The internet didn’t arrive with fanfare for most people, but Michael Yang remembers the exact moment it became real: a friend opens the Mosaic browser, types a simple URL, and information appears from far away. That flash of possibility turns into a conviction that the World Wide Web will reshape how we live and shop, long before “online commerce” becomes everyday language.
We follow Michael from those early Silicon Valley days to the gritty middle chapters that rarely make the highlight reel: long nights, constant investor rejection, and the discipline of preparing for opportunities you cannot yet name. He shares how an immigrant instinct to compare prices becomes the blueprint for MySimon, how $25,000 in savings turns into a venture-backed rocket ship, and why a $700 million acquisition can still feel bittersweet when you get outvoted on the future you wanted.
Then the story widens into what success cannot buy: meaning, perspective, and peace. Michael talks about being pushed out of his own company, building again with Become.com, and eventually choosing a life with more freedom, motorcycle miles, and creative work. We also spend time on his friendship with Karl, the brotherhood forged on the road, and the grief that arrives when a friend dies doing what he loved. Threaded through it all is faith, including the line he closes his book with, and the idea that dreams require action long after the easy excuses run out.
If you’ve been weighing a risk, a reinvention, or a fresh start, listen and then tell us what step you’ve been avoiding. Subscribe, share this with a friend, and leave a review so more people can find the show.
