The Cult of We: WeWork, Adam Neumann, and the Great Startup Delusion by Eliot Brown and Maureen Farrell
The Cult of We
Subtitle: WeWork, Adam Neumann, and the Great Startup Delusion
Author: Eliot Brown and Maureen Farrell
Genre: Nonfiction, Business, Narrative Nonfiction
Format: Digital via Kindle
Publish Date: July 2021
Read: October 2023
Favorite Quote: It’s a story about the toxic brew of confirmation bias, fuzzy math, and hubris. It’s a story about what people will do when they are allowed to spend other people’s money with minimal oversight.
Synopsis: The Cult of We describes the rise and fall of WeWork, a popular and fast-growing company offering coworking space. Adam Neumann, the founder of WeWork, desired to be a Steve Jobs-type and wanted to be a great CEO. From this desire, he became a charismatic, charming CEO and founder of a real estate company. Through his charisma, he was able to pitch WeWork as a tech company and drive ridiculously high valuations to raise capital and grow rapidly despite losing more than the company could bring in. The Cult of We is an excellent narrative nonfiction story about an egomaniac, Silicon Valley, and what happens when charisma is unchecked.
Why does this book beguile? I bought The Cult of We when it came out in 2021, but didn’t feel compelled to read it until recently. I remember the headlines of the WeWork IPO, but I didn’t know much about the company leading up to 2019. What a wild ride. The picture painted by the authors is one of megalomania - a leader who has a vision and alienates those who disagree with him. Neumann created this cult by making people feel like they belonged, but when he had to deliver results, WeWork fell short. In a time when tech startups received billions in backing and venture capitalists practically printed money, The Cult of We is a cautionary tale of what happens when these worlds collide with little to no oversight.
Rating: 5/5
If you’re interested in this, read*: Conspiracy: Peter Thiel, Hulk Hogan, Gawker, and the Anatomy of Intrigue by Ryan Holiday