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Let My People Go Surfing

The Education of a Reluctant Businessman–Including 10 More Years of Business Unusual

By Yvon Chouinard

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About the book

The story of how mountain climbing turned into Patagonia, Inc. is told by its founder, Yvon Chouinard, in a memoir and manifesto. His family moved to Southern California in the 1950s, short on both English and money, and as a teenager he escaped into climbing, ranking among America's best climbers by his early twenties. When he began making better, cheaper climbing tools, other climbers wanted them, and a way of life became a company. Chouinard lays out Patagonia's philosophies; his environmental resolve led it to make fleeces from recycled soda bottles and donate at least 1 percent of yearly revenue to green causes. His case is that doing good and having adventures belong at the heart of a business.

Tengri founder Nancy Johnston called it the most influential book she would recommend to CEOs and said it helped shape her company's business DNA. Blinkist CEO Holger Seim said it is a biography he particularly likes, and Kai Yeo said it inspired his work at the outdoor brand Hutan Tropical.

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This book has 4 recommendations

Nancy Johnston (CEO & Founder/Tengri)

The most influential book I'd recommend for all CEOs are either setting up or running a business is 'Let my people go surfing-the education of a reluctant businessman' by Yvon Chouinard. It's provided a wonderful blueprint to help shape the Tengri business DNA and a recommended read for all aspiring and existing CEOs.

Recommended by Andrew Youderian (Founder/eCommerceFuel)

Source: Andrew Youderian, Founder of eCommerceFuel, and the Reads that Empowered His Entrepreneurial Spirit

Kai Yeo (Partner & Creative Director of BUREAU, Co-founder and Design Lead of Hutan Tropical)

I like that it is as much a pleasure to read, as it is inspiring for the work that I am doing now as the Design Lead for Hutan Tropical, an outdoor equipment and clothing brand that I started with a friend. So I guess that ticks both ‘business’ and ‘non-business’ boxes for me.

Yvon’s the founder of Patagonia, legendary climber, businessman and environmentalist. The book’s original intent was to be a philosophical manual for the employees of Patagonia but it has so much relevance and inspiration for what I am doing now in building Hutan as a responsible outdoor equipment company. Yvon has set a minimum standard for what everyone who is new to the industry should aspire to.

Holger Seim (CEO/Blinkist)

When it comes to biographies I particularly like Let My People Go Surfing.

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Nancy Johnston, Andrew Youderian, Kai Yeo, Holger Seim

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Yvon Chouinard

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