Age (Just A Number), Data Privacy, and Hot Reading List Additions
What’s the average age of someone who starts a startup?
A study published in the Harvard Business Review by the MIT Sloan School of Management found that the average age of a successful startup founder is...45.
This is surprising given that the stereotypical image of an entrepreneur in the post-Facebook-era would be a kid in a zip-up hoodies sitting in their parents' basement disrupting industries with new innovations. There is a lot to be said about the advantages of youth. Youth allows for the freedom to take big risks without having to worry about too many obligations such as a family to support. Younger entrepreneurs are more in tune with current trends and can see opportunities to innovate that may have been overlooked from "industry standards." Plus, if young entrepreneurs reach a roadblock, they create their own way forward by blasting their way through or building a bridge.
However developing a product is different from running a business and they require different sets of skills. All the advantages that youth provides serve as a double edge sword. The myth that a lack of experience give younger entrepreneurs a fresh perspective and therefore an edge is confounded.
The MIT study states: “If you were faced with two entrepreneurs and knew nothing about them besides their age, you would do better, on average, betting on the older one. Our evidence points to entrepreneurial performance rising sharply with age before cresting in the late fifties.”
Now, who would you pick to run your company if you had to choose between an older, wiser entrepreneur or a spring chicken?
Facebook Steps Up Data Privacy Concerns
After Facebook’s Cambridge Analytica data scandal, Facebook is now stepping up their infrastructure to ban apps that raise concerns over data privacy and the collection of potentially sensitive data.
The myPersonality app via Facebook, an app that shares information with researchers as well as companies with only limited protections in place, is one of the many apps Facebook has suspended.
For the roughly 4 million individuals who have used the app, Facebook said they have notified these individuals.
MyPersonality isn’t the only app on Facebook, though, to get the boot. Since the investigation began in March, more than 400 apps have been suspend with thousands more being under review.
Consider your time on social media. Are you certain you know where your data is going?
It’s Time to Start Reading Again, Buddy
The life of an entrepreneur is more than just 9-to-5. There are nights and weekends when you’re in charge of taking care of business. For business owners who work around the clock, some may say they never have a free moment to pick up a book.
The world of resources, when it comes to entrepreneurs, is vast. Reading is another form of education for entrepreneurs who are eager to learn. Reading, undoubtedly, serves entrepreneurs well.
If you can’t seem to find the time to sit and read, then you may not know where to start when it comes to actually selecting a book.
Consider this quick start guide from The Financial Times a good jumping off point:
The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg (https://charlesduhigg.com/the-power-of-habit/)
Bad Blood by John Carreyrou (https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/549478/bad-blood-by-john-carreyrou/9781524731656/)
Delivering Happiness by Tony Hsieh (http://deliveringhappiness.com/book/)
Tribe of Mentors by Tim Ferriss (https://tribeofmentors.com)
Built to Sell by John Warrillow (http://www.builttosell.com/book/)
The Obstacle is the Way by Ryan Holiday (http://theobstacleistheway.com)
Which one will you start first?