Tough Things First: Leadership Lessons from Silicon Valley's Longest Serving CEO

CHAPTER 1

The Brain

Standing naked in the bathroom of a cattle ranch office will make a person contemplate the value of self-discipline.

I was 19, and like many young men who had started college and seen a small part of the world, I thought I was smarter than most. Having grown up on a ranch in the beastly hot Imperial Valley and now a bored junior at Brigham Young University, I made the command decision to quit higher education. I had determination. I had talent. But I had little money and even less love for college and rigorous study. Taking time off to work and filling my pockets seemed like a great strategy.

After driving the 760 miles back home from Provo, I landed at our house in the town of El Centro, California. The ranch was farther ...