[This post is part of a series on four main myths that discourage entrepreneurship and how to overcome them. If you don’t see a Table of Contents to the left, click here to view the series, where you’ll get more value than reading just this post.] Myth 4: Starting a venture is riskier than working at an established firm Risk means different things to different people. Risk that matters to[…] Keep reading →

[This post is part of a series on four main myths that discourage entrepreneurship and how to overcome them. If you don’t see a Table of Contents to the left, click here to view the series, where you’ll get more value than reading just this post.] Myth 3: I should make some more money before starting my venture I’ve never met anyone who didn’t raise his or her standard of[…] Keep reading →

[This post is part of a series on four main myths that discourage entrepreneurship and how to overcome them. If you don’t see a Table of Contents to the left, click here to view the series, where you’ll get more value than reading just this post.] Myth 2: Working for an established company helps prepare you for starting a venture Why this belief is a myth is subtle. Working somewhere[…] Keep reading →

[This post is part of a series on four main myths that discourage entrepreneurship and how to overcome them. If you don’t see a Table of Contents to the left, click here to view the series, where you’ll get more value than reading just this post.] Google’s history backs up that people did not believe good idea to start with, no matter what we think of it today. I couldn’t[…] Keep reading →

[This post is part of a series on four main myths that discourage entrepreneurship and how to overcome them. If you don’t see a Table of Contents to the left, click here to view the series, where you’ll get more value than reading just this post.] Many classmates in business school said they wanted to start businesses yet few did. For that matter, many people in life say they want[…] Keep reading →

If you accept mainstream ideas of creativity, then your understanding of creativity is holding you back from creating things and being creative. Mainstream views on creativity sell books, movies, magazines, and so forth. They sell over-romanticized myths that, while entertaining, undermine your ability to create things and solve problems. Let’s start with two contradictions to lay bare the counterproductivity in mainstream views. First, mainstream views value creative, original, so-called outside-the-box[…] Keep reading →

The Worst problem In The World is two people with different standards who don’t realize their standards differ evaluating each other and acting on their evaluation. This is not hyperbole. Think of a recent news headline involving conflict. It was probably a variation of The Worst Problem In The World. Many significant conflicts in the world are either solvable or are variations of The Worst Problem In The World. Many[…] Keep reading →

“Free food tastes better,” someone said to me. It rang true. I immediately added the corollary “free alcohol tastes better too.” I thought it resonated with me because I was a graduate student for so long. Then I noticed something at a fancy gallery opening with art selling for tens of thousands of dollars. Normally galleries serve wine, sometimes another alcohol if they have a sponsor. At this opening they[…] Keep reading →

Focusing on what creates emotional reward is great. If it works for you, you can do better. When something brings you emotional reward, here are two things you can do more than just focusing on it to bring more reward into your life: overindulging in your emotional reward and sharing the reward. Overindulging in reward means if your manager pats you on the back and you feel good about it,[…] Keep reading →