PandoMonthly: Evernote CEO Phil Libin on why he became an entrepreneur

TL;DR

The speaker discusses how they stumbled upon entrepreneurship as a way to have a meaningful impact on the world despite not excelling in other fields.

Transcript

so how did you get interested in entrepreneurship uh I never really got interested in entrepreneurship I would say now you're slightly interested in entrepreneurship you know yes you're right maybe you should leave so I never thought of myself as an entrepreneur in fact the path I was on for a very long time always felt like failing like it always ... Read More

Key Insights

• 🙈 The speaker never saw themselves as an entrepreneur and felt like they were failing in their previous pursuits.
• 👪 Coming from a family of accomplished individuals, the speaker chose a different path, driven by their desire to have a meaningful impact on the world.
• 🥅 They believe that optimizing for impact is a valid goal and entrepreneurship is their chosen path to achieve it.
• 🌍 The speaker's motivation is not purely financial or fame-oriented. They seek to create something meaningful and make a difference in the world.
• 🖤 The decision to pursue entrepreneurship was born out of the realization that they lacked talent in other fields where they could have made an impact.
• 🤪 The speaker acknowledges the ego-driven aspect of wanting to leave a mark on the universe but believes it is a valid and purposeful motivation.
• 👻 Choosing entrepreneurship allows the speaker to create something that doesn't exist and make a difference in their own unique way.

Questions & Answers

Q: How did the speaker's family background influence their career choices?

The speaker's family consisted of highly accomplished individuals in the fields of music and academia. As the black sheep, they didn't pursue the traditional path and felt like they couldn't excel in those areas.

Q: Why couldn't the speaker hold onto other jobs?

It took the speaker a long time to develop the ability to pretend to be amenable and nice. They didn't fit well in a conventional work environment and had an entrepreneurial spirit that led them to start their own companies.

Q: What motivated the speaker to pursue entrepreneurship?

The speaker clarified that starting a company wasn't their driving force. They sought to optimize their impact on the world and realized that creating something that didn't exist was their opportunity to make a difference.

Q: What is the speaker optimizing for in their life?

The speaker is optimizing for impact. They want to maximize their contribution to the world and leave a lasting impression. They believe that creating something new and impactful is the way to achieve this goal.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• The speaker never considered themselves an entrepreneur and felt like they were failing in their previous pursuits.

• They come from a family of accomplished musicians and academics, but chose a different path.

• Their motivation lies in maximizing their impact on the world, leading them to choose entrepreneurship as a way to create something impactful.