How Successful Entrepreneurs Think
Summary
TLDRThe video script explores the mindset of successful entrepreneurs, highlighting their unique approach to responsibility and value creation. Unlike others, entrepreneurs take full charge of their financial success and understand the importance of creating value before receiving payment. The script differentiates between ordinary and 'superstar' entrepreneurs, emphasizing the latter's focus on creating new capabilities rather than solving existing problems. Using Steve Jobs as a prime example, it illustrates how great entrepreneurs develop personal desires into groundbreaking capabilities and build enduring formulas around them, ensuring lasting success.
Takeaways
- π‘ Entrepreneurs think differently by taking full responsibility for their financial success, unlike others who rely on employers or the government.
- π° Successful entrepreneurs understand that they only get paid if they create value first, and this value must be recognized by the consumer.
- π Great entrepreneurs focus not on solving existing problems but on creating new capabilities that they personally desire.
- π Steve Jobs is highlighted as a role model for great entrepreneurship, known for his focus on creating new capabilities rather than addressing customer-defined problems.
- π₯οΈ The graphic user interface (GUI) and the iPhone were born out of Jobs' desire for capabilities he personally wanted, leading to revolutionary products.
- π± Jobs' innovation with the iPhone included connecting it to the internet and enabling the download of applications, fundamentally changing mobile technology.
- ποΈ Great entrepreneurs develop a formula around their capabilities, ensuring consistency and longevity in their approach.
- π¨ Apple's formula, "We make beautiful technology that people love using," is credited with the company's long-term success potential.
- π The key difference between general entrepreneurs and great ones is that the latter create capabilities they want for themselves and maintain a consistent strategy.
- π By adopting these principles, even moderately successful entrepreneurs can rapidly elevate their success to the level of truly great entrepreneurship.
Q & A
What is the primary difference between entrepreneurs and non-entrepreneurs according to the transcript?
-Entrepreneurs take total responsibility for their own financial success and security, whereas many non-entrepreneurs look for an employer, government, or other institutions to be responsible for their financial welfare.
Why do entrepreneurs focus on creating value before getting paid, as mentioned in the transcript?
-Entrepreneurs understand that they must create value to receive payment, as they are not compensated unless they offer something of value that consumers are willing to pay for.
What is the key distinction between ordinary entrepreneurs and 'superstar' entrepreneurs?
-While most entrepreneurs focus on solving existing problems in the market, superstar entrepreneurs are more interested in creating new capabilities and innovations that were not previously known or requested by the market.
How did Steve Jobs at Apple exemplify the approach of a 'superstar' entrepreneur?
-Steve Jobs did not conduct focus groups to find out what customers wanted. Instead, he focused on creating new capabilities that he personally desired, such as the graphic user interface and the concept of the iPhone as a multifunctional device with internet connectivity.
What was Steve Jobs' approach to developing new technology at Apple?
-Steve Jobs developed new technologies based on his own desires and needs, believing that if a product or capability was beneficial for him, it would likely be desired by many others.
What is the significance of having a 'formula' for a company like Apple, as discussed in the transcript?
-A 'formula' provides a consistent strategy that a company can follow regardless of changes in technology, the world, or the marketplace. For Apple, this formula is to create beautiful technology that people love to use.
Why is it important for entrepreneurs to focus on creating capabilities rather than just solving problems?
-Focusing on creating capabilities allows entrepreneurs to innovate and lead the market with new offerings, rather than following market demands and merely addressing existing issues.
How does the concept of creating new capabilities differ from solving known problems in the entrepreneurial world?
-Creating new capabilities involves inventing solutions or products that the market has not yet considered or requested, potentially revolutionizing industries or consumer behaviors. Solving known problems, on the other hand, involves addressing existing needs or issues that customers have already identified.
What role does personal desire play in the innovation process as described by the transcript?
-Personal desire is a driving force for innovation. Entrepreneurs who create products or services based on their own needs or wants can often develop groundbreaking capabilities that resonate with a broader audience.
Why is it advantageous for entrepreneurs to have a long-term strategy or 'formula' as mentioned in the transcript?
-A long-term strategy or 'formula' allows entrepreneurs to maintain a consistent brand identity and approach to their work, which can lead to sustained success and adaptability in the face of changing market conditions.
