It further goes on to discuss how entrepreneurs might best articulate their story in a manner that appeals most to the investor. It drills down to the level of studying which colors, fonts, and visual elements best transmit a desired message within each pitch. This helps new entrepreneurs get a sense of the sheer effort that is required to design an ideal pitch-deck.

It is important to see the proof in the pudding, since the cases covered in the book do reflect real-world success stories as startups that have evolved into larger ventures.

I’ve found the book to be a useful toolkit for early-stage entrepreneurs, given that it even includes drafts and templates of emails and other correspondence to send to investors, as well as comprehensive diagrams and indicators about the macro-structure of the venture capital markets.

I highly recommend this book to any young entrepreneur writing their first pitch deck, but I would also encourage more seasoned entrepreneurs to have a look at this book, because there is always room for improvement in the world of venture capital.

Joint planning begins from the simple premise that there is a need for a deliberate  process  of  determining  how  (the  ways)  to  use  military capabilities (the means) can be done, along time and across space, to achieve objectives (the ends) while considering the associated risks. It also assumes that conditions are never simple or static, and so adaptation and flexibility are necessary in planning and execution.

I believe that JOP 5.0 is an invaluable book for anyone who wants to understand, whether as insider or outsider, how the military plans its activities. It is a graduate-level textbook taught to military officers, about how they develop and execute plans, starting from the genesis in strategic-level guidance, all the way through to on-the-ground implementation.

It is a fascinating insight into how the military deploys hundreds of billions of dollars in resources in a structured and meaningful way, beginning with the structuring of objectives at the top level (i.e. the US President), down to guidance and coordination, defining the problem, strategy development, operational design, joint planning, operation assessment, and the transition to execution; all while incorporating degrees of uncertainty and the mitigation of the risks.

Isaacson also proceeds with a study of every major oeuvre created by da Vinci, therein subsuming the cultural and economic context in which each work was produced. The most fascinating thing I took away from this book was how da Vinci’s manuscripts became the backbone of the research that Isaacson undertook. 

We’re all familiar with the beautiful sketches such as the Vitruvian Man, or his designs for helicopters and war machines, but the reality is that da Vinci spent his whole life drafting his manuscripts, which really were mere sketchbooks for him. Since paper was an expensive commodity in those days, da Vinci filled every inch of every page with concepts that emerged in his mind. Individually, those sketches are beautiful and insightful in their own right, but taken together, they offer a vast kaleidoscope of a reflective polymath and genius at work.

I find it interesting that one of the great purchases of modern times has been Bill Gates’ acquisition of da Vinci’s Codex Leicester for $30 million in 1994 (which is more than $54 million USD in today’s terms), the highest price paid for a book to date. The Codex Leicester is a rich collection of da Vinci’s thoughts on the mechanics of water flow, lunar surfaces, and oceanic movements, among other things.

No Room for Small Dreams is the autobiographical work of Shimon Peres, who was both President and Prime Minister of Israel, and a Nobel Laureate along with Yasser Arafat and Yitzhak Rabin for efforts to create peace in the Middle East.

Shimon is a revered figure in Israel for his early work as a statesman and policymaker who drove the creation of strategic projects including the construction of the Israeli aerospace industry. But what sets his autobiography apart from others of the period is, in my opinion, the scope of his ambitions when drawn against his humble origins.

Peres’ dedication and lofty ambitions throughout life lie in stark contrast to his incredibly modest background. In 1934, the then ten-year-old Shimon emigrated to the British mandate of Palestine from his native Poland, and the extended family he left behind who would later be annihilated in the Holocaust.