Founders

#61 Malcom McLean: The Box: How the Shipping Container Made the World Smaller and the World Economy Bigger

Episode Summary

What I learned from reading The Box: How the Shipping Container Made the World Smaller and the World Economy Bigger.

Episode Notes

What I learned from reading The Box: How the Shipping Container Made the World Smaller and the World Economy Bigger.

Such was the beginning of a revolution [0:01]

The economic benefits arise not from innovation itself, but from the entrepreneurs who eventually discover ways to put innovations to practical use. [15:30]

the basic idea was around for decades [17:30]

Malcom's early life and first business [23:00]

McLean had an obsessive focus on cutting costs [33:00]

the beginning of Malcom McLean's idea [37:00]

McLean's definition of total commitment [41:00]

McLean's fundamental insight [48:00]

fixing the business by focusing on the customer's real problem [53:40]

the surprising reason containers are standardized [1:00:00]

Daniel K. Ludwig and Malcom McLean [1:07:00]

Malcom McLean sells his business [1:13:00]

Starting another business [1:21:00]