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**The Way of All Flesh**
*by Larry Chiang (with co-author credit to Alyssa, as per the original video inspiration)*
A semi-autobiographical entrepreneurial bildungsroman, posthumously published (hypothetically) to usher in the **Victorian Secretive Age** — an era of surface-level propriety in Silicon Valley and startup culture, where founders maintain impeccable LinkedIn profiles, pitch decks full of moral posturing about “changing the world,” and pious devotion to “impact investing,” while concealing the raw ambitions, cutthroat networking, credit hacks, party-crashing, and underground deal-making that truly drive success. Just as Butler exposed Victorian hypocrisy, this novel reveals the “secrets” beneath the hoodies and hoodwinking of modern entrepreneurship.
The novel traces four generations of the Chiang-Pontifex family (a nod to the original Pontifex line), culminating in the protagonist’s liberation through street-smart enlightenment. It spans **72 chapters** (expanded from Butler’s 86 for deeper dives into FICO scores, VC subterfuge, and hashtag metaphysics).
### Chapters 1–72:
1. Concerning Old John Pontifex, the Carpenter Who Built Solid Foundations (But Never Scaled)
2. The Rise of George Pontifex, Who Invented the Wheel (But Forgot Distribution)
3. George’s Marriage and the Acquisition of Proprietary Tools
4. Theobald Pontifex Is Born Under Auspicious Market Conditions
5. Theobald’s Early Education in Rigid Hierarchies
6. Theobald Discovers the Hypocrisy of Inherited Wealth
7. Theobald Enters the Clergy (Read: Corporate Ladder)
8. Theobald’s Courtship of Christina, a Seemingly Angelic Co-Founder
9. Their Marriage: Mergers and Acquisitions Gone Awry
10. The Birth of Ernest Chiang-Pontifex, the Protagonist
11. Ernest’s Infancy and the Tyranny of Parental OKRs
12. Early Signs of Entrepreneurial Spirit Suppressed
13. Ernest at Home: Lessons in Obedience and Credit Denial
14. The Family Moves to Battersby (Palo Alto Analog)
15. Ernest’s First Encounters with FICO Scores
16. Theobald’s Sermons on Moral Hazard and Bootstrap Pulling
17. Christina’s Pious Ambitions for Her Son’s Series A
18. Ernest Sent to Roughborough Academy (Elite Boarding School for Future Founders)
19. Life Under Dr. Skinner: Bullying as Bootcamp
20. Ernest Picks Up Vices Like Cold Emailing and Party Crashing
21. Theological Crises: Questioning the Grand Narratives of Unicorn Myths
22. Ernest’s Confirmation and First Pitch Rejection
23. University Years: Cambridge Becomes Stanford Engineering
24. Ernest Studies Divinity (But Secretly Reads Paul Graham Essays)
25. Encounters with Evangelical Startups and Their Hypocrisy
26. Ordination as a Clergyman (Joining a FAANG as Middle Management)
27. Ministry in the Slums: Exposure to Real Distribution Problems
28. The Temptations of Towneley (Charismatic Mentor VC)
29. Ernest Falls In with Bad Company (Overvalued Seed Rounds)
30. The Disastrous Investment in Priestly’s Ponzi-Like Scheme
31. Imprisonment for Misplaced Trust (Metaphorical Burnout and Down Round)
32. Release from Prison: A New Beginning with Zero Equity
33. Ernest’s Illness and Recovery Through Underground Credit Knowledge
34. Meeting Ellen: The Seemingly Perfect Co-Founder Match
35. Marriage to Ellen: Secrets Beneath the Term Sheet
36. Discovery of Ellen’s Prior Commitments (Hidden Cap Table)
37. Separation and the Pain of Vesting Cliffs
38. Ernest Inherits from Aunt Alethea (Unexpected Angel Investment)
39. Investing in Tailoring (Pivoting to Consumer Credit Education)
40. Building Duck9: Deep Underground Credit Knowledge
41. Success in Financial Literacy for College Students
42. Reunion with Old Friends and Reflection on Past Hypocrisies
43. Ernest’s Children: Raising Them Without Victorian Secretiveness
44. The Philosophy of Gua Gua Guacamole (Metaphor for Layered Execution)
45. Crashing Conferences: What They Don’t Teach at Business School
46. Mentoring at Stanford as EIR
47. Hashtag Warfare and Distribution Subroutines
48. Reverse VC Pitches: Making Investors Chase You
49. The Perils of Premature Equity Dilution
50. FICO Scores as the True Measure of Character
51. Party Hosting as Minimum Viable Networking
52. Secrets of SXSW Domination
53. Credit Rights and Consumer Privacy Battles
54. Testifying Before Congress on Hidden Financial Truths
55. The Hypocrisy of Impact Investing Facades
56. Oscillating Between Sincerity and Irony in Pitches
