不忘初心是企業家的一種美德
Adam Lashinsky
2017-12-14
傳遞火炬：帕特里克夫（中）與合伙人伊恩·西格羅（左）和達娜·塞特爾在Greycroft紐約辦事處的廚房里。兩位年輕的合伙人正逐漸接過大旗，領導這家風投公司 | 圖片：Robyn Twomey
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全球最優秀的企業家之一杰夫·貝佐斯常常談到“初心”的重要性。它指的是即使獲得了巨大的成功，也要像初學者一樣謙遜，愿意學習新事物。它也指模仿年輕人的行為，即使對于貝佐斯這樣離風華正茂的三十歲已經過去了幾十年的人。 《財富》的杰夫·羅伯茨今天早上發表了一篇令人喜愛的專題文章，談到了科技界另一位擁有初心的成熟領袖。這位經驗豐富的風險資本和私人股本投資者名叫艾倫·帕特里克夫，現年82歲，不過他的渴望堪比只有他年齡三分之一的年輕人。通過對蘋果（Apple）和美國在線（AOL）等公司的投資，他取得了成功，不過與他相處一會，你就會感受到他對尋找下一家科技和媒體領袖的發自本能的渴望。作為民主黨的資金籌集人、度假勝地漢普頓斯的?？秃涂萍紩h廳的光顧者，帕特里克夫的進取心與硅谷砂山路（Sand Hill Road）里的合伙人不相上下，但他的成就要高得多。 我對那些舉止與年齡不相稱的“成熟”人士感到驚奇。毫無疑問，他們的雄心開始減退：許多人也不愿意為下一代人讓路。但帕特里克夫沒有這種問題。他放權給了一群年輕投資者，主要是他的合伙人達娜·塞特爾（她也是我多年的好友）和伊恩·西格羅。他們與帕特里克夫共同創建了Greycroft Partners，并負責了公司最近的投資。 帕特里克夫的故事里還有另一個元素討人喜歡：公司的業務范圍主要在紐約和洛杉磯，與風投公司真正青睞的硅谷相比，這些只是二流地區。正如中國已經不再是盲目的模仿者一樣，Greycroft證明了在休閑褲和羽絨背心盛行的舊金山灣區的投資圈之外，同樣有機會獲得成功。 初學者，不分老少，都有要證明的事情。有時候他們確實做到了。（財富中文網） 譯者：嚴匡正 |
Jeff Bezos, one of the world’s greatest entrepreneurs, speaks frequently of the virtues of having a “beginner’s mind.” It’s a metaphor for affecting the humility of a novice, a willingness to learn new things despite having already found great success. It’s also a euphemism for feigning the attributes of the youth even if, like Bezos, your 30s are decades in the rear-view mirror. Fortune’s Jeff Roberts has written a lovely feature article, published online this morning, about another mature tech-industry leader with a beginner’s mind. Alan Patricof, a seasoned venture-capital and private-equity investor, is 82 but has the hunger of a man a third his age. He found success with investments like Apple (AAPL, +1.94%) and AOL, but spend just a little time with Patricof and you’ll feel his visceral desire to find the next tech and media leaders. A Democratic party fundraiser, Hamptons habitue, and a tech-conference hall rat, Patricof is as aggressive as any wet-behind-the-ears associate on Sand Hill Road—but far more accomplished. I marvel at the “mature” people I know who refuse to act their age. There’s undoubtedly a downside to their ambition: Many won’t get out of the way for the next generation. That doesn’t appear to be Patricof’s problem. He has empowered a bevy of younger investors, primarily his partners Dana Settle (a friend of mine for many years) and Ian Sigalow, who are responsible for the more recent hits of the firm they founded with Patricof, Greycroft Partners. There’s another endearing element to the Greycroft story: The firm’s networks primarily are in New York and Los Angeles, perennial second fiddles to the only venture-capital market that truly matters, Silicon Valley. Just as China is no mere copycat anymore, Greycroft shows that it’s possible to succeed outside the nice-slacks-and-down-vest world of the San Francisco Bay Area investment world. Beginners, young and old, have something to prove. And sometimes they do. |
