Workshop Note and Thinking about Desires

René Girard, Luke Burgis, Bernard Arnault, Amazon's memos

Alice: Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?

The Cheshire Cat: That depends a good deal on where you want to get to.

Alice: I don't much care where.

The Cheshire Cat: Then it doesn't much matter which way you go.

Hi all,

What do you really want? I’ve always struggled with that question. I wonder if that’s why I enjoy diving into the stories of individuals driven by intense ambition. Their desires and values seem so clear. They know what they want – wealth, success, power, to win the game – and they either win or die trying.

That seems true for Bernard Arnault whose story I am working on right now. Sure, he’s known for building LVMH into the world’s biggest luxury conglomerate and becoming the world’s richest person. But how did he get started? Turns out he was a takeover artist, clawing his way to power and wealth through two unique deals.

While I was doing my research, I put up a thread with some of my sources. I enjoyed sharing the process and plan on doing it again…