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What is up everybody? Welcome back to Capital University the number one business podcast in the world. Even if it's not really the number one business podcast in the world. It's number one in our hearts and your hearts as well. If you guys are watching on YouTube. Don't forget to like comment subscribe for listing on Apple podcast. We greatly appreciate you just don't go to the leaderboards and check that we're not actually number one. Don't forget to read the podcast 5 stars get us to actually number one subscribe and leave a review pop. We have a very special guest today.
Guys, what's going on? We've got Mark Randolph. He is the co-founder of Netflix. He's co-founder of liquor and a bunch of other businesses. Basically, this guy is a hits machine. He just builds billion dollar businesses. And when you've got a track record like Kim, you're definitely gonna want to tune in before we get into the interview with him though. Don't forget to go to crack a.com. They're sponsored where sponsored we have a sponsor Bryce has a
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currency go to crack a.com. They're being awesome. They're supporting us they believe in everything that Bryce is doing they believe in everything. I'm doing so go to crack a.com go buy some Bitcoin. They're the best crypto exchange to buy Bitcoins will go to crack a.com cracking.com if you forgot go to crack a.com. All right, let's get this episode with Mark. I hope you guys enjoy it. So Mark, maybe let's just start with you kind of explaining your story a little bit. Where did you grow up? How did you get into business and then we'll go from there
sure enough 11 an entrepreneur my entire life, even though at the beginning. I didn't even know what an entrepreneur was. I was just kind of compulsively driven.
And start things and I won't even call businesses, you know, you have this crazy idea of some way to make something better and you just do it. It's a hole that has to be filled and pretty much been doing that my entire life, you know doing that when I was a little kid led to doing little side projects in high school than in college, and then I had the luck to be part of starting seven businesses to of which did remarkably well and kind of allowed me to kind of keep doing it but by doing it by helping other people
So rather than having to do it myself so I'm a guy who probably couldn't keep a regular job, but lucky enough. I stumbled into this one, which rewards my ADHD
for those that don't know explain what the two companies work.
So the two Biggie's probably was this Lily Netflix you guys heard of that one? Yeah, not familiar. Yeah. So Netflix Netflix certainly was the big hit actually of the cool thing besides the economic success. It was a business. I could explain to my mom and have her understand what the hell I was talking about.
Because before that I was in these mail order companies and what the hell is all that stuff after Netflix. I left met flicks. Wow, almost 15 years ago now and I helped a friend start another company, which is called looker data, which is a totally different kind of business. It's a business-to-business business, but we just sold looker to Google for 2.6 billion dollars. So just goes to show you can kind of make lightning strike twice if you're lucky so speaking of Netflix. I know you just wrote a book about the early days of Netflix. Can you actually kind of give
Like a example of like when you realized when you were onto something or you're coming on to something big. Yeah, we'll listen to book is called that will never work and I called it that will never work because every single person I pitched this ridiculous idea said the same thing, you know investors employees. Like my wife said that'll never work. It's because at the beginning the idea was not hey, let's do a global streaming company that produces its own content the idea at the beginning was much simpler was we're going to rent DVDs
By mail that was how we deliver content and everyone said that's the stupidest thing I've ever heard. But here's the thing. This is true. Not just for Netflix, but I believe true for every idea. It was a bad idea. It didn't work, but it was the starting point. You know, we tried it. We learn stuff we did experiments. We begin little by little iterating the company and that's kind of the key that so many people get an idea in their head and they get fixated on
on it and they think and think and think and think and everyone tells them that will never work and they stop and you've just got a start and the book is that story it's how it is to handful of us with no experience in the video business Tech idea that everyone thought wouldn't work and somehow managed through a lot of scrapes and near-death experience has managed to create this company, which is you know, in some ways changed how we all consume television. Yeah pretty
Company you started over five successful companies. What do you personally look for when you're starting a company interesting problem. I've long since realized it's impossible to tell a good idea from a bad idea. And so for me, it's not about falling in love with the idea. I want to fall in love with the problem because the problem won't go away. So when I find some interesting thing that needs to get solved something which is clearly broken something which is difficult something which everyone's doing.
And I'm saying why is it have to be that way? That's the kind of company that I like because that withstands weeks days years of trying different things to make it work and pretty much every company that I've been involved in starting started off with this is crazy. There must be a better way to do
this. So mark, one of the things that's really interesting about this is Netflix is obviously this big winner. You've had a number of other successful businesses Lookers a very different type of business when you're looking at a business from an
Estimate standpoint you talked about the problem being interesting. What do you look for in successful Founders or a team in terms of being able to identify which are the teams are gonna be able to solve these interesting problems.
That's a great question. In fact, it is the fundamental question the idea counts for shit. I mean, it's kind of fun to Riff on the idea. But the idea is just the starting point. It is the team. In fact, it is people people people so I look for a very specific set of thing.
Things and I'm looking for this weird blend in a person. I mean for one you have to have a predisposition for action. You've got to be the kind of person who thinks less and does more. I mean, it's a classic story that when Reed Hastings who's the current CEO of Netflix and I were commuting back and forth to a different job brainstorming ideas. It popped in our head that maybe this new DVD thing that's launching might be a way to do video rental by
But rather than overthink it rather than rushing in to write the business plan or work on the pitch deck or try and get on Shark Tank or some bullshit like that. We said, how can we quickly figure out if it's a good idea. We just turn the car around that moment went down to town and bought a little we couldn't buy a DVD but a music CD and mailed it to ourselves, but that's the predisposition to action. I'm talking about the second thing and this will be quick. The second thing is you've got
Got to have persistence and you've got to believe that even though everyone's telling you this will never work. Even though trial after trial doesn't work. You've got to have the self-confidence that I am going to figure this out. But here's the third thing. This is the Rarity this is the one that I look for which is to someone recognized. They don't have all the right answers. Can you combine remarkable self-confidence and persistence with the ability to listen to know?
