One of the most common questions I get on a weekly basis is “what do we need to do to help our local startup community?” People expect me to talk about more local funding options, more national press, and more local talent. While all of those things are great, the best answer is also the hardest answer: produce more huge success stories. Now, small success stories are fine but they don’t move the needle. What’s needed is huge success stories, the kind that changes the trajectory of the region.
Here are a few benefits of big success stories:
- More success stories — whether exits, IPOs, or jobs created — creates more attention and reasons for the media to cover the community.
- More wealth creation provides capital to fund the next generation of entrepreneurs and enables investors in the region to make riskier bets.
- More people starting companies because they’ve seen it work and much of the process has been demystified.
The next time someone asks what’s the biggest thing the startup communities needs to get better, tell them the best thing possible is big success stories.
What else? What are some more reasons why big success stories are so important for startup communities?
David Cummings on Startups 
Thanks David for sharing a rare insight. Atlanta absolutely has the firepower and the spirit of a start-up city but the surer way for all of us in the eco-system to feel good and confident about what we are doing is ‘big success stories’. More Yik Yaks, Kevys and PartPics 🙂