I recently attended a screening of the movie, Something Ventured, hosted by the Northern Virginia Technology Council. The movie was a fascinating tale of the concurrent rise of the venture capital industry and Silicon Valley. The movie featured interviews with venture capital giants such as Tom Perkins, Don Valentine, Dick Kramlich and the original venture capitalist, Arthur Rock. From the movies website: Beginning in the late 1950's, this small group of high rollers fostered a one-of-a-kind business culture that encouraged extraordinary risk and made possible unprecedented rewards. They laid the groundwork for Americas start-up economy, providing not just the working capital but the guidance to allow seedling companies to reach their full potential. I highly recommend the movie to any entrepreneur; it will inspire and encourage you. I thought it would be helpful to share a few of the lessons I took from the movie.
Have Faith in Yourself and Your Ideas
Almost every entrepreneurial firm in the movie had no shortage of those who told them that their ideas would never be successful and that they were wasting their time. These firms included success stories such as Atari, Tandem Computers, Fairchild Semiconductors and Apple. The common thread with each of these companies was that they believed in their ideas and werent dissuaded from pursuing their dream by the naysayers. The reason doubters didnt believe in them was because they didnt have the vision to see a different world than the one that they lived in. This is the nature of disruptive innovation. As an entrepreneur, youre taking on extraordinary risk because you have the courage to chase your dreams and to follow a path most dont have the courage to follow. Keep your faith, even in the darkest hours (and there will be dark hours.)
Keep Your Head Down and PERSEVERE
A consequence of having faith in yourself and your ideas is the ability to persevere and keep moving forward, despite the inevitable setbacks you will encounter. A good example of perseverance is that of Nolan Bushnell, the founder of Atari. Atari started its business as a provider of large console-style video games that were played in bars, restaurants and arcades. Their original business model required lots of cash that they didnt have (and couldnt raise) to maintain the inventories necessary to grow their business. Bushnell and his team came up with a version of their original game, Pong, which was the size of a shoebox and could be connected to a television set in the users home. Bushnell hit the road and attempted to sell his new invention. He tried toy stores like Toys R Us and failed. He tried the New York Toy Convention and didnt sell a single gaming console. He finally found someone who saw his vision of the future (Sears Roebuck) and the rest is history. All of the gamers out there enjoying PS3 and the Xbox should thank Nolan Bushnell for his perseverance he saw something that the rest of us couldnt visualize and kept pushing until it was successful.
Be Nimble
Most of the successful entrepreneurial stories covered in the movie ended up with a business model that was different from that envisioned in their original business plan. One of the things that made them successful was their ability to change course when they saw a better way to achieve their goals. That ability to change course is an advantage entrepreneurs have over large enterprises whose investments in infrastructure and product development prevent them from responding quickly to marketplace demands. The lesson for entrepreneurs is to not be afraid to change your tactics in response to the lessons you learn as you chase your dream.
In summary, I highly recommend the movie Something Ventured to everyone, particularly entrepreneurs. Its highly entertaining and provides great lessons and inspirations to those of us chasing our dreams.
