How to be a great founder

The day of the last lecture came. We ended the class with a lecture on a topic "How to be a great founder".

What is the perception of a great founder? It is the image of a super man, like Steve Jobs or Bill Gates. However, in reality a great founder is just a normal person who deals with many problems and headaches. The thing about a good founder is that they pour their heart into solving problems and they are able to focus solely on the startup.

The perception people have about a great founder". Source

You have to be a risk taker to be a great founder. However, you need to take intelligent risks. You need to be able to assess the risks and the outcomes so you minimize the negative outcomes and maximize the positive ones.

What are the requirements for being a great founder. Being genius isn't requirement for being a good founder. However, as founder it is vital for you to control your own psyche. You need to remain calm on the surface even when everything is going wrong and you are an emotional wreck. You are the captain of the ship and need to be able to remain calm even under a lot of pressure. You also have to have humility. You need to recognize that usually behind the success of the startup is the whole team and not just the founder. As a founder you also have to be ready to make sacrifices for your team. A great founder is someone who isn't concerned about himself that much. A great founder wants to change the world with his startup.

I will end my last blog post with a quote from Guy Kawasaki:

"Great companies start because the founders want to change the world... not make a fast buck."
-Guy Kawasaki