- Eric Ries
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- Corruption, Defined
Incorruptible: Why Good Companies Go Bad…
and How Great Companies Stay Great
Available for pre-order at incorruptible.co
Incorruptible is out tomorrow! Today, I’m sharing a brief excerpt from the book that cuts right to the heart of the problem it tackles. Understanding what corruption really is and how it works is the fundamental first step in building stronger companies and a better future for everyone.
Not all forms of making money are equal. Some create wealth; others destroy it.
Over the centuries, when people have gone searching for the moral logic of capitalism, they always hit this same bedrock principle: Fully informed, uncoerced, voluntary transactions create surplus value because both parties end up better off.
Think about your last genuinely good purchase. You valued the product more than the price you paid, so you are better off. But the seller, too, is better off (otherwise they would not have sold). Both parties are wealthier. When this happens, it's a bit of a magic trick. In an instant, new value exists that did not a moment before. This wealth was not stolen; it was generated.
But this only works when the exchange is truly voluntary and informed. Remove any of these conditions and the mechanism breaks.
This is why embezzlement, coercion, fraud, bribery, and deception are wrong. It's not only because they are illegal or even immoral. It's because they corrupt the fundamental premise of our entire economic system. They transform transactions meant to create value into ones that destroy it.
This trajectory is so common these days that we hardly know what to call it. The answer is simple. Since every version of it shares the same value-destroying logic, regardless of whether the violation is illegal or even immoral, we should use the same word to describe them all: corruption.
Our modern sense of "corruption" has become catastrophically narrow. What I'm talking about is something much broader than bribery or embezzlement. (After all, the Latin corrumpere means "to break completely.") Corruption breaks the logic of capitalism itself.
Every Ponzi scheme, every hidden externality, every unit of extracted value is a drag on our whole economy's potential. These corruptions don't just harm their immediate victim; they erode trust, increase transaction costs, and destroy the civic infrastructure that makes efficient markets possible. The hidden economic costs are staggering. The truth is that capitalism succeeds not because of these widespread violations but despite them.
If what you just read has caught your attention – and I hope it has – the final opportunity to pre-order the book and receive a collection of bonus materials is below. Thanks for being on the road to publication date with me. We’re almost there!
A FEW DAYS LEFT
There’s still time to pre-order before May 26th midnight PT to get special bonuses.
These bonuses are my way of saying thank you for being an early supporter. I hope they’ll enrich your experience of the book.
Once you’ve ordered from your favorite book retailer anywhere in the world, claim your free bonuses here or simply reply to this email with your receipt. Hardcover, e-book, audio version, and paperback – all formats qualify!
Live Author Q&A
This June 10th virtual event in June is only for folks who have registered for the preorder.
This week, we’ll send out the invitation to RSVP. Even if you can’t attend, you can submit questions for me ahead of time. Of course, we’ll share the replay back with you.
Incorruptible Community
The blueprint and ideas in this book are tools for putting into practice. The Incorruptible Community is a place to pool experiences and share insights. It’s a network of people committed to building organizations that last, including founders, executives, investors, employees, and customers. When you preorder, you’ll have the opportunity to be a founding member.
Secret Chapter
After the book is released, you’ll receive an email with the secret chapter. That’s all I’m at liberty to say at this time…
Insider Access to Research
In the years I spent working on the book, I amassed a huge archive of data, papers, articles, books, and other materials. I drew on a lot of it while writing, but many of my sources remained not just unquoted but uncited due to space constraints.
This preorder bonus is a research email series that pulls from that archive, with a deep dive into a topic covered in the book on each day. You’ll get an overview of the subject at hand along with linked sources and a set of documents you can get immersed in.
Invites to Events
Finally, there are still invite-only events or ones with a fee. I’ve already given away free tickets to people who preordered, and I have more to grant during the book tour.
The sooner you let us know you preordered, the more opportunities you’ll have for tickets.
