Invest Like the Best with Patrick O’Shaughnessy
Business:Investing
My guest today is Michael Ovitz. Michael is the legendary talent agent and co-founder of CAA, or Creative Artists Agency. Michael started CAA in 1975 and over the next twenty years, he built it into the world’s most formidable talent agency, changing Hollywood forever. The list of stars he’s worked with is endless, from Meryl Streep to Steven Spielberg and David Letterman.
Since leaving CAA, he has become an investor and adviser to many prominent firms, most notably Andreessen Horowitz, and Michael’s work ethic is unmatched. Please enjoy this great discussion with Michael Ovitz.
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For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page here.
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Invest Like the Best is a property of Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Invest Like the Best, visit joincolossus.com/episodes.
Past guests include Tobi Lutke, Kevin Systrom, Mike Krieger, John Collison, Kat Cole, Marc Andreessen, Matthew Ball, Bill Gurley, Anu Hariharan, Ben Thompson, and many more.
Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (https://thepodcastconsultant.com).
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Show Notes:
(00:03:23) - Something other people believe about Michael that isn’t true
(00:08:21) - Balancing the love of his career with his personal life
(00:13:33) - The return of his work ethic after an overdue break
(00:25:08) - Why scale and speed were critical to CAA’s success
(00:29:31) - How founders and CEOs might benefit from having agents
(00:36:10) - The idea of positional power
(00:41:52) - Making over 250 calls for 30 years
(00:48:02) - Never bad mouthing the competition
(00:49:34) - Defining characteristics of CAA’s company culture
(00:53:07) - Learning to spot talent quickly
(00:58:24) - If you want to be happy, forget yourself
(01:01:52) - Forgetting yourself by taking action
(01:07:02) - Page turning excitement versus slow burning engagement
(01:12:31) - Looking for similar patterns in investors and creatives
(01:16:16) - What a problem solver needs to build a franchise
(01:20:12) - CAA’s mystique and how Michael cultivated it
(01:26:11) - Relationships are always the most important thing
(01:28:55) - Thoughts on offensive investing strategies
(01:30:22) - What art has taught him about the world
(01:36:46) - Being fearless in confrontation
(01:39:55) - The kindest thing anyone has ever done for Michael
Gaurav Kapadia - Everything Compounds - [Invest Like the Best, EP. 269]
Marko Papic - A Multi-Polar World - [Invest Like the Best, EP. 268]
Garry Tan - Unwrapping the Gift - [Invest Like the Best, EP. 267]
Eric Mandelblatt - Investing in the Industrial Economy - [Invest Like the Best, EP. 266]
Sebastian Kanovich - Powering Emerging Markets Payments - [Founder’s Field Guide, EP. 56]
Frank Slootman - Narrow the Focus, Increase the Quality - [Invest Like the Best, EP. 265]
Tim Flannery - Simplifying Fund Closing - [Founder’s Field Guide, EP. 55]
Joey Levin - Building an Anti-Conglomerate - [Invest Like the Best, EP. 264]
Peter Chernin - Betting on Passion - [Invest Like the Best, EP. 263]
John Pfeffer - Adapt and Evolve - [Invest Like the Best, EP. 262]
Geoffrey Moore - Building Gorilla Businesses - [Invest Like the Best, EP. 261]
Gavin Baker - The Cyclone Under the Surface - [Invest Like the Best, EP. 260]
Sam Englebardt and Richard Kim - Investing in Immersive Worlds - [Invest Like the Best, EP. 259]
Ricky Sandler - Building an Investment Compass - [Invest Like the Best, EP. 258]
Orlando Bravo - The Art of Software Buyouts - [Invest Like the Best, EP. 257]
Nick Saltarelli - One Foot in Front of the Other - [Founder’s Field Guide, EP. 54]
Jenny Johnson - Seven Decades of Investing Expertise - [Invest Like the Best, EP. 256]
Doug Colkitt - The Evolution of Markets - [Invest Like the Best, EP. 255]
Bill Gurley and Philip Rosedale - Back to the Future - [Invest Like the Best, EP. 254]
Francis Davidson - Design-led Hospitality - [Invest Like the Best, EP.253]
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