48:05) Assessing Strength and Negotiating Terms
(49:27) Knowing What You Want
(51:20) Creative Control and Release Windows
(52:18) Profit Share and Revenue Calculation
(53:42) Building the Pixar Brand
(55:09) Waiting for Maximum Leverage

Watch and listen.
Watch this episode on YouTube
Find this episode in your favorite podcast app
Get new episodes delivered via email

Explore my full summary for the book featured this week.
To Pixar And Beyond: My Unlikely Journey with Steve Jobs to Make Entertainment History

For more, explore my full profile on Steve Jobs.
Who is Steve Jobs? Wisdom From The Man Who Built Apple, NeXT, and Pixar

Brought to you by HVMN. With Ketone-IQ, fuel your best anytime with a boost of awesome-feeling energy and clarity. Unlock the power of nature's superfuel—no fasting or keto diet required.
Advertise with Outliers and reach our global community
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

"Simple can be harder than complex. You have to work hard to get your thinking clean, to make it simple. But it's worth it in the end, because once you get there, you can move mountains." — Steve Jobs
To Steve Jobs, simplicity was a religion. It was also a weapon. Revolution after revolution, Jobs proved that Simplicity is the most powerful force in business. It guides the way Apple is organized, how it designs products, and how it connects with customers.
As ad agency creative director, Ken Segall played a key role in Apple's resurrection after Steve Jobs returned. He helped create such marketing campaigns as Think Different. By naming the iMac, he also laid the foundation for naming waves of i-products to come.

Explore the episode notes.
Search and down a transcript and find links to related books, interviews, lectures, and more: outlieracademy.com/175.

Watch and listen.
Watch this episode on YouTube
Find this episode in your favorite podcast app
Get new episodes delivered via email

Explore my full summary for the book featured this week.
Insanely Simple: The Obsession That Drives Apple's Success

For more, explore my full profile on Steve Jobs.
Who is Steve Jobs? Wisdom From The Man Who Built Apple, NeXT, and Pixar

Brought to you by HVMN. With Ketone-IQ, fuel your best anytime with a boost of awesome-feeling energy and clarity. Unlock the power of nature's superfuel—no fasting or keto diet required.
Advertise with Outliers and reach our global community
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

"Simple can be harder than complex. You have to work hard to get your thinking clean, to make it simple. But it's worth it in the end, because once you get there, you can move mountains." — Steve Jobs
To Steve Jobs, simplicity was a religion. It was also a weapon. Revolution after revolution, Jobs proved that Simplicity is the most powerful force in business. It guides the way Apple is organized, how it designs products, and how it connects with customers.
As ad agency creative director, Ken Segall played a key role in Apple's resurrection after Steve Jobs returned. He helped create such marketing campaigns as Think Different. By naming the iMac, he also laid the foundation for naming waves of i-products to come.

Explore the episode notes.
Search and down a transcript and find links to related books, interviews, lectures, and more: outlieracademy.com/175.

Watch and listen.
Watch this episode on YouTube
Find this episode in your favorite podcast app
Get new episodes delivered via email

Explore my full summary for the book featured this week.
Insanely Simple: The Obsession That Drives Apple's Success

For more, explore my full profile on Steve Jobs.
Who is Steve Jobs? Wisdom From The Man Who Built Apple, NeXT, and Pixar

Brought to you by HVMN. With Ketone-IQ, fuel your best anytime with a boost of awesome-feeling energy and clarity. Unlock the power of nature's superfuel—no fasting or keto diet required.
Advertise with Outliers and reach our global community
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

"Simple can be harder than complex. You have to work hard to get your thinking clean, to make it simple. But it's worth it in the end, because once you get there, you can move mountains." — Steve Jobs
To Steve Jobs, simplicity was a religion. It was also a weapon. Revolution after revolution, Jobs proved that Simplicity is the most powerful force in business. It guides the way Apple is organized, how it designs products, and how it connects with customers.
As ad agency creative director, Ken Segall played a key role in Apple's resurrection after Steve Jobs returned. He helped create such marketing campaigns as Think Different. By naming the iMac, he also laid the foundation for naming waves of i-products to come.

Explore the episode notes.
Search and down a transcript and find links to related books, interviews, lectures, and more: outlieracademy.com/174.

Watch and listen.
Watch this episode on YouTube
Find this episode in your favorite podcast app
Get new episodes delivered via email

Explore my full summary for the book featured this week.
Insanely Simple: The Obsession That Drives Apple's Success

For more, explore my full profile on Steve Jobs.
Who is Steve Jobs? Wisdom From The Man Who Built Apple, NeXT, and Pixar

Brought to you by HVMN. With Ketone-IQ, fuel your best anytime with a boost of awesome-feeling energy and clarity. Unlock the power of nature's superfuel—no fasting or keto diet required.
Advertise with Outliers and reach our global community
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

"Simple can be harder than complex. You have to work hard to get your thinking clean, to make it simple. But it's worth it in the end, because once you get there, you can move mountains." — Steve Jobs
To Steve Jobs, simplicity was a religion. It was also a weapon. Revolution after revolution, Jobs proved that Simplicity is the most powerful force in business. It guides the way Apple is organized, how it designs products, and how it connects with customers.
As ad agency creative director, Ken Segall played a key role in Apple's resurrection after Steve Jobs returned. He helped create such marketing campaigns as Think Different. By naming the iMac, he also laid the foundation for naming waves of i-products to come.

Explore the episode notes.
Search and down a transcript and find links to related books, interviews, lectures, and more: outlieracademy.com/174.

Watch and listen.
Watch this episode on YouTube
Find this episode in your favorite podcast app
Get new episodes delivered via email

Explore my full summary for the book featured this week.
Insanely Simple: The Obsession That Drives Apple's Success

For more, explore my full profile on Steve Jobs.
Who is Steve Jobs? Wisdom From The Man Who Built Apple, NeXT, and Pixar

Brought to you by HVMN. With Ketone-IQ, fuel your best anytime with a boost of awesome-feeling energy and clarity. Unlock the power of nature's superfuel—no fasting or keto diet required.
Advertise with Outliers and reach our global community
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices