Donna Fenn is an internationally recognized author and journalist who has been writing about entrepreneurship and small business trends for more than 20 years. In 2005, she wrote…
Generation Y is starting companies at an unprecedented rate, and their approach to business is unlike anything you’ve seen. The generation described by the media as spoiled, entitled, even narcissistic, is proving these notions false…
You may have already heard the amazing story of Haiti earthquake survivor Dan Woolley, who was buried under the rubble of the Hotel Montana for 65 hours with only his iPhone and an SLR camera as survival tools. But you may not know that this story has an Upstart connection. Woolley extended his iPhone’s battery life with a “Juice Pack” battery extender made by Mophie, a company that was founded in 2004 by Upstart Ben Kaufman, and then sold in 2007. Woolley used his iPhone’s Pocket First Aid and CPR app to make sure he was treating his wounds properly; he listened to his music when he was feeling discouraged; and he set his iPhone’s alarm to wake him up every twenty minutes when he feared he might go into shock. Without the battery extender, Woolley may well have been cursing his iPhone’s dismal battery life like the rest of us. No, the iPhone didn’t save his life (a French rescue team gets the credit for that) but it sure did give him some valuable support and comfort. Don’t know about you, but I’m springing for both the First Aid app ($3.99) and the Juice Pack.
Mophie, by the way, continues to make very cool accessories for the iPod and iPhone, and Kaufman’s new company, Quirky, a social product development company, is rocking it with a growing stable of innovative products. You can check out the Mophie to Quirky evolution on this video.
I had a big breakthrough yesterday: I did my first handstand in yoga class! This may not sound like a big deal to you but for me it was HUGE. I hate going upside down; I hurt myself a few years ago doing a forearm stand and my shoulder was screwed up for months. So it took years for me to get comfortable just doing a headstand against the wall and I had pretty much convinced myself that that was the extent of my comfort zone. I had even stopped being envious of the class “yoga beast”, who seemed to have an invisible pulley system attached to the soles of her feet—so gracefully and effortlessly did she fly up every single time. But yesterday, after doing the requisite headstand, our teacher suggested we all try a handstand, with her spotting us but not assisting. I had planned on passing (again) but then another woman in our class—someone who I sensed was similarly reticent—agreed to give it a go. She was clearly scared, but she pushed through her fear and guess what? She found her invisible pulley system! I’ll admit it: I wasn’t just inspired and encouraged; I was also feeling the teeniest bit competitive because, well, that’s my nature. So I declared my intention: I would try the handstand. The first attempt to kick up failed. As did the second. And the third. “Rest,” said my teacher. “Try again another time.” Arrgh! “One more try,” I said. And voila! As it turns out, I had a pulley system, too. Applause. High fives. It felt amazing! Gosh, I thought, courage really is contagious.
So what on earth does this have to do with entrepreneurs? Plenty, I think. While I frequently practice yoga at home alone and enjoy it, I never would have attempted a handstand on my own. But yesterday’s class provided the perfect risk-taking environment: I had a trusted teacher, a role model, and a peer, each giving me a different kind of encouraging, yet unspoken, message: “I will coach you to push your limits, but I will not let you hurt yourself”; “This is what’s possible if you work hard,”; “I was afraid and I tried anyway; so should you.” It struck me that those are EXACTLY the three kinds of voices that entrepreneurs need when they’re starting and growing companies. As I’ve said many times before, GenY entrepreneurs are particularly good at surrounding themselves with mentors, role models, and peers. They know that while you sometimes need to work in isolation to get things done, it’s your trusted, collaborative tribe that often helps you find the pulley system you never knew you had.
Upstarts! are moving targets and one goal of this blog is to chronicle what’s new among the people in the book as well as in the broader world of young entrepreneurs. As I’ve mentioned many times, one of my favorite characteristics of GenY entrepreneurs is their knack for leveraging all kinds of collaboration to grow their companies. For instance, this generation is particularly skilled at creating strategic partnerships. I think of Tom Szaky of TerraCycle and the game-changing partnership he forged with big packaged goods companies like Kraft to “upcycle” their used packaging into useful items like tote bags and shower curtains. Or consider the streetwear apparel company, The Hundreds, and their new partnership with Disney to give the Lost Boys an urban makeover. And just recently, I spoke to Jordan Goldman, the 26-year-old founder of Unigo.com, who told me that he’s just landed a very sweet deal with The Wall Street Journal to create a new online brand called WSJ on Campus.
It was so great to see friends from the Kauffman Foundation at the Inc. 500/5000 conference last week! Everyone who has ever heard me speak about Upstarts! knows that one of the huge inspirations for writing the book was Kauffman’s research on the enormous increase in entrepreneurship programs in U.S. colleges and universities. That’s driven by student demand, of course, but also frequently supported by grants from Kauffman.
According to a new Small Business Monitor survey by American Express OPEN, GenY entrepreneurs are an optimistic bunch and they’re positioned for growth despite a still shaky economy. You can read about the entire survey here, but here’s the part that I find most interesting:
“Generally speaking, the experience of older and more seasoned entrepreneurs puts them in a better position than younger entrepreneurs to manage through downturns. According to the American Express OPEN Small Business Monitor, however, the tables have turned, and it’s younger business owners who are geared for growth.
The survey found that Gen Y is the most optimistic group of entrepreneurs when compared to other age groups and to the overall sample of business owners. More than three-quarters (80%) of these entrepreneurs have a significantly more positive outlook on business prospects versus Gen X and business owners overall (each 55%), and Baby Boomers (52%).
