Podcasts
Clicks & BricksDecember 6, 2025 · Host: Ken Cox

Turning your ideas into action - from Amazon to AI entrepreneurship

Amir Elion joins Ken Cox on Clicks & Bricks to share his entrepreneurial journey from leading innovation at Amazon Web Services to founding Think Big Leaders - covering vibe coding, Working Backwards methodology, Amazon's leadership principles, and how AI is transforming what solopreneurs and small businesses can build.

InnovationAmazonLeadershipAI StrategyGenerative AIAI ToolsBusiness Value

Originally published on Clicks & Bricks

What you'll learn in this episode

In this wide-ranging conversation, Amir Elion, CEO of Think Big Leaders and former AWS Innovation Programs lead in the Nordics, sits down with Ken Cox on Clicks & Bricks to share his entrepreneurial journey and the principles that drive his approach to business, innovation, and AI. Based in Stockholm, Sweden, Amir brings insights from Amazon, startups, and large enterprises that apply to entrepreneurs at every stage. These are topics Amir regularly speaks about at conferences and corporate events.

From Amazon to Think Big Leaders

Amir shares the story behind Think Big Leaders - how Amazon eliminated his innovation role, and instead of immediately job hunting, he spent his garden leave meeting 100 people, offering help without expecting anything in return. Several relationships turned into paid projects, and he realized he could build a company combining innovation consulting with AI-powered products. The name comes from Amazon's Think Big leadership principle: "thinking small is a self-fulfilling prophecy."

Amazon's leadership principles and the Think Big mindset

A central theme is how Amazon's leadership principles shape decision-making. Amir walks through Think Big (set ambitious goals), Bias for Action (most decisions are reversible two-way doors - take them quickly), Customer Obsession (start with the customer, not the product), and Learn and Be Curious. The conversation connects these principles to entrepreneurial mindset - including Amir's personal journey from a victim mindset to an opportunity-first approach. This is a core part of Amir's keynotes and workshops on leadership and innovation.

Working Backwards - Amazon's innovation process

Amir provides a detailed walkthrough of Amazon's Working Backwards methodology. It starts with five deceptively simple questions: Who is the customer? What is their problem? What is the most important benefit? What evidence do you have? What does the customer experience look like? Only after answering these do you write a fictional press release imagining the future solution, followed by customer and stakeholder FAQs. The key insight - most companies can't clearly answer "who is the customer?" even with successful products.

Vibe coding and AI-powered entrepreneurship

The conversation turns to how AI is transforming what solopreneurs can build. Amir describes using vibe coding tools like Claude Code to build working prototypes in a weekend, then showing them to potential customers at events like the Nordic Software Summit for immediate feedback. His approach: build 50 or 100 product prototypes as "BBs," find the three that hit bullseyes with real customers, then invest in building those properly with technical partners.

Book Amir as a speaker

Amir regularly delivers keynotes and workshops on the topics covered in this episode - Amazon's Working Backwards methodology, leadership principles for the AI age, AI-powered entrepreneurship, and building innovation mechanisms. He speaks at conferences, corporate leadership offsites, and industry events across Sweden, the Nordics, and Europe. Learn more about Amir's speaking topics and availability.

Key Topics Discussed

From Amazon to entrepreneurship

How Amir went from leading AWS Innovation Programs in the Nordics to founding Think Big Leaders - including his strategy of meeting 100 people, offering help without expectations, and letting business come naturally.

Amazon's leadership principles

Deep dive into Amazon's culture-defining principles - Think Big (thinking small is a self-fulfilling prophecy), Bias for Action (one-way vs two-way door decisions), Customer Obsession, and Learn and Be Curious.

Amazon's Working Backwards methodology

The five questions every team must answer before building anything - who is the customer, what is their problem, what is the key benefit, what evidence supports this, and what does the customer experience look like - followed by writing a fictional press release.

Vibe coding and rapid prototyping

How AI-powered coding tools like Claude Code enable building working prototypes in a weekend - turning 50 product ideas into testable BBs that can be shown to real customers for immediate feedback.

Scaling as a solopreneur

Amir's two-pronged scaling strategy without hiring employees - building partnerships with technical partners for delivery, and creating AI-powered products that capture his methodologies and expertise.

