Startupland – How three guys risked everything to turn an idea into a global business

As some of you may know, my friend Mikkel, founder and CEO of Zendesk, wrote a book. It’s called “Startupland: How Three Guys Risked Everything to Turn an Idea into a Global Business” and you can learn more about it here. The hardcover version will be released in about two weeks, but the Kindle version just became available on Amazon and I was lucky enough to get my hands on a draft a few weeks ago.

The book is a well-written and very personal look back at Zendesk’s amazing success story, which began in a loft in Copenhagen and culminated in the company’s Wall Street IPO earlier this year. It’s both autobiography and “tips & tricks" guide: First and foremost it’s a suspenseful chronicle of the journey of Mikkel and his co-founders Alex and Morten that lets you witness some of the many ups and downs which startupland has in store for entrepreneurs, but it also contains a lot of actionable advice for other founders.

It’s an entertaining read, too, and as someone who was fortunate enough to have played a small role in Zendesk’s beginnings, reading about those early days put a smile on my face many times. In some cases, it also made me laugh out loud, e.g. when Mikkel writes about my conversation with Michael Arrington.

One of the reasons why "Startupland" is such a great read is that it’s honest and humble. When other authors write things like “I didn’t know anything about XYZ” it often feels like fishing for compliments. When Mikkel writes it, you know that he really means it that way.

I highly recommend the book to any startup founder, and in particular to all founders from Europe who consider making the move to the US.