'Others stepped in and went to market with products based on the research that Xerox had done.' 'Because Xerox executives didn't think these ideas fit their core business, they chose not to turn them into marketable products,' Gates writes on his blog. It's clear the account left its mark on Gates. The lesson? Innovators need to keep innovating or their businesses will fail. Executives at Xerox passed up opportunities to release new products and as a result, competitors quietly outpaced it in the 1970s. The book's account of the rise and fall of Xerox is a cautionary tale for entrepreneurs and executives alike.Īfter Xerox achieved huge success in the early 1960s, the company lost momentum, Brooks writes. But one story featured in the book is particularly relevant to companies today.

The book details lessons from the 1962 ' flash crash,' the Texas Gulf Sulfur case of 1959 and other pivotal moments in business. Each chapter is a deep dive into what key business figures did right, and what they did wrong. 'John Brooks is still my favorite business writer.'īrooks, a former staff writer for The New Yorker, compiled the book from articles that originally appeared in the magazine.

'More than two decades after Warren lent it to me - and more than four decades after it was first published - 'Business Adventures' remains the best business book I've ever read,' the Microsoft co-founder writes on his blog. The 1969 classic, which Gates read years ago on Buffett's recommendation, explores, in incredible detail, some of the biggest moments in the history of American business and finance. Billionaires Warren Buffett and Bill Gates agree that the best business book they have ever read is 'Business Adventures,' by financial journalist John Brooks.

Bill gates business adventures