What Would Google Do?
The unconventional strategies behind Google’s dominance reveal how thinking differently can help you thrive in a world ruled by networks, openness, and customer power.
About This Book
Discover the radical mindset shifts and actionable strategies fueling today’s biggest breakthroughs in business, media, and personal development. 'What Would Google Do?' invites you to rethink control, collaboration, and customer relationships by internalizing the open, networked, customer-centric approach that made Google a global powerhouse. You’ll encounter real stories of companies that transformed by listening to their toughest critics, giving up old habits of secrecy, and turning their best customers into their most impactful partners. Equip yourself to spot opportunities, avoid the traps of the past, and shape your world with new rules that prioritize trust, speed, generosity, and transparency.About the Author
Jeff Jarvis is a veteran journalist, influential media theorist, and professor at the City University of New York's Graduate School of Journalism. Renowned for his pioneering blog 'Buzzmachine' and extensive writing on media disruption and the digital economy, Jarvis has helped shape the conversation on how openness, transparency, and user participation are reshaping business and society. Drawing on decades of real-world experience and consulting for leading organizations, he presents frameworks and stories that are both practical and profoundly relevant for anyone seeking to understand—and leverage—the logic of our connected age.
Biggest Takeaway
By applying these insights, you’ll reclaim agency in your work and life, learn how to listen deeply to users or stakeholders, and build authentic relationships that turn critics into advocates. You’ll gain practical tools for collaborating with communities, designing products that fit real needs, and thriving in an abundant, niche-driven marketplace. Expect to master adaptive habits such as making mistakes well, iterating rapidly, and harnessing network effects to multiply your impact—whether you’re launching a product, navigating a career pivot, or strengthening team trust. The result: measurable gains in creativity, resilience, customer loyalty, and personal fulfillment.
Key Insights from This Book
Explore the most important ideas and learn how to apply them in your life.
Give Up Control to Earn Trust and Win Loyalty: Why Letting Go Is Now Essential
Specialize, Link Out, and Build Networks: Stop Trying to Be Everything
Small Is the New Big: How Niches Outperform Mass Markets in the Age of Abundance
Mistakes Enhance Credibility: Why Owning Errors Makes You Stronger
Trust Grows When You Hand Over Control: The Inverse Relationship Few Leaders Notice
The Economy of Abundance: How to Succeed When Scarcity No Longer Drives Value
Let Customers Co-Create: Why Platforms Beat Pipelines Every Time
Speed and Simplicity Win: Why Fast Response and Easy Design Outperform Perfection
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