Think Big mindset

Why thinking small is a self-fulfilling prophecy - and how shifting from a victim mindset to an opportunity mindset, combined with Amazon's Think Big principle, transforms how entrepreneurs approach business and life.

AI democratizing business tools

How generative AI is leveling the playing field for small businesses - from building custom applications in a weekend to translating books into new languages for a fraction of traditional costs.

Bias for action and decision making

Amazon's framework for faster decisions - recognizing one-way vs two-way door decisions, avoiding analysis paralysis, and understanding that indecision is still a decision that can kill your business.

Frequently Asked Questions

How did Amir Elion start Think Big Leaders?
After Amazon eliminated his Innovation Programs role, Amir met with 100 people during his garden leave - offering help without expecting anything in return. Several of those meetings turned into paid projects, and he founded Think Big Leaders to help organizations with AI strategy and innovation, naming it after Amazon's Think Big leadership principle.
What is Amazon's Working Backwards methodology?
Working Backwards starts with five customer-focused questions - who is the customer, what is their problem, what is the key benefit, what evidence supports this, and what does the experience look like. Only after answering these do you write a fictional press release describing the future solution, followed by customer FAQs and stakeholder FAQs. This ensures you build what customers actually need.
What are Amazon's leadership principles?
Amazon has 16 leadership principles that define its culture. Key ones discussed include Customer Obsession (be Earth's most customer-centric company), Think Big (thinking small is a self-fulfilling prophecy), Bias for Action (most decisions are reversible two-way doors - take them quickly), and Learn and Be Curious. These principles shape daily decision-making across the organization.
What is vibe coding and how does it help entrepreneurs?
Vibe coding uses AI-powered tools like Claude Code to build working software prototypes by describing what you want in natural language. Amir uses it to build product prototypes in a weekend, test them with real customers at events, and iterate based on immediate feedback - dramatically reducing the cost and time of product validation.
How can solopreneurs scale without hiring employees?
Amir describes two scaling strategies - building partnerships with technical delivery partners who handle implementation while you lead strategy, and creating AI-powered products that capture your expertise and methodologies. This avoids the responsibility and overhead of hiring while still growing revenue and impact.
What is the one-way vs two-way door decision framework?
From Amazon's Bias for Action principle - two-way door decisions are reversible, so take them quickly and learn from the outcome. One-way door decisions like hiring or major investments are harder to reverse and deserve more careful analysis. Most daily decisions are two-way doors, but people treat them as one-way doors, causing analysis paralysis.
How is AI changing what small businesses can build?
AI tools now let small business owners build custom applications in a weekend that previously required $10,000 or more and months of development time. From translating books into new languages for a fraction of the cost to automating marketing workflows, AI is democratizing capabilities that were once only accessible to large enterprises.
What is the Think Big leadership principle?
Amazon's Think Big principle states that thinking small is a self-fulfilling prophecy. Leaders create and communicate a bold direction that inspires results. Combined with a mindset of turning setbacks into opportunities, this principle encourages entrepreneurs to set ambitious goals rather than limiting themselves with small thinking.
What topics does Amir Elion speak about?
Amir Elion delivers keynotes and workshops on Amazon's Working Backwards innovation methodology, leadership principles for the AI age, entrepreneurship and scaling with AI, and practical generative AI adoption. His talks blend real-world experience from Amazon Web Services and Nordic enterprises with actionable frameworks.
Can I book Amir Elion as a speaker for my event?
Yes. Amir speaks at corporate events, conferences, and leadership offsites across Europe and internationally. His speaking topics include innovation with AI, Amazon's leadership principles and Working Backwards methodology, and entrepreneurship in the age of AI. Visit amirelion.com to learn more and book a session.

About Amir Elion

Amir Elion is an AI strategist, innovation consultant, and keynote speaker based in Stockholm, Sweden. As CEO of Think Big Leaders, he helps Nordic and European enterprises develop practical AI strategies, run innovation workshops, and build AI-powered products. Previously, Amir led the AWS Innovation Programs in the Nordics, bringing Amazon's Working Backwards methodology to companies like Volvo and KONE. He combines 25+ years of innovation experience with hands-on generative AI expertise.

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