Runnin' Down a Dream - by Bill Gurley (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - Perfect for graduation or anyone who needs inspiration to step off the career conveyer belt, this book will teach you how to find your unique dream job and avoid a career you'll regret. After all, life is a use-it-or-lose-it proposition. Shouldn't you spend it doing something you love?

"I love the book. It's such a practical guide, and I'm sure it will be a very popular gift for college grads."--Sara Eisen, CNBC

"Fantastic. A variety of useful insights and examples that converge into one story that underlies remarkable success in nearly any field: The relentless hunger to learn about the thing you love."--James Clear, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Atomic Habits

After college Bill Gurley landed a job at a famous tech company. It should have been a dream come true--but he was surprisingly bored. So, Gurley leapt into the unknown, eventually finding his place in the world of venture capital, the beginning of a remarkable investing career.

It turns out, Gurley's happy ending is rare. Nearly six in ten people would do things differently if they could start over. This is the trap of "career regret." So how can we avoid it? What can we learn from people at the top of their fields who love what they do? The culmination of Gurley's decade-long project to unpack the components of success, Runnin' Down a Dream identifies six principles to flourish in your chosen career: the antidotes to career regret. From developing "obsessive" curiosity to the art of building strong peer groups, these timeless principles add up to a playbook not just for success, but a purpose-filled life.

Written in Gurley's straight-talk voice and revealing the captivating stories of industry titans like talent agent Lorrie Bartlett, restaurateur Danny Meyer, and sports executive Sam Hinkie, Runnin' Down a Dream will inspire a new generation to find their place in the world, while offering a much-needed rebuttal to the idea that hustle and happiness are incompatible.

Review Quotes

"Fantastic. A variety of useful insights and examples that converge into one story that underlies remarkable success in nearly any field: The relentless hunger to learn about the thing you love."--James Clear, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Atomic Habits

"Runnin' Down a Dream is a practical guide to forging a fulfilling career, backed up by a mountain of research. It's also a page-turner that delves deep into the surprising, often zig-zagging career paths of exceptional performers. There is something inspiring on every page."--David Epstein, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Range

"Reading this book feels like sitting beside a clear-eyed mentor who's honest about how work really works. Runnin' Down a Dream replaces vague advice with vivid human stories and delivers a bracing call to act boldly in every part of our lives."--Daniel H. Pink, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Drive and The Power of Regret

"Schools never teach a how to find work you love class. Bill Gurley clearly maps the path with sharp insights and real tools. Strongly recommended."--Tony Fadell, iPod inventor, iPhone co-inventor, Nest founder, New York Times bestselling author of Build

"Many young people now reach their 20s with two strikes already against them: greater anxiety and diminished ability to focus. Gurley offers his readers a way to move forward with increasing energy and confidence. This inspiring book is an invitation to shift into 'discover mode, ' where curiosity replaces fear and real growth begins."--Jonathan Haidt, #1 New York Times-bestselling author of The Anxious Generation

"I hadn't even gotten through the first chapter, and I was already writing down ideas. Wicked smart and original, Bill pulls apart success stories and reverse engineers them for us. Thank you, Bill!"--Jeff Bezos, Amazon founder

"This book might save you from a career you'll regret. Bill Gurley has spent decades figuring out how to find a dream job, and his stories and advice are poised to take you one step closer to yours."--Adam Grant, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Hidden Potential and Think Again, and host of the podcast Re: Thinking

"Do the work. Learn from people who have been there. Go deep. Go wide. Be an agent in your own life. This brilliantly useful book is the antidote to entitlement. Everyone should read it."--Annie Duke, bestselling author of Thinking in Bets, How to Decide, and Quit

"A great book for a young person who won't settle for putting their passion to one side. This book shows how to actually pursue that passion as a career with examples of real-life successes who wouldn't take no for an answer."--Greg Lukianoff, New York Times bestselling co-author of The Coddling of the American Mind

About the Author

Bill Gurley is a general partner at Benchmark, a leading venture capital firm in Silicon Valley. Over his venture career, he has invested in and served on the board of such companies as Nextdoor, OpenTable, Stitch Fix, Uber, and Zillow. Born in Dickinson, Texas, Gurley earned a bachelor's degree in computer science from the University of Florida and later received an MBA from the University of Texas at Austin. In 2025, he received the Distinguished Alumnus Award from the University of Texas alumni association. For more than two decades, Gurley has written about technology and other subjects on his popular blog, Above the Crowd, and on his social media accounts.