When you think of entrepreneurs and especially technology giants, names like Bill Gates and Steve Jobs come to mind but rarely would Chet Pipkin make your list. Yet, without Chet (or someone like him) personal computing would not be as pervasive as we know it today.
Chet is the founder of Belkin International, the company that makes many of those connection cables that allow your computer to work with your printer, monitor, and other devices. Chet’s company sold in 2018 for nearly a billion dollars, making him one of the wealthiest people in the U.S. His products aren’t glamourous, but they’re functional and meet an unanticipated need that many consumers find they have.
Belkin began in 1982 when self-professed computer geek Chet realized that the barriers to actually make computers were too high but he saw a need that he could leverage into a profitable opportunity. He learned about this gap by hanging out in computer stores and listening to the questions that early purchasers asked, then he anticipated consumer needs and made a product to fulfill them. Today, Belkin cables and adapters are available pretty much wherever computers are sold.
Can you follow the process that Chet Pipkin used and get closer to your users? Is there a way for you to learn what their frustrations are and see if there is a way for your organization to provide solutions for them? How can you look behind the scenes to discover what gap exists that your talents can fill?
The spotlight often shines on the one or two companies or their founders but with every field, there are many more opportunities for greatness beyond the exalted few.
Source: How I Built This by Guy Raz, 2020
