Hard work — and good fortune — propelled successful domain investors.
In Malcolm Gladwell’s new book Outliers, he argues that successful people got to where they are through hard work and good fortune. Whether it’s their cultural background or just plain being in the right place at the right time, successful people don’t do it on their own.
Consider Bill Gates. Yes, he was smart and worked hard to create Microsoft. But he was also born at just the right time to be in the position to start a software company. He also went to perhaps the only school in the country with a computer terminal. Without that, it’s unlikely he would have created Microsoft. (One of the more interesting trivia in the book: in what months of the year are the most successful Canadian hockey players born?)
The same can be applied to some of the more successful domainers. The back stories on successful people in the domain industry is well chronicled in David Kesmodel’s The Domain Game. Consider Frank Schilling. He was at the exact moment in his life when he was looking for a way to feed his family. His hopes of starting an online casino had been shattered. Pay-per-click on domains was just taking off. He then worked tirelessly to build his domain empire Name Administration. There was a lot of hard work and foresight, but also a lot of luck. The same can be said for most other people chronicled in The Domain Game. For some it was as simple as being in the right place at the right time. Or being located near other big domainers who got them interested in the business.
Why is it that so many successful domainers live in Western Canada? Was it the time zone, making it easier to catch expiring domains? Perhaps the network of other domainers to learn from?
The thesis of Outliers can be applied to just about everyone. You should pick up this book and consider what has helped you get to where you are today. Perhaps it’s your ancestors from 1,000 years ago. Or the year you were born. Or what middle school you went to. And, of course, lots of hard work.
premium domains says
Very interesting post. Be interesting to see what he’s written in more detail.
M. Menius says
This is an interesting topic. My take is that many/most successful people reach their destination through smarts and hard work. Luck probably does factor in … although some people who might categorize your success as “luck” don’t really understand that it was perseverance, creativity, timing and “opportunity by design” (i.e. not laid in your lap). Or, calcuated risk-taking that others were unwilling to endure.
Guess I’m saying success is not accidental. Probably the biggest “luck” ingredient is the family that a person is born into, and the presence of support/guidance.
High need for stimulation probably a key factor too! 😉
Kevin Ohashi says
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/11/30/malcolm_gladwell_no/
RegFeeNames.com says
Its certainly one Im going to read – I think people like FS, KH, RS, SD etc are true inspirations to the domain industry and have shown great foresight and taken a risk and spend heavily on an industry that didnt exist.
Well done to them!
Regards,
Robbie
taylor says
Someone once said, “Luck = skill + opportunity”.
domain guy says
if you read books on luck there are several
explaniations.
1.luck is prepartion meets opportunity,
2.the spider web effect the more hooks you have out there the better your chances ie
spiderweb has many web strings a bug gets caught and the spider in the middle of the web feels the prey far away.
3.einstein the harder i work the luckier i get
4.the order of the universe random events.
Steve M says
The harder and smarter one works, the “luckier” one gets.
Andrew Allemann says
@ Kevin Ohashi – I assume by pointing to that link you disagree with Gladwell? I don’t agree with everything he writes, including parts of this book. But I do recommend picking this one up. It begins with a bang, has some good points in the middle (and some lame ones), and then ends well too. It really makes you realize how much you should be thankful for.
Lee Costa says
Wow another Nostradamos in the making…
Kevin Ohashi says
Andrew,
I’ve read it already 🙂 along with his other two. I enjoy the stories, I just don’t think the conclusions he draws are valid and very well substantiated and should be taken with a large grain of salt.
M. Menius says
@Steve M – “The harder and smarter one works, the “luckier” one gets.”
Very well said, Steve, and to the point.