Peter A. Thiel | Courage Is in Far Shorter Supply than Genius

Summary

The speaker discusses the challenges of teaching and writing about entrepreneurship, emphasizing the uniqueness of each business moment in history and the importance of innovation. They stress that copying successful entrepreneurs is not learning from them, as the essence of entrepreneurship is to create something new and different. The speaker suggests using contrarian questions to stimulate thought and highlights the scarcity of courage compared to genius, touching on the broader issue of political correctness.

Takeaways

• 📚 There is no formula for entrepreneurship, making it challenging to teach or write about.
• 🔬 Entrepreneurship is akin to science, starting with experiments, but each business moment is unique.
• 🌟 The next successful entrepreneurs will not replicate the paths of Mark Zuckerberg, Larry Page, or Bill Gates.
• 🚫 Copying past entrepreneurs is not learning from them; the essence of entrepreneurship is innovation.
• 🤔 A central challenge in teaching entrepreneurship is articulating what it means to be an entrepreneur when the goal is to do something new.
• 🧐 The speaker starts with contrarian questions to approach the topic of entrepreneurship indirectly.
• 🗣️ The business question 'What great company is nobody starting?' and the intellectual question 'Tell me something that's true that very few people agree with you on' are used to provoke thought.
• 💡 These questions are difficult not because they require brilliance but because they are socially uncomfortable and require courage.
• 🤝 Good answers to these questions are often uncomfortable and may not be what the interviewer wants to hear.
• 🌐 The speaker suggests that courage is rarer than genius and that political correctness, when understood, is a broad problem affecting society.

Q & A

What is the main challenge in teaching or writing about entrepreneurship according to the speaker?

The main challenge is that there is no formula for entrepreneurship, and every significant moment in business and technology history is unique and happens only once.

Why does the speaker believe that trying to copy successful entrepreneurs like Mark Zuckerberg, Larry Page, or Bill Gates is not advisable?

The speaker believes that copying these individuals is not advisable because each of their successes was based on doing something new and different that had not been done before, and trying to replicate that is not learning from their entrepreneurial spirit.

What is the speaker's approach to discussing entrepreneurship in his book or class?

The speaker uses an indirect approach by asking a series of contrarian questions to stimulate thought and provoke discussion on unique insights.

What type of questions does the speaker suggest asking to explore entrepreneurship?

The speaker suggests asking contrarian questions, such as what great company is nobody starting, and intellectual questions that challenge common beliefs.

Why does the speaker consider the question 'Tell me something that's true that very few people agree with you on' to be a fantastic interview question?

This question is considered fantastic because it is difficult to answer even when prepared, as it requires the interviewee to think critically and share an unconventional truth that may be uncomfortable or unpopular.

What does the speaker imply about the current state of the education and political systems when discussing good answers to his questions?

The speaker implies that stating the education system is screwed up or the political system doesn't work well are not good answers because they are common knowledge, whereas good answers should be less obvious and potentially uncomfortable truths.

How does the speaker view the supply of courage in relation to genius in the context of entrepreneurship?

The speaker suggests that courage is in far shorter supply than genius, implying that it takes more than just intelligence to be a successful entrepreneur; it also requires the bravery to pursue unconventional ideas.

What does the speaker mean by 'political correctness properly understood'?

The speaker refers to political correctness as a broad problem that can limit the expression of contrarian or uncomfortable truths, which are necessary for genuine innovation and entrepreneurship.

Why is it socially difficult to answer the speaker's questions about truths that few people agree with?

It is socially difficult because such truths may challenge established norms or beliefs, and people often avoid expressing views that could be unpopular or controversial.

How does the speaker's approach to teaching entrepreneurship differ from traditional methods?

The speaker's approach differs from traditional methods by focusing on fostering independent thought and encouraging students to question common assumptions rather than following a set formula or repeating past successes.