The Soul of Startups

CHAPTER 6The Trailblazer

As in Chapter 5, some people are still desperate to break themselves out of a stereotypical label of being called “old school” or “too old to try.” So, they end up focusing on making sure they have risen above their past and creating a company that is nothing like before. While some of the more self‐aware founders (although not innate to all founders) become the Trailblazer type, the ones largely lacking in this department become leaders that create toxic, dysfunctional cultures.

We have always associated them with founders who have creative problem‐solving skills, are charismatic enough for you to embrace their new ideas, and most incredibly, adapt to new environments. Except when this person wants to break the mold, and they forget what it was like to be a good manager.

THE SHINY SIDE OF THE COIN

Entrepreneurs are expected to be the person (or people) willing to take risks and go into a path that isn't already there. Sometimes they are also called pioneers, but the sheer difference here is that they would not just stop at being a groundbreaker but also set a trail and leave a new path for others to follow. We have called them innovators, or even people who discover something new and make it acceptable in society as if it had always been there. That's how good they are.

Once, I met a serial entrepreneur at a surf camp while he explained why he had used surfing as a metaphor for life. He said, “When someone is surfing, they have no control over the ...