Going Against the Flow: Alan Schaaf, CEO and Founder of Imgur
Alan Schaaf
What does entrepreneurship mean to you, and what underlying characteristics do you see in successful entrepreneurs?
Alan: Entrepreneurship, to me, means that you're a psychopath. The world doesn't work in the way you want it to, and you have a vision for how it should work. Unlike everyone else, this isn't ok with you. You have to go out, against every possible odd, and do something about it. That's what makes you crazy. There are so many easier ways to live your life than to start a company. Yet, for some reason, you put yourself through incredible ups and downs, work non-stop, and abandon everything else in your life, just to shape the world in your vision. That's what makes you an entrepreneur.
The successful entrepreneurs that I see have two characteristics: self-awareness and persistence. They're able to see problems in their companies, through their self-awareness, and be persistent enough to solve them. There are never any silver bullets and things don't magically work out every time. It takes persistence and self-awareness to solve each problem, one at a time, until they look back and they see that they've solved a thousand problems, yet there are thousands more ahead of them. Rather than let that demotivate them, they get to work.
What are you most proud of in your professional career? If you could do something over in your life, what would it be?
Alan: I'm proud that I've been able to attract an incredible team to work with me. If I could do something over, I would have grown my team faster. It's easy to think you can do everything yourself, and that "get shit done" mentality is really important, but the reality is that you need to find a way to scale yourself because that's how you get shit done even faster.
Tell us about an instance where you had to go against the flow to realize your goal.
Alan: When I first launched Imgur a big theme I was hearing was that there was no way to monetize, and that the bandwidth and server fees wouldn't be sustainable. I took that as good feedback, but I didn't let it stop me. Instead I found ways to do it, by solving one problem at a time. In fact, I think partially out of spite, I ended up bootstrapping the company for 5 years. Never underestimate the power of spite.
What drives you? How do you measure success for yourself?
Alan: Seeing the effect we have everyday in people's lives is what drives me. From the small things, like watching someone smile when they use our product, to the big things like hearing how the Imgur community helped someone through cancer. It turns out that some amazing and magical things can happen when you connect people from around the world that don't know each other. We've seen marriages, mass donations, people finding jobs, and everything in between. What Imgur does is simple. We lift the world's spirits for a few moments everyday, and that's what motivates me.
Personal success is measured by monitoring how the company and the team are growing and scaling. From individual employee growth, to the overall company's impact on the world. I believe the ultimate founder success is when he or she is finally able to step away, and have the company continue to grow, scale, and achieve it's mission.
If you were to give advice to your 22 year old self, what would it be?
Alan: Scale yourself by scaling your team. Despite your best efforts, you really can't do everything yourself. Along the way, watch out for the wrong type of ambition.
Follow Alan Schaaf at @mrgrim151, and check out the other interviews in Going Against the Flow series at http://www.huffingtonpost.com/charu-sharma/ and join the movement to empower 1 million female entrepreneurs at goagainsttheflow.com.
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