Atlas Shrugged

Steve Jobs is said by his Apple co-founder, Steve Wozniak, to have regarded Atlas Shrugged as one of his “guides in life”.

I remember reading Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand. That's good fodder for a young man. It sets these bold, stark characters - you could even call them Christ figures - and you think to yourself, 'I want to be that'.

I grew up in Sweden, which was a very socialist country and in some ways still is. So I had a very warped view of how the world worked, and I felt hemmed in and caged by it. Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged saved me from what I think was certain depression. The book has not aged well, and is usually misrepresented, but growing up close to the iron curtain it clearly described why some of the odd things in centralized organizations and governments work the way they work.

​As of today my favorite book is Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged​. Her magnum opus drives an astonishing story about valor, creativity, and everything in between. This book brings a beautiful melange of philosophy, politics, and drama that’s so contemporary. I do believe this book should be included in the mandatory list of books for students.

Reading Atlas Shrugged. For quite a few reasons, not just her thinking about Objectivism, but about the role of a woman in business – in architecture and construction. There were few stories where women of strength and endurance were captured in roles outside of Hollywood. Additionally, this final book of Ayn Rand’s delved into the mechanics of business, including the complexities, nuances and the role of government. No academic studies had ever provided me with the contextual nuances AND importance of business.