Disrupting The Game Book Summary

Book Summary

15 min

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Brief Summary

Anything worth having can be challenging. Gaming fans came to love Reggie Fils-Aimé during his time with Nintendo. Still, many people don't know that he spent over ten years working hard at companies like VH1, MTV, Pizza Hut, and Proctor & Gamble to establish himself in the industry. He embraced his wins and losses, never allowing his failures to hinder his progress.

Reggie is a great role model for what authentic leadership embodies. He valued honest marketing that appealed to consumers' needs, and he didn't have to use shady tactics for his strategies for them to blow up.

Corporate America can be a "dog eat dog" world, but Reggie was known as an empathetic leader. Building good relationships with his colleagues was essential to Reggie. More importantly, he was a disruptor. Reggie was bold about what he wanted, wasn't afraid of pushing his ideas, and was ready to take risks.

About the Author

Reggie Fils-Aimé, known as the "The Regginator" in the gaming world, is a Haitian-American businessman. Born in the Bronx, Reggie worked his way up from the bottom. While on his grind, he worked for well-known companies like Proctor & Gamble, Pizza Hut, VH1, and MTV. He became the chief operating officer of Nintendo in 2004. In 2006, he became the third President of Nintendo America and retired in 2019.

Topics

Entrepreneurship Management & Leadership Biography & Memoir

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Key Insights

Ever wondered what it's like to run a successful gaming empire like Nintendo? Reggie Fils-Aimé gives us 15 years of the game in his business memoir "Disrupting The Game From The Bronx To Nintendo." The former President of Nintendo gives us a glimpse of his childhood and how it influenced his leadership values.

During his stint as the President of Nintendo, Reggie Fil-Anime poured blood, sweat, and tears into saving the video game giant that had fallen from grace after being overshadowed by its competitors. But it was far from easy.

Disrupting The Game From The Bronx to Nintendo gives readers a detailed account of the unique challenges that Reggie Fils-Anime faced growing up in a rough neighborhood, being a bootstrapped college kid, and navigating the advertising industry as a black man. Reggie uses his personal experiences to impart valuable insight into leadership and diversity.

The Value of Life

Perhaps the most impactful lesson we learned in this memoir is the same lesson Fils-Aimé struggles to accept as he mentally prepares for the funeral of his friend and boss, Iwata. Death is inevitable, and the only peace we have is knowing that we cherish the people we love while they are still here.

Fortunately, Reggie didn't have any regrets about his friendship with Iwata. He reminisces about the last time they saw each other, just days before his 37th birthday. Iwata called him and demanded that he catch the next flight to Japan. Reggie's wife had made plans for them to celebrate his birthday, and unlike his boss, Reggie didn't work over his personal life.

But still, when the President of Nintendo Japan calls, you show up. That's precisely what Fils-Aimé did. Iwata was an iconic figure in the gaming world. He was a brilliant video game developer and programmer responsible for games like Pokemon and Smashing Bros.

When Reggie arrived at the Nintendo headquarters early that morning, he instantly noticed how much weight he had lost. Iwata admitted that his cancer had returned, but he was very optimistic. He assured Reggie that he was fine. He talked about the new diet his wife had him on, restoring his energy, and the promising medical treatment he had been undergoing.

Iwata quickly changed the topic. As always, he put work before his personal needs. Iwata lets Reggie know he wanted to talk to him about his health and show him the prototype of the new product the company was going to launch. According to Iwata, this console would be the future of Nintendo.

Iwata and Reggie worked well together because they challenged each other. They were both good and excellent in their roles at the company. Iwata promoted Reggie to President of the Nintendo America division during this visit to Japan. Unbeknownst to Reggie at the time, it was his final goodbye.

In the introduction chapter, Reggie explains how his relationship with Iwata blossomed into an intimate friendship. Reggie and other executives from Nintendo America would fly into Japan for dinner business meetings. When Iwata invited Reggie for...