Sometime in the last ten years, entrepreneurs began to be celebrated as much as athletes and rock stars.
I think Shark Tank had a lot to do with it.
It was the first time, at least that I could remember, you saw people share their businesses on TV and sign big deals to sell a stake of it. It didn’t matter that there was some TV magic involved (many of the “agreements” fizzled out after the taping ended and real negotiations began), it was just fun to see people talk about their businesses.
It showed everyone was that entrepreneurship is messy (and hard). Very messy (and very hard).
One area of business you don’t often see is behind the scenes, such when co-founders fall out or partnerships dissolve…
How I Lost $100 Million in 60 Days [Medium] – “My true story of moving to Silicon Valley for a role on an eccentric billionaire’s reality TV show where I lost big, but also won a new life.” A bit of a harrowing rollercoaster of a tale but an enjoyable read.
Five lessons from the first 6 months of entrepreneurship [rich & Regular] – “It’s been six months since we officially shifted our thinking to turn this blog into a business and the journey has been crazy, in a good way. As expected, we’ve had ups and downs and we’ve learned a $hit-ton in the process. So to make sure we don’t forget this precious period, here are five lessons we’ve learned from our first 6 months of entrepreneurship.”
If you’ve ever felt like you could play Monday Morning CEO:
If Everyone Else is Such an Idiot, How Come You’re Not Rich? [The Atlantic] – “If you see a person–or a company–doing something that seems completely and inexplicably boneheaded, then it’s unwise to assume that the reason must be that everyone but you is a complete idiot who is blind to fairly trivial insights such as “people desire inexpensive and conveniently available movie services, and will resist having those services made more expensive, or less convenient”. While it’s certainly true that people do idiotic things, it’s also true that a lot of those “idiotic” things turn out to have perfectly reasonable explanations.”
Sometimes starting a real business is too hard… and it’s much easier to be a con artist:
Instagram Influencer and Prolific Car Collector Arrested for $430M ‘Cyberscam’ [The Drive] – “Out of all the colorful characters in internet folklore, few are as well-known as the scam-tastic influencers. You know, the kind who recommend you buy their multi-step programs to build wealth, hack financial markets, or magically amass fortunes by being a positive ray of light in today’s dark world. As it turns out, many of these folks’ social accounts are nothing but facades to lucrative (and oftentimes corrupt) businesses. Case in point, 38-year-old Instagram influencer Raymond “Hushpuppi” Abbas, who was just arrested for his alleged involvement in a multi-million dollar “cyberscam,” per various reports. Also, he’s apparently a big car guy. Surprise, surprise!”
Happy Tuesday and I’ll see you tomorrow!