Thread by @jonwu_

In 2017, I interviewed with Elizabeth Holmes to be Head of Finance at Theranos.

I'm convinced I learned more in those 45 minutes than I did in 10 years of school and work.

Today, she reports to federal prison to serve out an 11 year sentence for fraud.

Time for a story 🧵:

It was May, 2017. I'd just finished classes at Harvard Business School and I'm in Florida for some pre-graduation beach time.

I get a call in the car from my finance professor.

"What are you doing after you graduate?" he asks.

Not sure, I say.

He continues: "Well, I've been helping out an amazing entrepreneur, and you have to meet her."

Oh? Who is she?

"Her name is Elizabeth Holmes."

A pause.

The Theranos lady?? I thought that company was a fraud.

"Trust me. It's not. Don't lose this opportunity."

I left that call wildly confused.

It had been over a year since John Carreyrou's investigative report in the Wall Street Journal.

It was a known fact that the product didn't work. It was as good as a cardboard box.

And not only that--they were being sued by everyone.

And I mean everyone. Walgreens, the FDA, the SEC, her investors.

Then I get another call. It's a senior professor at HBS. Someone who sat on the boards of major healthcare companies.

"I've been personally coaching Elizabeth through this difficult time. You should join."

Now I'm like, okay.

This obviously seems like running into a burning building.

On the other hand, multiple highly credible men are now telling me to give it a shot.

I have to do it for the story if nothing else, right?? So I get on a plane and stay at the DoubleTree Palo Alto.

The next morning, I pull up in my Uber to this, their headquarters for which they were reportedly paying $1 million a month:

I go through the rigamarole of signing in, and look around. There are maybe 17 people on this gigantic campus. Eerily empty.

The HR manager shows me the Edison device. He clicks it on, the screen flickers to life, some gears and widgets whirr inside.

"This is for demonstration only. The machines that draw blood are in the laboratory."

He shows me the cafeteria: "We like to do events for our employees, lunches and whatnot--culture here is great."

(This is the cafeteria that presumably served as the backdrop for the infamous "FUCK YOU, CARREYROU" chant).

He sits me down in a small conference room.

I sip a bottle of water, anxiously awaiting Elizabeth.

Here's what I expect as she walks in: a defensive stance, arms crossed, sternly protecting Theranos's honor.

Like her Jim Cramer interview paraphrasing Gandhi:

"First they think you're crazy, then they fight you, then all of a sudden you change the world."

Then Elizabeth walks in. She's calm, collected, self-assured.

She wore her signature look: black turtle neck, hair pulled in a bun, unblinking, laser-blue eyes.

And that deafening baritone of a voice:

"Hi Jon, I've heard so much about you."

As the interview drones on, I become increasingly aware of one fact:

Nothing about her indicates she was born on Earth. She deftly wound her way through my concerns with utter confidence:

"I know I've made some mistakes as CEO.

In fact, I haven't been a good one, and it's gotten us in trouble.

We shipped the product too early, and despite having hundreds of patents, we didn't execute correctly.

"Theranos is my life. I've been living this company since I was 19 years old. I don't have friends, I hardly see my family--I don't have 'a life.'

I was put on this planet to do one thing, and that's to make blood testing as easy to get as buying a Coca Cola.

"Right now, I don't know who to trust.

I need someone to trust.

Someone who can help me become the CEO I know I can be.

And I think that person...

...is you."

I was stunned.

1st reaction: "Me?? A newly minted business school graduate? To functionally be CFO?"

2nd reaction: "But...why not me? I can save this company."

3rd reaction: "Holy fuck this person is a sociopath."

4th reaction: "...I want her powers."

If you think of personality falling on a spectrum:

- One side being fully authentic
- The other being fully manufactured

The spectrum curves around like a horseshoe, such that the ends look remarkably similar.

For the life of me I could not tell which end she fell on.

I didn't take the job. But what did I learn?

1) People need to feel needed.

We all crave affirmation, attention, and love from authority. We project our desire for parental affection on people all around us.

We want to be blessed. We want to kiss the ring.

The week I interviewed, Theranos had poached a senior director from Abbott Labs.

Imagine what she was capable of at the peak of her powers.

2) Utter dedication is terrifying and seductive.

I am convinced Elizabeth didn't profit to the level of an Adam Neumann or Jeff Skilling or Bernie Madoff.

If she was a fraud, then she was her own victim.

Near the end, she gave up nearly all her equity to prove her commitment.

3) Stories can raise armies.

Who knows in the end what was ultimately fact or fiction?

Elizabeth was able to be a black hole for talent and capital, all because of an elaborate and *compelling* story.

In June 2017, Fortress lent Theranos $100 million backed by its IP.

Postscript:

A few months later, I was sitting in WeWork (irony of ironies). A call came in: "Elizabeth Holmes' assistant here--can I patch her in?"

Sure.

"Jon--I want to say I think you were one of the most talented people I've ever met.

"And I want you to know, if there were *any* role at the company you might be interested in--operations, product--I would be happy to have you.

If not, please let me know when you're in the Bay again. I'd love to buy you a drink."

The next one'll be on me, Elizabeth.

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I write about crypto, tech and finance with the occasional run in with generational fraudpreneurs.