The Story Behind Success

Particularly aspiring entrepreneurs, love to hear about how established and successful entrepreneurs did what they did. Unfortunately, things weren't always as the stories behind successful entrepreneurs tell them. A lot of the time, "rumors" are unleashed in such a way that more publicity is given- than should be received or just the fact that a business model is so good to be true, it is a viral phenomenon.

That said, I always listen about entrepreneurs trying to create a business off of another entrepreneurs story. In most cases, this will never work. Even if you sit down with Bill Gates, he might be completely transparent and tell you everything he did to start Microsoft and create it into a thriving business, but nobody can replicate the same success with the same product due to the following general factors:

1. Timing is different.
2. There is only one Bill Gates who conceived the concept behind Microsoft.
   
3. Small things happen which made the company successful, which even Bill Gates probably cannot even recall.
   
4. As time progresses, it takes more to filter through noise.
5. The staff cannot be replicated.

As far as timing goes, creating a software company when software is just evolving, gives the option to map the future of software. If a company like Microsoft would be created today, they would have to literally pave a road with a different future, than what is expected. So eventually, the concept would be totally new and it wouldn't be a replication of Microsoft anyways.

When looking at an any entrepreneur and trying to replicate their success, with the same products they offer, you have to keep in mind that you are not that person and you are you. Entrepreneurs can range from running a plumbing company to a law firm to even something related to health care. Talent turned into a business is what makes an entrepreneur, so not every entrepreneur can run every business. And even within a certain field, it is hard to match up to a different person's DNA- so to speak.

Everyone knows a business isn't created in one day- or night. That means that there are a lot of external factors that influence the success or failure of a business. Small things either contribute or take away from a business which can add up in a positive manner to take a company to the top or add up and bury a company. It isn't humanly possible to remember each and every move any entrepreneur makes, so there are things left out of stories behind successful entrepreneurs.

If I tried to create the next Microsoft, or even something smaller...the next Facebook, by myself (as those respective companies were created), it probably could never happen. The times when these companies were started, gave them leverage over introducing a new way of doing things. Building something and remodeling a look is different. If anyone tried to create the next Facebook, they would surely need a team of people behind the product, just to live up to consumer expectations; which is why it is more encouraged to create a new concept, instead of just reinventing the wheel. You won't be recognized for learning how to speak English, but if you created a new language, people will be amazed.

A major part of any business, new or old, is the people that run it. The staff behind a start-up company can be a great asset to the growth of a company, or be the cause of a company to fail. It is really difficult to put together a stellar team, nonetheless create a stellar team and replicate a business that already exists in the space.

To sum things up, I don't want to discourage or say that copy cat or me too businesses won't succeed; or even the fact that you can't replicate a successful entrepreneurs story, but I won't say that it is possible either. Creating a new concept is what gets people talking, if you are the 2nd person or company in a space, you will always be compared to the first.