As I write this, two popular sayings come to mind: “Time flies when you’re having fun,” and “The best way to learn is to teach.” The five years since the publication of my first edition of Letters to a Young Entrepreneur have flown by. It certainly does not feel that long! Perhaps this is because after the book came out I entered a new wonderful phase in my life: I became a teacher.
Four years ago, the Chair of the Chemical Engineering Department at Stanford University, Eric Shaqfeh, asked me to teach a course on entrepreneurship, focused on the Engineering and Science industries that his graduates would be considering for their careers. To overcome my initial hesitation, Eric suggested I co-create the course with Howie Rosen, a fellow Stanford Chemical Engineering graduate. Howie had been involved in several biotech start-ups and became President of Alza Corporation shortly before it was acquired by Johnson & Johnson. He had already been teaching a number of biotech courses in the Engineering and Business School and was very familiar with the Stanford academic operation. This presented a wonderful opportunity for me to share my experience and convert the concepts I had presented in Letters into lectures and discussion material for seniors and graduate students interested in understanding the making of an entrepreneur.
In the process of shaping the course, I more keenly realized how the entrepreneurial leadership concepts in Letters apply to all of life—whether we are engaged in growing a small business or a large company, or in some other vocation that requires building and leading teams. After several years of teaching the course, I found that many new ideas had sprung from the students’ questions and challenges. I therefore decided to substantially expand Letters to provide my students with a more comprehensive basis for our dialogue. The increased scope of the second edition prompted me to add a sub-title reflecting that greater breath: Succeeding in Business Without Losing at Life — A Leader’s Ongoing Journey.
The new book is available from Amazon and other outlets, and will soon be available in electronic form on Kindle and iBooks. Convenient links to order the book can be found on this website.
I thank you all for your continued friendship and support.
Ricardo Levy 
Congratulations!!!!
We need to celebrate this soon.
Martin
Hooray! Congratulations on the updated version of your book. I ordered a copy and can’t wait to read it. Thanks for sharing your insights. I like you framed it as an ongoing journey. So true.
I hope you are well.
Chalon