Founding Stories Are Myths
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Founding Stories Are Myths
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Re: Founding Stories Are Myths
#2Having worked in a startup which eventually went on to become an unicorn (I left very early), I can attest to this personally. As a company becomes more successful, the narrative portrayed in media changes to present a good inspirational story - it never presents the countless challenges which eventually leads to its success.
Re: Founding Stories Are Myths
#3Echoing PG: http://www.paulgraham.com/relres.html
Re: Founding Stories Are Myths
#4/r/entrepreneur thread about the same post:
https://www.reddit.com/r/Entrepreneur/comments/80f0c3/why_yo...
Re: Founding Stories Are Myths
#5Let's not ignore the fact that Sam Walton had enough cash to buy a department store at the age of 27. That helps too.
Re: Founding Stories Are Myths
#6I got drawn in by the clickbait title
Re: Founding Stories Are Myths
#7Having worked in a startup which eventually went on to become an unicorn (I left very early), I can attest to this personally. As a company becomes more successful, the narrative portrayed in media changes to present a good inspirational story - it never presents the countless challenges which eventually leads to its success.
Not to mention that you rarely hear some version of the, “We had the same good idea as some others, but we got lucky in a number of ways, including timing” truth. It just sounds better, and makes for a better book deal, to claim immense powers of foresight coupled with devastatingly effective business acumen.
Re: Founding Stories Are Myths
#8Let's not ignore the fact that Sam Walton had enough cash to buy a department store at the age of 27. That helps too.
> Let's not ignore the fact that Sam Walton had enough cash to buy a department store at the age of 27. That helps too.
So poor people should never try to be an entrepreneur because the world is rigged against them? Well that surely will help reduce the wealth inequality.
Re: Founding Stories Are Myths
#9Let's not ignore the fact that Sam Walton had enough cash to buy a department store at the age of 27. That helps too.
Well, he didn't exactly have the money. He borrowed $20k from his father in law and used $5k from his own military savings.
No small sum I suppose. (around $300k adjusted for inflation). But also not a "small million dollar loan". ($4 million inflation adjusted even IF it were true.)
But Sam's real story is not the rags to riches. It the brilliant and hard work that took him from riches to extraordinary success.
Re: Founding Stories Are Myths
#10Let's not ignore the fact that Sam Walton had enough cash to buy a department store at the age of 27. That helps too.
> Let's not ignore the fact that Sam Walton had enough cash to buy a department store at the age of 27. That helps too. So poor people should never try to be an entrepreneur because the world is rigged against them? Well that surely will help reduce the wealth inequality.
Everyone should try, but with the understanding that the world is definitely rigged against them.