Trillion Dollar Coach: The Leadership Playbook of Silicon Valley’s Bill Campbell

The Big Idea: Show your team you care and they’ll deliver extraordinary results.

• Bill Campbell has coached Larry Page, Sergey Brin, Eric Schmidt, Steve Jobs, Al Gore, Ronnie Lott, and John Hennessy.
• Humanity and compassion => happy employees => extraordinary long-term results.
• Teamwork > individual performance.
• Don’t demand respect. Earn respect.
• Let the best idea emerge, but don’t rely on consensus decision-making.
• Use staff meetings for operational issues. Use 1-on-1 meetings for individual performance.
• Psychological safety => experimentation => innovation.
• Truly listen to employees and they will see you care.
• Don’t tell people what to do. Guide them with probing questions and personal stories.
• Don’t force people to conform to the dominant culture.
• Hire for attitude and emotional intelligence, not technical skill.
• Be a cheerleader for the team.
• Get to know your team, their families, and their passions.
• Respect and revere the company founders.
• Do favors for others whenever you can.