Cover of Leaving Microsoft to Change the World
Read Time: ~4.4 hr

Leaving Microsoft to Change the World

by John Wood (2006)

About this book

John Wood discovered his passion, his greatest success, and his life's work—not at business school or leading Microsoft's charge into Asia in the 1990s—but on a soul-searching trip to the Himalayas. Wood felt trapped between an all-consuming career and a desire to do something lasting and significant. Stressed from the demands of his job, he took a vacation trekking in Nepal because a friend had told him, "If you get high enough in the mountains, you can't hear Steve Ballmer yelling at you anymore."Instead of being the antidote to the rat race, that trip convinced John Wood to divert the boundless energy he was devoting to Microsoft into a cause that desperately needed to be addressed. While visiting a remote Nepalese school, Wood learned that the students had few books in their library. When he offered to run a book drive to provide the school with books, his idea was met with polite skepticism. After all, no matter how well-intentioned, why would a successful software executive take valuable time out of his life and gather books for an impoverished school?But John Wood did return to that school and with thousands of books bundled on the back of a yak. And at that moment, Wood made the decision to walk away from Microsoft and create Room to Read—an organization that has donated more than 1.2 million books, established more than 2,600 libraries and 200 schools, and sent 1,700 girls to school on scholarship—ultimately touching the lives of 875,000 children with the lifelong gift of education.Leaving Microsoft to Change the World chronicles John Wood's struggle to find a meaningful outlet for his managerial talents and entrepreneurial zeal. For every high-achiever who has ever wondered what life might be like giving back, Wood offers a vivid, emotional, and absorbing tale of how to take the lessons learned at a hard-charging company like Microsoft and apply them to one of the world's most pressing problems: the lack of basic literacy.

Setting / LocationGlobal
Story EraModern Era
Protagonist / CoreLeaving Microsoft to Change the World Lead Character

Readers who enjoyed this also loved

Cover of Mobile and wireless design essentials

Mobile and wireless design essentials

Martyn Mallick

Describes mobile and wireless design techniques from the developer's perspective, offering in-depth analysis of the complete range of network technologies Details development options for building Smart Client, Thin Client, and messaging applications as well as PIM (personal information management) and location-based services The author is an experienced trainer who leads seminars and workshops worldwide for iAnywhere Solutions, a subsidiary of Sybase

Cover of Leader effectiveness training, L.E.T

Leader effectiveness training, L.E.T

Thomas Gordon

L.E.T. has changed countless corporations and private businesses-including many Fortune 500 companies-with its down-to-earth communication and conflict resolution skills. Now, this indispensable source has been newly revised with updated research and timely case studies.

Cover of Entertainment industry economics

Entertainment industry economics

Harold L. Vogel

Each year Americans spend at least 100 billion hours and aver $100 billion on legal forms of entertainment. In his newly revised book, Harold Vogel, the senior entertainment industry analyst at Merrill Lynch & Co., examines the business economics of the major entertainment enterprises: movies and television programming, music, broadcasting, cable television, casino gambling and wagering, sports, performing arts, theme parks, and toys. The third edition integrates international dimensions of the broadcasting, cable, film, and music industries in particular. The result is a comprehensive, up-to-date reference guide to the economics, financing, production, and marketing of entertainment-related goods and services in the United States and overseas. . The book brings together valuable data from a wide variety of sources to provide a detailed analysis of changes over time of each of the industry segments discussed. After a general introduction to the economic factors affecting leisure and entertainment, the book considers each major segment separately, providing a brief historical overview and a systematic discussion of the production, distribution, and financial accounting procedures. Periodic examples illustrate the actual methods used by the businesses. The book's usefulness as a reference is further enhanced by the expanded glossary and appendices of this revised third edition. . Investors, executives, lawyers, arts administrators, accountants, MBAs, journalists, and general readers will find that Entertainment Industry Economics provides a strong foundation for understanding how the various entertainment industries operate, and how entertainment relates to the economy as a whole. The book is unique in taking a fully integrated approach to the business of entertainment.

Cover of 100 great businesses and the minds behind them

100 great businesses and the minds behind them

Emily Ross and Angus Holland

Inside the success of 100 Business GeniusesRisk-loving entrepreneurs. Innovative geniuses. Self-starters and mavericks. The world’s greatest businesses were built by unique people, each bringing their own style and savvy to the marketplace. 100 Great Businesses and the Minds Behind Them is a diverse and inspiring collections of great business stories. Covering a variety of success paths, brilliant strategies and engaging entrepreneurs, each profile explores the genius behind the greatest business mindsA mother's inspiration that launched Baby EinsteinAveda's journey from hippie to hipoHow Guinness overcame a centuries-old problem to conquer new marketsTiVo's long fight to explain the genius of their productHow Oprah went from person to empireAnd many moreAn engrossing look at what makes entrepreneurs and business geniuses tick, this book highlights the pivotal moments in the lives of great businesses, with lasting lesson on the art of making...

Leaving Microsoft to Change the World by John Wood | Literally Just Books