The Cult of We: Inside the Delusion, Rise and Fall of WeWork and Adam Neumann

 

The Cult of We: WeWork, Adam Neumann, and the Great Startup Delusion is an interesting read packed with many insights and lessons not only for those into bisinesses and startups, but in other areas of life and even in private lives. It is a riveting and cautionary tale that chronicles the rise and fall of WeWork and its eccentric, larger-than-life founder, Adam Neumann. The book paints a vivid picture of Silicon Valley’s excesses, unveiling how unchecked ambition, hype, and hubris transformed a modest office subleasing company into a global phenomenon, albeit one that burned through billions of dollars before its spectacular collapse.

 

 

At the center of this 420-page exposé is Adam Neumann, a charismatic and audacious leader whose big hair was only eclipsed by his even bigger promises. Neumann envisioned WeWork as more than just a real estate company; he described it as a global movement, a community, and even a spiritual force meant to “elevate the world’s consciousness.” Yet beneath the lofty rhetoric and grand visions lay a sobering truth: WeWork was hemorrhaging cash, losing over $1.6 billion in a single year while attempting to justify a valuation of $47 billion—on paper.

 

Neumann’s leadership style was as chaotic as it was mesmerizing. He was notorious for being late to meetings, hosting impromptu gatherings fueled by alcohol, and even shattering a glass wall with a bottle during one of his drunken episodes. His peculiarities extended to encouraging employees to go barefoot at company events, an act he believed symbolized the “grounded” culture he was trying to cultivate. His charm, eccentricity, and unrelenting ambition captivated deep-pocketed investors like Masayoshi Son of SoftBank, who injected billions into WeWork despite glaring issues in its business model.

 

 

One of the book’s recurring themes is the danger posed by unchecked growth driven by starry-eyed investors willing to suspend disbelief. Neumann’s genius was in convincing Wall Street that WeWork was not a real estate business but a tech startup—worthy of the same sky-high valuations as Silicon Valley’s finest. At its peak, WeWork’s valuation reached an astronomical $47 billion, despite the fact that comparable, more stable real estate businesses operated profitably at a fraction of that valuation. As Brown and Farrell astutely note, “All the hype in the world doesn’t matter in the long run if a business isn’t making a profit.”

 

The financial absurdities detailed in the book are jaw-dropping. Neumann often leased properties he personally owned to WeWork, collecting millions in rent payments. He also championed the infamous “community-adjusted EBITDA,” a laughable accounting metric that excluded standard operating costs like rent from the company’s financial projections. This measure, designed to make the company’s finances appear healthier, exemplified the creative accounting practices that allowed WeWork to maintain its illusion of success.

 

The book is filled with colorful anecdotes, including Neumann’s bizarre meeting with Elon Musk, which led to one of the most laugh-out-loud moments in the narrative.

Another key point the authors emphasize is the failure of WeWork’s corporate governance. With a weak and complacent board, Neumann faced little to no accountability. This lack of oversight enabled him to pursue his extravagant vision unchecked, often at the expense of sound business practices. Brown and Farrell describe the dynamic between Neumann and Masayoshi Son as a “combustible combination” of impulsive ambition and deep pockets, with neither party willing to rein in the other.

 

The storytelling truly shines during moments of high drama, particularly in Chapter 27, which chronicles the unraveling of WeWork in cinematic detail. The suspense builds relentlessly as the company’s S-1 filing—a document required for its planned IPO—exposes the financial and cultural absurdities that ultimately led to its downfall. The chapter reads like a thriller, filled with tension, revelations, and a sense of inevitable collapse.

 

Beyond the sensational narrative, The Cult of We delivers a sobering message. The authors remind us that WeWork’s story is not an isolated incident but part of a broader pattern. “The real story is that we never learn anything from history,” they write, pointing to the cyclical nature of financial bubbles driven by hype and speculative investments. 

 

Eliot Brown and Maureen Farrell’s meticulous reporting and compelling storytelling make The Cult of We a must-read for anyone interested in the intersection of business, psychology, and cultural phenomena. The book reads like a drama-packed movie, offering a fascinating exploration of the intersection between vision and delusion, ambition and greed, and charisma and chaos. It’s a gripping reminder of what happens when hype supersedes reality—and a warning that history may well repeat itself.