Outlines
πΌ Entrepreneurial Mindset and Value Creation
The first paragraph discusses the distinct thinking patterns of successful entrepreneurs. It emphasizes two key differences: their complete responsibility for their financial success and security, contrasting with those who rely on employers or institutions, and their understanding that payment is contingent upon creating value. Entrepreneurs must prove their worth to consumers, irrespective of their personal belief in the value of their work. The paragraph also differentiates between ordinary entrepreneurs and 'superstars,' highlighting the latter's focus on creating new capabilities rather than solving existing problems, using Steve Jobs and Apple as an example of this innovative approach.
π The Formula for Lasting Entrepreneurial Success
The second paragraph delves into the strategies of great entrepreneurs, who, unlike the majority, are not focused on solving problems but on developing new capabilities that they desire themselves. It uses Steve Jobs' vision for Apple as an illustration, detailing his interest in creating user-friendly technologies like the graphical user interface and the iPhone, which introduced internet connectivity and app downloads to mobile phones. The paragraph underscores the importance of a consistent formula that can adapt to changing technologies and market conditions, ensuring enduring success. Apple's formula is presented as an example: creating beautiful technology that people love to use, a strategy that could sustain the company for centuries.
Mindmap
Keywords
π‘Entrepreneur
π‘Value Creation
π‘Financial Success
π‘Consumer
π‘Superstar Entrepreneurs
π‘New Capabilities
π‘Steve Jobs
π‘Graphic User Interface
π‘Apple Store
π‘Formula
π‘Beautiful Technology
Highlights
Entrepreneurs think differently because they take total responsibility for their financial success and security.
Unlike many people who rely on employers or government for financial security, entrepreneurs take personal responsibility.
Entrepreneurs understand that they must create value to get paid; no value creation means no payment.
Successful entrepreneurs always focus on being useful in the eyes of the consumer.
What entrepreneurs believe to be valuable is irrelevant unless someone is willing to pay for it.
A general difference between entrepreneurs and non-entrepreneurs is the mindset towards creating value and taking responsibility.
Really successful entrepreneurs think differently by creating new capabilities rather than solving existing problems.
Steve Jobs exemplified a successful entrepreneur by not focusing on customer-defined problems but creating capabilities he desired.
Jobsβ focus on personal needs led to innovations like the graphical user interface and the concept of app stores.
Great entrepreneurs develop new capabilities for themselves and build a sustainable formula around these capabilities.
Appleβs formula, 'We make beautiful technology that people love using,' exemplifies a timeless strategy.
A lasting formula allows companies like Apple to adapt to technological changes and market shifts while maintaining core values.
Successful entrepreneurs do not need to worry about specific customer needs but rather focus on their desires, which often resonate with others.
Understanding and applying the concept of creating new capabilities and a sustainable formula can help entrepreneurs make rapid progress.
The shift from solving problems to creating new capabilities and having a consistent formula is key to transitioning from being a good entrepreneur to a great one.
Transcripts
[Music]
I'm often asked because I've coached a
lot of them Dan how is it that
successful entrepreneurs think
differently from other people and my
first answer is that well first of all
that entrepreneurs period think
differently than other people uh for two
reasons number one is that they uh take
total responsibility for their own
financial success and Security in the
world where a lot of people are looking
for an employer to actually do that for
them to take responsibility or the
government or you know some other
institution who's going to actually be
responsible for their you know their
financial welfare and so that's the
first way that entrepreneurs are
different and the second way that
entrepreneurs are different is that they
understand that they don't get paid
until they first of all create value so
uh they don't get they don't get paid if
they don't create value and they don't
get paid first if they don't create
value so there's this sense that they
have to always be be uh they always have
to be useful in the eyes of a consumer
and uh and they may it doesn't matter
how important or how valuable or how
useful uh what you do in is in your own
mind you know that you think that what
you do is really superb and really
wonderful but unless there's someone who
wants to write a check for that it's
it's not really worth anything at all
and that's that's a hard thing for a lot
of people to uh to to succeed at so
that's the general difference between
entrepreneurs and non-entrepreneurs and
that's not to say that there aren't uh
lots of people who aren't entrepreneurs
who don't take responsibility for the
themselves and don't realize they have
to create value but um they're the
exceptions in their world where just to
be an entrepreneur and to survive as an
entrepreneur you have to have this now
the second question is what's the
difference between entrepreneurs period
and really successful entrepreneurs
because I think that's what every
entrepreneur wants to know where is the
uh the useful differences that I can
focus on
in my own Performance Based on the
performance of the best performing
entrepreneurs we're always looking for
you know how do the superstars do it
that's in any area of life but
