DBC - "The Bold Ones" by Shawn Kanungo

Druid’s Book Club

Quick Take: Easy read with tons of great stories. Great motivator for anyone looking to be a “Bold One.”

Longer Take:

I’m currently teaching a class called “Intrapreneurship and Innovation.” The underlying concept is to help students become innovators. So, when a colleague indirectly recommended “The Bold Ones” (Thanks Elli), I decided to give it a read. *As a bonus, Shawn Kanungo is also a fellow Edmontonian. 😊

“The Bold Ones” by Shawn Kanungo breaks down his strategy for becoming a disruptor. Not only does he teach tactics on how to do this, but you can’t help but feel motivated by the belief that you, too, can be a Bold One.

I enjoyed this book for many reasons, but the main one is the stories. For each principle, Kanungo discusses, he includes several stories of individuals applying those principles (e.g. Cardi B, Russell Westbrook, Rihanna, Genghis Kahn, Jeff Bezos, and many others). The storytelling is skillfully applied and reminded me of Simon Sinek’s writing.

After reading “The Bold Ones,” I genuinely felt motivated to blast out of my comfort zone and do something bold. It’s an easy read with many great takeaways. I’m not sure it will be the exhaustive roadmap some may want for “changing the world.” But I would definitely recommend this book to anyone looking for a motivational shot in the arm.

Some of My Favourite Quotes:

“Change always occurs more quickly than some are ready for, which is the definition of disruption: a change that occurs so rapidly that it displaces the unprepared.”

“Take one more look at the names of history’s Bold Ones. … they’re names of people, not companies.”

“Movement is the key, not perfection.”

“Never stop disrupting yourself…”

“What makes people the most uncomfortable today will become tomorrow’s disruption.”

“What can I do to get myself fired today?”

Quoting Angie Lee: “Every single successful person that you see doing anything cool started from zero…”

“Exercise your innovation muscle and build your tolerance for risk by taking every opportunity you can to bet on yourself.”

“…the only behavior that truly distinguishes between disruptors and the disrupted is this: Some jump in and some don’t.”

“Bold Ones don’t wait for permission, for anyone to invite them. They take their place at the table, or they build their own.”

Druid’s Top Entrepreneurship Lesson: Don’t be afraid to swim against the current. Sure, some will mock you for doing something different. But it’s the different that change the world.