Jason Olim is Living the Dream

Founder and CEO of CDNOW, Jason Olim, joined us last night to discuss his experiences “living the dream” and the lessons he learned along the way.

Jason started CDNOW in 1994 with his brother in the basement of his parent’s house. By 1999, the company had grown to over $150M in revenues with more than 500 employees in a global operation. Since CDNOW, Jason has devoted much of his time to studying entrepreneurial psychology—what makes entrepreneurs unique—as well as continuing to start business, serve on boards and be an ardent supporter of start ups. His current project is the Freshman Fund.

Jason’s presentation involved polling our own Innovators and providing feedback. He began the evening by asking questions about what motivated the Innovators to start their own company, quickly leading into a discussion about team size and the role of the Founder(s) over time. Jason offered a simple, global definition of the role of the Founder. “In an early stage start up, the Founder is the person who must do whatever can’t get done by someone else.” However, as the organization grows, it was important for the Founder to take on a more specific role—that of mission/vision/culture keeper, strategist and motivator.

The group also discussed common characteristics of entrepreneurs. According to Jason’s research, studies have shown that entrepreneurs are actually more risk adverse than the average population. As one Innovator suggested, “I know and understand the risks of my business. I have the ability to actively address and diminish them.”

Other topics included advice for working with family; the importance of providing positive and negative feedback; and how hiring can impact a company’s culture.

When asked what his biggest regret was, Jason responded with a chuckle, “Sell books.” [Amazon offered a competing model and now owns CDNOW.]

We’d like to thank Jason for sharing his research and advice.