The Unknown Entrepreneur Arc

Last week, I met an entrepreneur for the first time and asked one of my favorite questions: why did you start your company? He shared his journey, which began with participating in a college engineering organization that exposed him to an industry. From there, he became heavily involved and achieved some success among the school competitions. This led to job in the field, which quickly revealed an emerging gap in the market. Recognizing this, he decided to start a business to solve the problem. Now, he has millions of dollars in revenue and a tremendous market opportunity ahead of him.

Hearing his story reminded me of my own journey. I started by building small PC apps followed by websites. Over time, I identified an opportunity for a new class of software that made it easier to update and manage websites. This led to the idea of creating software to make B2B marketing more productive, which eventually inspired a whole host of other ideas.

Reflecting on both his journey and my own, my biggest takeaway—beyond the clear influence of luck and timing—is that the best thing a potential entrepreneur can do is to put themselves out there. Observe trends, find ways to get involved, and do interesting work. You never know where it might lead.

Potential entrepreneurs would benefit from studying the stories of others. It quickly becomes clear that much of entrepreneurship involves trying new things, experimenting, failing, and maintaining a mindset that opportunities are abundant. The world is always changing, with new trends and tailwinds constantly emerging.

While it’s popular to say, “Follow your passion,” it’s better for potential entrepreneurs to develop an eye for how the world is evolving. Becoming a student of what’s changing and why will lead to opportunities.