Innovation Is Not Only For Young People

When I discuss working with “startups”, my friends roll their eyes. It’s a loaded, mysterious term, especially for people who didn’t grow up with an iPhone or Facebook.

Google, or HBO’s Silicon Valley, has become the popular stereotype of startup culture — beanbags, t-shirts and flip flops, dogs in the office, artisan coffee, and a bunch of young brainiacs behind their computers. For most people outside Silicon Valley, this is a foreign culture.

But its not that simple. According to Adam Grant, a professor at Wharton, the average venture-backed founder is 38. It turns out that experience and perspective are important when starting a business.

Experienced founders tend to be more cautious. They tend to discount hype and focus on fundamentals. The best experienced founders know their strengths and their weaknesses. They empower people, especially younger coworkers, and take the long view.

They also remember what it was like before ubiquitous connectivity. Experienced founders understand that, at best, technology is a tool that heightens human functionality. It does not replace human functionality.

The future of innovation is not about building robots; it is about connecting and empowering people.

Originally published on August 9, 2016.