Zero To One

Let’s flip the script a little bit today and get down to business.

Have you been thinking about starting a business but you don’t know where to start?

It can be really tough coming up with a product or service that potential customers may be interested in. 

In his classic book “Zero To One,” Peter Thiel provides a lot of insight on creating and maintaining a business. 

Going from “Zero To One” means being progressive and doing something no one else has ever done. The alternative would be doing things that we already know how to do, which may even include improving on others’ ideas.

Peter Thiel says that although improving on something that has already been done can bring in profits, it will not bring longevity to such a company. 

But he makes sure to point out that he is not offering a formula for success. Being innovative means being new and unique by definition, so there couldn’t be a prescription or any concrete terms on how to be innovative. We just have to be ready to find value in unexpected places.

Think about something that you are good at and consider if it will be valuable in the future.

If the goal is for your business to still be around 10 years from now, the main focus should be the quality of the product or service rather than near-term growth.

A business could potentially see infinite possibilities just by creating something new and valuable (of great quality). 

Furthermore, starting with a small target market that is served by only a few or no competitors would be a much better idea than starting with a big market concentration. You can always grow and expand to a broader market once you experience success in that smaller market. 

A business should also have some concrete plans for the future and build that future by investing in new projects.

I’ll conclude with a very interesting question from the book, “what valuable company is nobody building?”

I hope this added some value to your day, especially if you are an aspiring entrepreneur.

If you’re familiar with Peter Thiel’s work, feel free to comment below. And as always, thank you for reading!

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