Hello entrepreneurs,
I have a unique question to present to you FastLaners. I am flabbergasted at the rate current technologies are growing every year.
I come from a business family who is into trading various commodities like Diamonds, Gold, food grains etc, so we aren't vulnerable to disruptions made by new technologies. I, however, want to be more than just a trader of goods and so I studied Computer Science for my undergraduation in 2011, so as to build the next big thing like Google or Facebook (at least I hoped to). I still intend to build new tech related or non-technical startups to build vast wealth.
I have a serious question to ask though. Although I am a Computer Science/Software Engineering graduate, I still find the find the concepts/fields of various rapidly evolving technologies like Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Blockchain, etc extremely difficult to understand, much less start a startup using those technologies, now that every VC funded startup seems to be using some sort of AI or Blockchain in their core technology.
So, should I be scared of these new technologies grabbing up the opportunities? Will there be a chance for us non-technical or average tech people to get rich by innovating or add value by improving industries (as stated in the Unscripted book)? I am getting depressed that I am just not getting these "cool" and "hip" technologies to implement them in my own startups, no matter how much I try to learn about them by watching YouTube videos and reading online articles. Even if I manage to get the basics of some technology down, there are further advances made in the technology by then leaving me lagging behind.
Please help me clear my head. I need motivation to continue in my entrepreneurial journey. Can I still succeed in business massively by not knowing the latest technologies? If yes, can you please give some examples where non-technical guys can make big money in a Hi-Tech world?
Many thanks.
In my opinion, the whole point of being an entrepreneur is adapting to situations (or in this case new technologies) and finding ways to make them valuable to the average consumer.
I still find the find the concepts/fields of various rapidly evolving technologies like Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Blockchain, etc extremely difficult to understand, much less start a startup using those technologies, now that every VC funded startup seems to be using some sort of AI or Blockchain in their core technology.
Well yeah, the people that make those startups (the successful ones) probably spent a lot of time learning how it works and how to apply it. If the average Joe could do it then they wouldn't really be providing any value to the consumer.
However, I think technologies like blockchain are just trends to be honest. It's been around for ages yet it only takes off this year because of the whole bitcoin trend that developed mainstream.
Now average Joe's who think they know everything about blockchain and bitcoin because they saw a 10 minute segment on the news about it are creating their own cryptocurrencies.
The best advice I can give you, if you don't understand something, keep learning about it. Hell even when you do understand it, keep learning about it. Make sure it is something that will be worth your while though. It would be a shame to waste a large chunk of time learning something that becomes irrelevant in 1 year.
To answer your last question, yes.
First example that comes to mind is Steve Jobs. He was interested in technology, but from what I've read he didn't actually develop anything. That was all Steve Wozniak.
Steve Jobs was just a salesman and the face of Apple.
So there you go. Co-founder of one of the biggest tech companies in the world was a salesman and probably had no idea how the latest technologies worked.
Just remember, if you get to a stage where your company is taking off, you will be hiring other people to understand all the new tech and integrating it into your products, not you.