In Search Of Excellence — Episode 181

Marc Lore: Why 95% of Success is Just "Shit Work"
Host: Randall Kaplan
Date: January 27, 2026

Episode Overview

In this episode of In Search Of Excellence, Randall Kaplan sits down with Marc Lore, billionaire entrepreneur, owner of the Minnesota Timberwolves, and the mind behind Diapers.com (sold to Amazon for $545M) and Jet.com (sold to Walmart for $3.3B). The conversation dives into Marc’s upbringing, the development of entrepreneurial grit, parenting, personal setbacks, and the realities (and mythologies) of massive business success. Lore’s candid reflections offer inspiration, practical career advice, and a grounded look at what it really takes to pursue excellence.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Family Background and Early Lessons (01:15–08:25)

• Dad’s Relentless Pursuit:
  Marc shares an outrageous story of his father taking him and his brother to Bruce Springsteen's house at 5:30 am, uninvited, hoping for a fishing trip. Despite being removed by security, his father remained unphased and went on fishing as planned—a defining lesson in persistence and resilience.
  • "Doesn’t seem like Bruce wants to go fishing. You guys still up for it?" — Marc's dad's attitude (02:40)
• Parent’s Work Ethic:
  His mother became a bodybuilder in her 30s, showing that reinvention is always possible. His dad, an early computer programmer, built a consulting business from nothing, demonstrating scrappiness and resourcefulness.
• Dysfunctional Household:
  Marc reflects on how unpredictability, screaming matches, and drug use at home forced him to develop emotional sensitivity and "read the room," gifting him with empathy and strong EQ.
  • “The hardest part was the unpredictability...you get really in tune to knowing how to read people.” — Marc Lore (08:53)
• Influential Grandparents:
  Spending time with his maternal grandparents provided a contrasting environment—one of steadiness and kindness—which he credits for balancing his worldview.

2. Entrepreneurial DNA & The Value of Failure (12:00–17:15)

• Are Entrepreneurs Born or Made?
  Marc believes innate drive increases the likelihood of repeat entrepreneurial success but says hard work can get you far.
  • "The ability to work extremely hard for something that has a low probability of success...that defines an entrepreneur." — Marc Lore (12:16)
• Childhood Isolation and Creativity:
  Both host and guest recall isolating childhoods that fostered creativity and self-soothing. For Marc, counting and math became comfort—laying the groundwork for his numerical fluency.
• Letting Children Fail:
  Marc warns against helicopter parenting, emphasizing the importance of failure, resilience, and learning through struggle.
  • "If they forget their homework, don’t just run and get it...They need to learn how to fail.” — Marc Lore (15:00)
• Comfort with Discomfort:
  Regular, low-stakes failures as a child made Marc unafraid to fail as an adult. He sees this as essential for entrepreneurship.

3. Career Building: Value of Grit, Boring Work & Bosses (17:15–23:20)

• The Grind Behind Success:
  Both agree that 95% of 'success work' is boring and unglamorous. Marc likens entrepreneurship as much more closely aligned to manual labor than cerebral problem-solving, especially at the start.
  • "Entrepreneurship’s more closely aligned to manual labor than some sort of cerebral thing. It is tough.” — Marc Lore (36:50)
• Selecting an Employer:
  Marc now considers "who you work for" as crucial—far more than company brand/name.
  • “That first boss is very important...Those lessons last a lifetime.” — Marc Lore (20:23)
• Thoughts on Job-Hopping:
  Marc is now a “resume snob,” only hiring people with demonstrable, consistent success and real reasons for job moves—jumping too quickly is a red flag.

4. The Role of Adversity: Bullying, Family Struggles, and Motivation (25:48–28:01)

• Early Experiences with Bullies:
  Marc recounts losing a prized Reggie Jackson baseball card to a bully, seeding a lifelong hatred of bullying and injustice.
• The Impact of Failure:
  Embarrassment (like scoring an 8 out of 100 on a test) can be a profound motivator when one chooses to rise above it.
  • "The teacher would call out the highest and lowest grades by name...It was incredible motivation." — Marc Lore (45:22)

5. Numbers, Math, and Mentalist Skills (43:05–44:16)

• “Human Calculator” Reputation:
  Marc developed exceptional numerical skills through self-soothing (counting to 10,000+ as a kid), and can instantly calculate days of the week for any date.
  • "There’s a formula...I’ve done it so much, it just happens in my head.” — Marc Lore (44:16)

