Organization
Organization

McCain

3 Books4 Highlights45 Themes

McCain appears across 3 books, with 4 highlights.

Books

Notes

Most coverage

Harrison McCain - Single-Minded Purpose has the strongest coverage in these notes.

Recurring themes

Helicopter View, Signature Page Only, Wire Fifty Million on Trust Alone, Atlantic Canada Thinks Small—Exploit That

Start here

Harrison McCain, regarding the McCain fleet of aircraft. “Stan,” McCain told him. “I cannot give you the numbers that justify these aircraft, but I could not build this empire without them.”

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Answers use only the 3 books and 4 highlights on this page.

Highlights

"Harrison McCain, regarding the McCain fleet of aircraft. “Stan,” McCain told him. “I cannot give you the numbers that justify these aircraft, but I could not build this empire without them.”"

Net Worth - John Risley, Clearwater, and the Building of a Billion-Dollar Empire

"They include the McCain brothers, whose firm dispenses frozen potatoes from Nova Scotia around the world;"

One Hell of a Ride - How Craig Dobbin Built the World's Largest Helicopter Company

"period, or before the cash ran out. The first order of business was to find money to build the plant and the cold storage facility. They did what many aspiring entrepreneurs do – they sought help from a bank. In their case, they went to the local branch of the Bank of Nova Scotia, the bank that their father and grandfather had done business with, and applied for a line of credit of $150,000. As luck would have it, the bank’s president, Horace Inman, was visit- ing the branch while Harrison and Wallace were making their pitch. Inman spotted them, went over to introduce himself, asked who they were and why they were there. The brothers gave him a brief outline of their business plan. Inman told Harrison and Wallace to sit tight and wait for a few minutes. Very shortly he came out of the branch man- ager’s office and told them that they had the money and were now in business. Inman knew the McCain family from his time as bank super- visor in New Brunswick. He explained, “Your grandfather did business with this bank. He owed this bank a lot of money, and when he owed it he was broke. But your father paid all the money back. We never lost a nickel from any McCain.”1 Despite the line of credit and the $100,000 the McCain brothers"

Harrison McCain - Single-Minded Purpose

"thing. Building one from scratch was quite another. By the time Wallace arrived, the McCain brothers had a fair idea of the challenges ahead. Yet neither Harrison nor Wallace ever lost faith. I once asked Harrison if he ever regretted leaving a secure, well-paying job with Irving. “Christ, no,” he said, “no sense looking back. We were in it and that was that. Best years of our lives, best years of our lives.”"

Harrison McCain - Single-Minded Purpose

Themes

Helicopter View, Signature Page OnlyWire Fifty Million on Trust AloneAtlantic Canada Thinks Small—Exploit ThatTechnology Moat or NothingAspiration Interrogation at Every MeetingForest Thinker Needs a Tree CounterPre-Emptive Divestiture as Political ShieldTrusts Own Everything, Founder Owns NothingSpeed Kills Bureaucracy in AcquisitionFully Deployed, Never LiquidBuy the Quota, Chop the ShellSwinging for Multiples Not SinglesWindfall Redeployment Not Windfall SavingsGenerosity as Network CurrencyPromise First, Engineer LaterDinner Conversation to Billion-Dollar PlatformLodges, Jets, and Yachts as Deal MagnetsVisionary at the Helm, Operator at the WheelPioneer Buyer Leverage With ManufacturersAsset Rich Cash Poor as Permanent StatePersonal Intelligence Network Before Every MeetingIrish Whiskey and a Handshake to CloseSwallow Competitors Whole When Cash-PoorLoyalty Repaid With LoyaltyNon-Refundable Deposits as Commitment TheaterTurn Cost Drains Into Cash MachinesScrew the Bankers, Let's Do ItCasting Director Not OperatorProduction Over Exploration ImmunityDouble the Bet on the Last RollCliff-Edge Comfort as Strategic WeaponKeith Stanford's Briefcase as Survival SystemMonopoly Through Sequential AcquisitionFamily Reputation as Credit LineManagement by Suggestion Not OrderNegatives Fuel Forward MomentumCultivated Image as Negotiation ArmorImprovise the Entire Machine Then Scale ItEccentric Genius on RetainerRide Two Tailwinds Nobody Else Sees YetQuit First Then Figure It OutMistakes Tolerated Speed RewardedDecision Speed as Competitive WeaponGovernment Money Before Private ScaleSecond-Hand Equipment Until Forced Otherwise