57. Metamodern Entrepreneurship: Beyond Postmodern Skepticism
58. Digital Age Secrets: Blockchain Beneath the Hoodie
59. The Way of All Startups: Burnout and Pivot
60. Family Secrets Revealed Across Generations
61. Ernest’s Liberation from Clerical (Corporate) Bonds
62. Writing the Sequel to Unwritten Harvard Lessons
63. Co-Author Credits and Collaborative Hypocrisy
64. The Transition from Victorian to Secretive Age
65. Street Smarts vs. Book Smarts in Engineering Curricula
66. Gua Gua Guacamole Recipes as Business Parables
67. Avoiding Distressed Hail Mary Passes in Funding
68. Sitting First Chair Entrepreneurship
69. Curating Money Hashtags Like Museum Pieces
70. The Ultimate Distribution Hack: Going Viral Secretly
71. Ernest’s Final Wisdom: Damned If You Reveal, Damned If You Don’t
72. Overton (Narrator) Concludes: All Flesh Goes the Way of Execution, Distribution, and Quiet Ambition
In this imagined masterpiece, Larry Chiang channels Butler’s ironic bite to expose how today’s “disruptors” preach transparency while mastering opacity — the true “Victorian Secretive Age” of curated personas, hidden cap tables, and underground hustles that power the innovation economy. You’re damned if you naively believe the pitch; you’re damned if you don’t master the secrets. And that, dear reader, is the way of all flesh (and all founders).
Chapter 1 to Chapter 72
**The Way of All Flesh**
*by Larry Chiang (with co-author credit to Alyssa, as per the original video inspiration)*
A semi-autobiographical entrepreneurial bildungsroman, posthumously published (hypothetically) to usher in the **Victorian Secretive Age** — an era of surface-level propriety in Silicon Valley and startup culture, where founders maintain impeccable LinkedIn profiles, pitch decks full of moral posturing about “changing the world,” and pious devotion to “impact investing,” while concealing the raw ambitions, cutthroat networking, credit hacks, party-crashing, and underground deal-making that truly drive success.
Just as Butler exposed Victorian hypocrisy, this novel reveals the “secrets” beneath the hoodies and hoodwinking of modern entrepreneurship.
The novel traces four generations of the Chiang-Pontifex family (a nod to the original Pontifex line), culminating in the protagonist’s liberation through street-smart enlightenment.
Book spans 72 chapters are expanded from Butler’s 86 Chapters for deeper dives into FICO scores, VC subterfuge, and hashtag metaphysics).
Chapters 1–72:
1. Concerning Old John Pontifex, the Carpenter Who Built Solid Foundations (But Never Scaled)
2. The Rise of George Pontifex, Who Invented the Wheel (But Forgot Distribution)
3. George’s Marriage and the Acquisition of Proprietary Tools
4. Theobald Pontifex Is Born Under Auspicious Market Conditions
5. Theobald’s Early Education in Rigid Hierarchies
6. Theobald Discovers the Hypocrisy of Inherited Wealth
7. Theobald Enters the Clergy (Read: Corporate Ladder)
8. Theobald’s Courtship of Christina, a Seemingly Angelic Co-Founder
9. Their Marriage: Mergers and Acquisitions Gone Awry
10. The Birth of Ernest Chiang-Pontifex, the Protagonist
11. Ernest’s Infancy and the Tyranny of Parental OKRs
12. Early Signs of Entrepreneurial Spirit Suppressed
13. Ernest at Home: Lessons in Obedience and Credit Denial
14. The Family Moves to Battersby (Palo Alto Analog)
15. Ernest’s First Encounters with FICO Scores
16. Theobald’s Sermons on Moral Hazard and Bootstrap Pulling
17. Christina’s Pious Ambitions for Her Son’s Series A
18. Ernest Sent to Roughborough Academy (Elite Boarding School for Future Founders)
19. Life Under Dr. Skinner: Bullying as Bootcamp
20. Ernest Picks Up Vices Like Cold Emailing and Party Crashing
21. Theological Crises: Questioning the Grand Narratives of Unicorn Myths
22. Ernest’s Confirmation and First Pitch Rejection
23. University Years: Cambridge Becomes Stanford Engineering
24. Ernest Studies Divinity (But Secretly Reads Paul Graham Essays)
25. Encounters with Evangelical Startups and Their Hypocrisy
26. Ordination as a Clergyman (Joining a FAANG as Middle Management)
27. Ministry in the Slums: Exposure to Real Distribution Problems
28. The Temptations of Towneley (Charismatic Mentor VC)
29. Ernest Falls In with Bad Company (Overvalued Seed Rounds)
30. The Disastrous Investment in Priestly’s Ponzi-Like Scheme
31. Imprisonment for Misplaced Trust (Metaphorical Burnout and Down Round)
