#99 Carroll Shelby (My name is Carroll Shelby and performance is my business)

Founders

What I learned from reading Carroll Shelby: The Authorized Biography by Rinsey Mills.

----

Come see a live show with me and Patrick O'Shaughnessy from Invest Like The Best on October 19th in New York City.

Get your tickets here!

----

Subscribe to listen to Founders Premium — Subscribers can listen to Ask Me Anything (AMA) episodes and every bonus episode.

---

[3:27] I love everything about this person. I like the way he thought. I like the way he lived his life.

[3:38] It is almost unbelievable all the different events that could happen in one human lifetime.

[3:52] He lived to 89 years old and he used every single year that he was alive.

[5:22] He could talk his way out of anything.

[6:40] He knew what he wanted. He didn't want anybody else telling him what to do.

[7:41] He had a love for anything that would go fast.

[10:48] He didn’t know what to do with his life.

[15:54] Follow your natural drift. —Charlie Munger

[17:00] I can't work for anybody.

[18:42] He has fun his entire life. As soon as they stop being fun he runs away.

[22:20] A Man for All Markets: From Las Vegas to Wall Street, How I Beat the Dealer and the Market by Ed Thorp. (Founders #93 and #222)

[24:17] Money only solves money problems.

[26:32] Scratching around doing insignificant races with inferior machinery wasn't an option in which he could see any future.

[27:26] Whatever setbacks he encountered he was invariably able to bounce back through a combination of self-belief and an aptitude for making other people believe in him.

[27:45] Enthusiasm and passion are universal attractive traits.

[28:05] Go Like Hell: Ford, Ferrari, and Their Battle for Speed and Glory at Le Mans by A.J. Baime. (Founders #97) and Enzo Ferrari: Power, Politics, and the Making of an Automobile Empire by Luca Dal Monte. (Founders #98)

[30:29] The Purple Cow by Seth Godin

[32:22] Distant Force: A Memoir of the Teledyne Corporation and the Man Who Created It by Dr. George Roberts. (Founders #110)

[32:38] Having extreme focus in the information age is a superpower.

[36:13] Racing was a means to an end. He wanted to build his own car. That was his main goal.

[42:34] He still didn't know quite how he was going to do it but if he was finally going to produce his own sports car.

[53:48] All big things start small.

[58:31] 12 months after Shelby was deeply depressed his life is completely different and the Shelby Cobra starts to take shape.

[1:00:06] A summary of the early days of Shelby Automotive: Everything had to be done tomorrow and by the cheapest method possible.

[1:01:12] It wasn't uncommon for them to work until two or three in the morning and be back down there at 7:30 the next morning.

[1:02:22] There's just something special about a group of highly talented, smart people working together for a common goal.

[1:03:48] Shelby hates company politics. That is why he wanted to run a smaller company.

[1:17:30] My name is Carroll Shelby and performance is my business.

—

“I have listened to every episode released and look forward to every episode that comes out. The only criticism I would have is that after each podcast I usually want to buy the book because I am interested, so my poor wallet suffers. ”

— Gareth

Be like Gareth. Buy a book: All the books featured on Founders Podcast