Masters in Business · Wednesday, July 8, 2026
Lyft CEO David Risher shared insights into his unconventional career trajectory during a Masters in Business interview. He revealed that his early interest in technology stemmed from his mother's Apple II computer and his own struggles with handwriting, leading him to use computers for his high school and college work. Risher emphasized that his humanities background, particularly in comparative literature, fostered curiosity, empathy, and the ability to understand different perspectives, which he believes are crucial for leadership.
“My mother bought an Apple II computer a million years ago to help her run a small business that she was running, and I sort of got into technology that way.”
“Look, the humanities is all about, you know, curiosity and understanding and maybe even empathy. Right, If you read a book, you have to understand you're exposed to different people's perspectives. Right, It's almost like you're crawling inside someone else's brain, particularly if you're reading fiction.”
“And so to a certain extent, I think it's you know, nothing could prepare you better. Now you have to have an analytical brain. You might also have to be good with numbers in business. But the humanities world, I sort of think of it as this kind of magic. You know, vaccination against irrelevant because that curiosity is always going to matter, and it certainly helped me through my whole, my whole career.”