especially in the entrepreneurial world
and so I'll use the term Superstar
because um they they operate in a way
that is just dramatically different uh
dramatically better and dramatically
bigger than ordinary entrepreneurs and
uh my uh my sense is that this is what
I'm going to describe here has probably
always been true but it's being
magnified and multiplied more in the
21st century than it was in the previous
centuries and that is that instead of um
trying to solve problems in the
marketplace known problems in the
marketplace the really great
entrepreneurs are only interested in
creating new capabilities so if I were
to use a percentage I would say that
probably 95% of all
entrepreneurs are trying to solve an
existing problem so it's it's uh the
clients and customers need something
solved but in many ways it's the client
or customers who are defining the
activity of the entrepreneur but the
really great entrepreneurs really aren't
interested in solving a problem they're
very fascinated and motivated to create
a new capability and one of my real Role
Models here and he may be one of the
greatest role models in the history of
Entrepreneurship is Steve Jobs at Apple
because Steve Jobs during the entire
time that he uh had the he was at Apple
both the first time he was there and
then when he came back never did focus
groups he would never bring in customers
and clients
and ask them what they needed what what
were their problems What did the what
did they want to solve but instead what
he focused on he said if there was a
really great new capability I wanted for
myself in the world what would it be and
uh you know one of the answers was I
would like to be able to operate a
computer without knowing code and a lot
of people don't know this but Steve Jobs
wasn't a great technology guy and so he
saidou know it'd just be a lot easier
for me if I could just have um click I
could just click so the the he didn't
invent this but he was the one who made
it famous was called the you know the
graphic user interface where instead of
learning code and punching in code you
all you did with the mouse uh is that
you clicked you know you clicked uh the
cursor you clicked on and you got the
program things switch for everything so
everybody in everybody in the computer
world now uses graphic user interface
but the reason why Apple was the first
to use graphic user interface faster
than anyone else is because Steve Jobs
wanted this capability for himself the
other thing is he said um uh with um you
know cell phones which have been around
for you know many years before Steve
Jobs was there and he said uh why don't
uh I I would like to have a capability
where this could connect to the internet
and uh I could have all sorts of
different functions on the internet uh
all sorts of uh what got to be called
applications where if there was any kind
of new electronic capability I would
just be able to download it to my phone
and that created the uh the Apple Store
you know and uh you had iTunes where you
could download things and you had the
iPhone and so what his rule was was that
where all projects get started is that I
want a particular new capability for
myself and if it really works for me
probably a lot of other people will want
to have it and I don't have to worry
about what their needs are I don't have
to worry about their problems I'm just
going to take things that uh I need
personally for my life and then he
wrapped a formula around this and this
is the second part of first of all the
great entrepreneurs develop new
capabilities for themselves and the
second part of it is the great
entrepreneurs uh build a formula around
their capabilities that are always the
same so for Apple the formula is we make
beautiful technology that people love
using and this is a Formula when you
think about it that could last for a
hundred years so uh I saw an article
once and they said that apple is most
likely of the great technology companies
today uh to be still in operation 100
years from now and the reason is they
have a formula so it doesn't really
matter what kind of
Technology uh is being made and so they
can adjust to any kind of Technology but
the one thing is that it has to be
beautiful technology it has to be
beautiful beautifully packaged it has to
be the experience of using it has to be
sort of a Beau full experience and the
individuals the customers and clients
who are using the technology love the
experience so what they have so I would
say going back to the question what is
the difference
between entrepreneurs in general and
great entrepreneurs is that great
entrepreneurs don't try to solve
problems they try to create capabilities
they try to create capabilities that
they themselves want to have and then
they have a formula so that no matter
how technology changes how the world
changes how the marketplace the economy
changes they have a single strategy that
they can stay with forever and uh I
found that when you give these to
differentiating points to most
entrepreneurs they can make very very
rapid progress and identifying the
capabilities uh that don't exist now
that they would like to have for
themselves and also that they can create
a formula that they can stay with
forever and all of a sudden what might
have been just sort of a reasonably
successful entrepreneur they immediately
make the shift to being a truly great
[Music]
entrepreneur
Browse More Related Video
Types of Entrepreneur | Business Strategies for Success | Motivation | Skills | Entrepreneurship
10 things to do before becoming an Entrepreneur | DEEPAK BAJAJ
STOP BEING TOO SALESY | How to Effectively Sell Your Digital Products in 2024
Systems Thinking: How Billionaires Think
How to sell to wealthy clients (attract successful clients).
Introduction to Entrepreneurship
5.0 / 5 (0 votes)