Founders artwork
Builders + Strategy

Founders

Study history's greatest entrepreneurs

Founders artwork

Henry Singleton's Teledyne Strategy Explained

Henry Singleton ran Teledyne from 1961 to 1990, compounding shareholder returns at 20.4% a year through radical capital allocation. He kept corporate staff under 50 people for 40,000 employees, repurchased 90% of Teledyne's shares between 1972 and 1984, and concentrated stock bets in five companies he knew well.

August 31, 2026 · 7 min read

Founders artwork

Claude Hopkins' Advertising Principles Explained

Claude Hopkins, an early 1900s copywriter, built advertising on service, proof, and precise headlines instead of boasting. Drawing on his own 16-hour workdays (04:47) and case studies from Schlitz beer and Pepsodent, he showed that demonstrations beat claims, specific numbers beat superlatives, and a single headline can multiply an ad's returns five to ten times (56:37).

August 23, 2026 · 6 min read

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