Memoir Mondays... Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion and Purpose by Tony Hsieh

Delivering Happiness:

A Path to Profits, Passion and Purpose

by Tony Hsieh

I saw an interesting segment on one of the major television networks a few Sunday mornings ago... it was about the online retailer Zappos.com, the guy who started the company, Tony Hsieh, and his innovative ideas about making Zappos.com one of the best places to work. It seems like it's working too! It made Fortune magazines "best" list for 2009. Zappos.com is a huge online presence. It's the Amazon.com of shoes. But it's not just about shoes anymore. Zappos is clothing, sporting equipment, and even a baby shop... And now we can read about it in Tony Hsieh's book, Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion and Purpose. Here's what the publisher has to say about the book...

Pay brand-new employees $2,000 to quit

Make customer service the responsibility of the entire company-not just a department

Focus on company culture as the #1 priority

Apply research from the science of happiness to running a business

Help employees grow-both personally and professionally

Seek to change the world

Oh, and make money too . . .

Sound crazy? It's all standard operating procedure at Zappos, the online retailer that's doing over $1 billion in gross merchandise sales annually. After debuting as the highest-ranking newcomer in Fortune magazine's annual "Best Companies to Work For" list in 2009, Zappos was acquired by Amazon in a deal valued at over $1.2 billion on the day of closing.

In DELIVERING HAPPINESS, Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh shares the different lessons he has learned in business and life, from starting a worm farm to running a pizza business, through LinkExchange, Zappos, and more. Fast-paced and down-to-earth, DELIVERING HAPPINESS shows how a very different kind of corporate culture is a powerful model for achieving success-and how by concentrating on the happiness of those around you, you can dramatically increase your own.

Sounds like a rags to riches tale to me, and so interesting. But his message isn't just about profits, but about creating a happiness in the workforce and in ones own life. This is definitely on my TBR list!