When I left my job as an investment professional at Softbank Vision Fund to start my own company, I saw broadly two reactions: Some applauded me for taking the “leap of faith” to do what I wanted. Others were concerned that I was throwing away a successful career path. Both, I think, overestimate the amount of risk I took to start my own company.
There seems to be a misconception — even among my peers not unfamiliar with the tech world — that all startup founders are risk-taking. To be fair, I was also inundated with stories of entrepreneurs going “all in”, and risking everything they have to make history. For example, I was reading Shoe Dog, a biography about Phil Knight who founded Nike, and how the founder put his house on the line to float capital for his company.
But not every startup founder needs to be risk-taking. I’m the opposite. I’m extremely risk averse.
In fact, I de-risked for five years before becoming a full-time founder: I de-risked my background, de-risked my career, and de-risked my startup. Most of this process can be boiled down to creating no-loss or minimal-loss scenarios.