Are other people who are smarter than me who may have been down this path before I don't need to do it. They say I don't need to accept their judgment, but I need to hear it and that combination of three things when I find that I'm whipping out my checkbook
great advice. There. Are there any crazy stories from Netflix that you've never told anyone before that? You're like, this is how close we came to death.
Well, they're certainly not ones. I haven't told before but there are ones where we were came really close to death. I mean it is almost me.
I mean I could have named the rather than calling the book that will never work. You know, I could have called it. Wow, we almost died with that one. But the classic ones was we were subscription business and we had just figured that out and subscription businesses are great because it's recurring Revenue, but they're terrible because you spend all your money upfront acquiring the customer and then they pay you back over time and we had finally cracked the code and it was killing it. I mean orders were flooding in but that meant that money was
Letting out and that might have been manageable. This was back in the.com Heyday until it wasn't and overnight. There was the.com bubble bursting and all of a sudden there was no money to be had. So now we had finally solved the business we were going we've got it and it was incredibly expensive and we couldn't raise money and that was the point. We said we're done that was the point. We said, we've got a cell and then when Blockbuster wouldn't buy us even for 50 million dollars.
Ours where we really said to each other we are screwed here and that if we're going to make this work, we have to buckle down and solve it yourself. There's no easy way out but that's part of being an entrepreneur and it's funny when you look back you don't remember the champagne and the parties and the you remember those bonding moments when you were trial by fire with your comrades, that's what I mean. I can feel it right now. I'm kind of having a post-traumatic not even stress it.
Batman disorder from remembering what it's like to be faced against the back against the wall and still fight your way out. So you left Netflix after six years of being the CEO. How did you know that was like the right time to leave the company? You're a little younger than me. I think but you'll see one of the wonderful things one of the best things that can ever happen to you is you figure out two important things by yourself and one is what you're good at and the other one is what you enjoy doing and I believe if you can combine.
Those two you've got it set and I was lucky I figured both those things out pretty early and the answer to both of them was early stage companies. I love it. I love the problem solving. I love the teamwork. I love the fact that it's different everyday and immodesty warning. I'm actually pretty good at it. I've got a really good sense for solving those types of problems and you know Netflix crushed it. We had an IPO we had money. We had a reputation we could hire people and I got to this point where I go God I still love this company.
Me but I don't really necessarily love what I'm doing anymore. Netflix isn't a start up anymore. And you realize that what success is is freedom and I could still get what I love I could and so I did I left with zero regrets and staying friends with everybody and now I do get that I do get the chance to Everyday work with early-stage companies helping them turn these dreams into reality. I get to come to work I get to sit around the table with the super smart people.
And solve these cool problems, but then here's the big bonus as I get to go home at night and then they have to stay up all night at solving them
Mark. What's the one thing as we go to wrap up that and wish you knew when you were 21 years old you've gotten to have this storied career built a number of amazing businesses, but what's that one thing that you're like man if I'd known this at 21, I would have been even more dangerous as an
entrepreneur. It took me a while to real to trust my judgment about people one of my early jobs. There is this production manager person in charge of all the printing and production and he was no wait.
Ways about it. He's an asshole me and everybody just terrible terrible person. But here's the weird thing. Everyone liked him loved him is hey Frank, how you doing? Good to see you Frank. Let's quit doing this weekend. And I'd go what is wrong with me and that of course Frank gets fired. And as soon as he's gone, everyone's going oh my God, what an asshole and I realized my judgment is sound and I wish I had known that much much earlier in my life to trust that when I send someone's a good person or a good person.
And then vice versa and when you can sort that out that goes a long way toward having a good good life.
That's fantastic mark You're an absolute Legend man. Thank you so much for joining us today. Rice got any other questions. I've
no questions. Thank you so much for coming on the podcast. My man. Appreciate you. No worries. Listen, if you guys if anyone out there is a struggling with finding the answers to their own business. I've got a podcast coming out called that'll never work. Where is basically spend 30 minutes riff and just like this helping people solve their problem. So check it out
mark on that podcast.
Come on, and basically tell you the problems. Then you try to solve it.
Absolutely. It's basically the same type of mentoring sessions. I've been doing for 20 years where someone comes sits down and goes I'm stuck and it could be they're stuck raising money. It could be stuck because are fighting with their co-founder. They're trying to figure out when to give up what the go-to-market strategy is. It's all these early stage problems that sometimes having someone is willing to listen and help you get on the right path can be a can be
valuable. Absolutely. Make sure that everyone goes and checks that will never work a podcast a bookmarks and Legend. Thank you so much.
For joining us
man. It's a pleasure. Thanks guys. Appreciate you did thank you. Thank you guys so much for listening all the way to the end of the podcast. If you guys are listening on a podcast. We can't remember don't forget to rate the podcast five-star subscribe and leave a review if you're watching on YouTube We greatly appreciate you. Don't forget to like comment subscribe. I'll see you guys next time with another special guest or by ourselves. Whichever you guys prefer, honestly. All right base.
