What we are doing.

A prologue to a journey of creation and start-ups. We are set out not only to research, but to understand, those who have built the world.
JT & RP

Our goal is fifty letters within the next eighteen months. Half of them hand-typed and mailed with a physical stamp, the rest sent by email. They will be addressed to founders, investors, and individuals who have created companies like the ones we have been reading about. In preparation for each letter we read everything available about our correspondent: profiles, previous interviews, annual letters, and anything substantial enough to contain real substance.

We are neither journalists nor salesmen. We pose a single question, most often tied to a particular event or situation in which the recipient made a decision, or reconsidered their stance on something.

If an answer is received and we are given permission to share it, we will add it to our newsletter and publish it here on this site. Once we have reached a point where we hold enough replies to give insightful information to future founders, we will publish a book featuring the answers, our own ideas, and the research behind every letter.

What you can expect.

One question. About ten minutes of your time. A stamped envelope back to us, or a hand-typed email that only the two of us ever read.

If you do write back, here is what we promise:

• nothing gets published unless you say yes
• nothing gets pulled out of context to make a clip
• nothing gets reused for anything else, ever

We are not writing to create false images. This project wishes to understand and share the inner thoughts and ideas of the people who have reached so far.