Chris Barton – How Entrepreneurs Are Different

I think that everyone wants to be a unicorn. Is that true?

Everyone’s enamored by those big dollars and the big names and the big brands. I do think that is the star factor that attracts some entrepreneurs. 

But I also think there are some entrepreneurs who just want to build a great business. They’re attracted less by the fame and big dollar signs and more by the lifestyle of being able to live and breathe and have a career where they’re essentially the boss, where they’re creating things, and where they’re having an impact on the world.

How do you give budding entrepreneurs a little bit of a reality pill?

There’s often an assumption that if you have a great idea, you’re going to be very successful. I always like to emphasize that’s not the case. In fact, for many entrepreneurs, there are actually two innovations. One is the idea and then the other is how they’re going to break it big.

When did it hit you to start your own business?

I remember sitting next to another student who was one year ahead of me. He was in his second year at the MBA and I was starting my first year and I said, “Oh, what are you doing?” He said, “I’m starting a company.” Then I asked, “What did you do before business school?” He said, “I was an Air Force pilot. I thought, “Wow, if an Air Force pilot can just go start a company, I have no excuses to not start a company.”