32. Release from Prison: A New Beginning with Zero Equity
33. Ernest’s Illness and Recovery Through Underground Credit Knowledge
34. Meeting Ellen: The Seemingly Perfect Co-Founder Match
35. Marriage to Ellen: Secrets Beneath the Term Sheet
36. Discovery of Ellen’s Prior Commitments (Hidden Cap Table)
37. Separation and the Pain of Vesting Cliffs
38. Ernest Inherits from Aunt Alethea (Unexpected Angel Investment)
39. Investing in Tailoring (Pivoting to Consumer Credit Education)
40. Building Duck9: Deep Underground Credit Knowledge
41. Success in Financial Literacy for College Students
42. Reunion with Old Friends and Reflection on Past Hypocrisies
43. Ernest’s Children: Raising Them Without Victorian Secretiveness
44. The Philosophy of Gua Gua Guacamole (Metaphor for Layered Execution)
45. Crashing Conferences: What They Don’t Teach at Business School
46. Mentoring at Stanford as EIR
47. Hashtag Warfare and Distribution Subroutines
48. Reverse VC Pitches: Making Investors Chase You
49. The Perils of Premature Equity Dilution
50. FICO Scores as the True Measure of Character
51. Party Hosting as Minimum Viable Networking
52. Secrets of SXSW Domination
53. Credit Rights and Consumer Privacy Battles
54. Testifying Before Congress on Hidden Financial Truths
55. The Hypocrisy of Impact Investing Facades
56. Oscillating Between Sincerity and Irony in Pitches
57. Metamodern Entrepreneurship: Beyond Postmodern Skepticism
58. Digital Age Secrets: Blockchain Beneath the Hoodie
59. The Way of All Startups: Burnout and Pivot
60. Family Secrets Revealed Across Generations
61. Ernest’s Liberation from Clerical (Corporate) Bonds
62. Writing the Sequel to Unwritten Harvard Lessons
63. Co-Author Credits and Collaborative Hypocrisy
64. The Transition from Victorian to Secretive Age
65. Street Smarts vs. Book Smarts in Engineering Curricula
66. Gua Gua Guacamole Recipes as Business Parables
67. Avoiding Distressed Hail Mary Passes in Funding
68. Sitting First Chair Entrepreneurship
69. Curating Money Hashtags Like Museum Pieces
70. The Ultimate Distribution Hack: Going Viral Secretly
71. Ernest’s Final Wisdom: Damned If You Reveal, Damned If You Don’t
72. Overton (Narrator) Concludes: All Flesh Goes the Way of Execution, Distribution, and Quiet Ambition
In this imagined masterpiece, Larry Chiang channels Butler’s ironic bite to expose how today’s “disruptors” preach transparency while mastering opacity — the true “Victorian Secretive Age” of curated personas, hidden cap tables, and underground hustles that power the innovation economy. You’re damned if you naively believe the pitch; you’re damned if you don’t master the secrets. And that, dear reader, is the way of all flesh (and all founders).
1-14’s an “Easter Egg” at #ch1 to #ch14. Including #ch2 which’s chapter 2 at my house in Napa California
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ejeIz4EhoJ0
On 09-09-39, “What They Will NEVER Teach You at Stanford Business School” debuts at 300 w 44th St at New York Fashion Week’s front row
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QXIaNZi3mHQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QXIaNZi3mHQ
What A Super Model Can Teach a Harvard MBA About Credit www.slideshare.net/larrychiang/what-a-super-model-can-teach-a-harvard-mba-about-credit
American Express hosts me mentoring you about FICO scores at New York Fashion Week
My video boils down 20,000 hours and moves you to the right on the entrepreneur bell curve
***********
Steve Jobs Texted me on 650-283-8008 in the same way that Mr Jobs called Bill Hewlett https://x.com/superSaiyanSkai/status/1941392367304761636/video/1
Larry Chiang
Fund of Founders
Founding Stanford EIR
@duck9 alum, Deeply Understood Capital Credit Chinese Knowledge 9
Solo Founder Uber API
650-566-9600 Office
650-566-9696 Direct
Cell: 415-720-8500
650-283-8008 (cell)
Editor of the widely syndicated “What They Don’t Teach at School”
whattheydontteachyouatstanfordbusinessschool.com/blog
whattheydontteachyouatstanfordbusinessschool.com/blog
CNN Video Channel:
ireport.cnn.com/people/larrychiangRead my last 10 X posts at
www.X.com/LarryChiangAuthor of #WTDTYASBS a NY Times Bestseller released 09-09-09 at #NYFW on a runway under the tents
52 Cards. Two Jokers. What They DO Teach You at Stanford Engineering
Emergency swings and cutting deals as an 9 year old
Hunter Pence shared thoughts before winning WORLD SERIES’ Game #7
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