Does anyone have the number for Jeff Bezos?

He owes me over $10,000.

Thanks to his 1-Click checkout, I must’ve purchased at least $10,000 worth of stuff that I didn’t need or want. He’s made it way too easy to purchase from Amazon and it’s got to stop.

So, yeah if you have his number I will…Wait… What’s that?

Bezos didn’t come up with the 1-Click checkout idea? It wasn’t his idea to make it possible to buy a Tibetan Buddhist necklace worth $169,000 in one single click?

Well, if it wasn’t entrepreneurial Bezos, the innovator and founder of Amazon and the Blue Origin spaceship, then who on earth was it?

Regular Amazon employee, programmer, and intrapreneur: Peri Hartman.

Thanks to Peri’s pioneering checkout idea and Amazon’s unwavering belief in intrapreneurship (harnessing the power of innovation from within the workplace), the 1-Click checkout gave Amazon a huge competitive advantage, re-wrote the entire book on eCommerce, and ruined my life. They also made a cool $177bn by slapping a patent on it and licensing the idea out to others.

But despite this example, many companies fail to harness the power of their existing internal innovators. Preferring instead to hire external resources to execute ground-breaking ideas, boost competitor advantage, and improve ways of working.

So, taking more intrapreneurial examples from the likes of Apple, Facebook, and Google, this Process Street post will help you understand the importance of intrapreneurship and shine a light on the hidden entrepreneurial resources that lie within your company:

• Are intrapreneurs just shy entrepreneurs waiting for their big break?
• Proof that encouraging intrapreneurship is good for business
• How to recognize intrapreneurs and nurture intrapreneurship within your organization

Ready to see what’s right in front of your nose?

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When I first heard the phrase “entrepreneurial spirit,” I laughed. Scoffed, actually.

I pictured zen-like self-help gurus in yoga pants up on a mountain retreat à la Topher Grace’s Black Mirror tech genius encouraging his followers to embrace their culturally-appropriated spirit animals and open their chakras for more fulfilling hostile takeovers.

Or Jared Leto.

“Does anyone even say that?” I asked Adam, my editor, during our 1:1.

“It’s an interesting concept,” he said. “I think you should explore it.”

Dubiously, I set off to find out what this entrepreneurial spirit thing was all about.

Naturally, Adam was right.

Not only did I discover it’s definitely not as mystical as it sounds, but it draws heavily on some very ancient philosophy, and makes sense for both the personal and the professional.

I’ll walk you through what I learned and how you can use it, or you can skip ahead to the juicy bits:

• What is an entrepreneurial spirit?
• What does ancient philosophy have to do with modern entrepreneurs?
• Ryan Holiday: writing, entrepreneurship, and Stoic principles
• Arianna Huffington: Stoic inspiration for a better work/life balance
• Tim Ferriss: the philosophy of one of the most innovative entrepreneurs
• How to cultivate your own entrepreneurial spirit

Now, get comfortable and still your mind…

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