I foolishly started a company in my early twenties. People often ask me what I knew about entrepreneurship. Nothing. I was clueless. I still am.
A combination of luck, enthusiasm, and lots of help led to a modicum of success, and I'm grateful for having been a fool.
Would I do it again today? Probably not.
Because I have learned to be less foolish. To my detriment.
Foolishness is the privilege of youth.
Sometimes, the more you know, the less you act. Because you can predict why it won't work. Because you know there's nothing special about you. Others have tried and failed.
But the truth is, you don't need to be good at anything to start something.
Entrepreneurs don’t wait for the right idea. They try things. Doing something is the only way to eventually do the right thing.
It's the nature of doing something new. No one knows beforehand if it will work.
And besides, nothing interesting comes up when we know what we're doing. Beauty is in surprise. In the unexpected. The danger.
Any creative endeavor is like walking on a tightrope.
The rope may be long, and narrow, and frail.
It might snap halfway.
You can look for other ropes.
But the short, steady ones have been walked over by many already.
Steady is safe. But safe is not creative. Safe is not fun. Safe is not remembered.
Foolishness is the privilege of youth. But being young is not a matter of age. It's a matter of heart.
We stay young as long as we nurture our inner child. The child that rode a dragon. The pilot of paper planes.
What are the greatest qualities of children (besides their cuteness)?
They're curious, unhinged, and impatient. They don't wait. They can't stay still.
Wake up your inner child.
Don't wait to be good, or even good enough.
Don't wait for the "right" idea.
Don't wait for the how.
You don't need expertise, legitimacy, authority, or even credibility to start something new.
You just need to give yourself permission.
To go outside of your comfort zone. To go on an adventure and come back potentially empty-handed.
To do something that is uniquely you.
To be you.
To begin, begin. – William Wordsworth
Now.