6. Odd Jobs and the Value of Manual Labor (32:02–39:09)

• Early Hustles:
  Picking weeds, shoveling snow, delivering newspapers—Marc argues these jobs are the training ground for entrepreneurship.
  • “If you’re not willing to do that sort of hard work, you’re going to fold as you get older.” — Marc Lore (36:29)
• Most of Success is "Shit Work":
  Marc and Randy bond over how 95% of their work is monotonous grind—even now.
  • “People just don’t get today...they don’t want to do what I call ‘the work.’” — Randall Kaplan (37:56)

7. Resourcefulness: Building Diapers.com & Using Loss Leaders (39:09–43:05)

• Diapers.com War Stories:
  Marc describes buying diapers at wholesale clubs and physically loading them onto trucks to sell online—gritty beginnings, creative logistics, and losing money (“loss leader” strategy).
  • “Literally going to the wholesale clubs and having to buy thousands of boxes of diapers, carry them, wrap, ship them...That was a lot of weed picking.” — Marc Lore (38:39)
• Loss-Leader Model Analysis:
  The company sold diapers at a loss to gain customers, betting on future upsells—a principle learned from retail but applied more aggressively online. The higher potential for upsell online made the strategy viable.

8. The Meaning and Value of College, and Thoughts on Career Paths (48:00–51:21)

• Is College Still Necessary?
  While acknowledging some might do fine skipping college, Marc endorses it for the personal growth, social bonds, and time to mature it provides.
• What Matters Most in a First Job:
  It’s not the industry or even the skills—what matters most is working for someone you can learn from and in a company with strong culture.
  • “If you work with somebody you really respect and can learn from, and it’s within a company with a very good culture...then you can do just about anything.” — Marc Lore (51:21)
• Follow Your Passion:
  Marc urges young people to do what they love, since they’ll perform better and learn more.

9. The Magic of Making the Impossible Possible (46:30–47:51)

• Entrepreneurship & Magic:
  Both, for Lore, are about "making the impossible possible" and delighting others—whether through business innovation or literal magic tricks.
  • “I was fascinated by the idea of making the impossible possible—similar to entrepreneurship. It feels magical.” — Marc Lore (47:02)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Most of the biggest opportunities and ways to move the ball forward lies in the probabilities that nobody else wants to touch.” — Marc Lore (00:00)
• “The ability to work extremely hard for something that has a low probability of success...that defines an entrepreneur.” — Marc Lore (12:16)
• “Entrepreneurship’s more closely aligned to manual labor than some sort of cerebral thing. It is tough.” — Marc Lore (36:50)
• "If you’re not willing to do that sort of hard work, you’re going to fold as you get older." – Marc Lore (36:29)
• “Making the impossible possible—that’s the feeling I get as an entrepreneur.” — Marc Lore (47:02)
• “You have to be comfortable with failure. One of the most important skills is not thinking about anything that’s gone wrong today or in the past—not worrying about the future. Just do everything you can to make today productive.” — Marc Lore (17:15)
• "I won’t even interview people who haven’t shown demonstrable success or who jump from jobs too quickly from a good company.” — Marc Lore (21:32)
• "You catalog [mistakes], but you don't think about them...take the lesson, catalog it, and that's it." – Marc Lore (17:52)

Timestamps by Key Segments

• Family & Upbringing: 01:15–08:25
• Entrepreneurial DNA, Failure, and Creativity: 12:00–17:15
• Parenting & Childhood Setbacks: 13:30–17:15
• Persistence, Work Ethic, Odd Jobs: 32:02–39:09
• Diapers.com Founding Story & Loss Leaders: 39:09–43:05
• Mental Math (“Human Calculator”) Skills: 43:05–44:16
• Magic & Making the Impossible Possible: 46:30–47:51
• College & Early Career Advice: 48:00–51:21

Conclusion

This wide-ranging interview reveals the sometimes messy, relentless, and unglamorous foundations of exceptional success. Through stories of odd jobs, family turmoil, early entrepreneurial bets, and relentless grind, Marc Lore demolishes the myth of effortless victory, reframing success as a lifelong commitment to the boring, “shit work” that 95% of people will simply never do. For those pursuing excellence, Lore’s journey shows the true cost—and the real rewards—of chasing what most believe is impossible.