Ronald Wayne was an electronics industry worker who teamed up with two other individuals to create a start-up. As his role was to provide administrative oversight, he was given a 10% stake in the company. However, there was something bugging the young electronics man – each partner had to be responsible for debts that were incurred by other partners. This scared him. He had previously lost a lot of money on a failed business and had also begun to doubt his abilities to be a businessman. So, within 2 weeks of signing his partnership, he sold back his shares for 800 USD. He even accepted 1,500 USD to waive off any future claims in that start-up. By August 2010, those same shares were worth more than 100 Billion USD.
His partners? Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak.
The Startup that he left? Apple.
Life as a founder or co-founder can be very terrifying. The constant threat of failure always hangs over your head, and every step you take is weighed down by a million doubts. But, the key is to persevere and go on. True, not all start-ups are successful, and many crashes within their first year. However, there are also some have reached great heights.
Ronald Wayne made a big mistake when he sold his shares. This is because the sale was not motivated by intelligent factors like poor product performance, slow sales, or terrible feedback. It was motivated by fear. Do not let your fear get the best of your future!
