{"id":7762,"date":"2013-10-30T07:00:07","date_gmt":"2013-10-30T13:00:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tested-neuron.flywheelsites.com\/?p=7762"},"modified":"2015-02-17T13:28:42","modified_gmt":"2015-02-17T20:28:42","slug":"the-big-problem-with-big-problems","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/unreasonablegroup.com\/articles\/the-big-problem-with-big-problems\/","title":{"rendered":"The Big Problem With Big Problems: Why More People Aren’t Working On the Big Issues"},"content":{"rendered":"

Why Give a Damn:<\/h3>\n

There is a belief that big problems offer a poor risk\/reward ratio, you can spend a lifetime working for social change with seemingly little progress. But the truth is, big problems can generate big returns. <\/em><\/p>\n

\n

The author of this post, Chris Yeh<\/a>, has been building internet businesses since 1995 and currently serves as the VP of Marketing for PBworks, as well as a General Partner at Wasabi Ventures.<\/em><\/span>
\n\u00a0
\nA common complaint that’s making its way around the startup world is that too few entrepreneurs are working on big problems.\u00a0 I can sympathize; I too am tired of seeing the endless variations on photo sharing, dating, and nightlife apps that entrepreneurs pitch to me.\u00a0 Yet simply complaining is unlikely to change anything.\u00a0 Rather, we need to first understand why the problem exists before we can recommend corrective action.
\n\u00a0<\/p>\n

Big problems tend to offer a poor *perceived* risk\/reward ratio<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Why don’t entrepreneurs work on big problems?<\/h3>\n

\nFor me, this boils down to two things: Exposure, and Risk\/Reward.\u00a0 For better or worse, most of the young entrepreneurs I encounter come from privileged backgrounds, as do I.\u00a0 When I was growing up, I never had to worry about money or taking a job to help my family.\u00a0 After leaving home, I then spent my years in enclaves of privilege like Stanford University and Harvard Business School, whose manicured campuses are about as far as you can get from the problems of the world.\u00a0 Other than some vague notions of helping the poor\/hungry\/homeless, the 22-year-old me had literally no exposure to the real problems of the world.
\n\u00a0
\nBig problems also tend to offer a poor perceived risk\/reward ratio. \u00a0Instagram can go from launch to billion-dollar acquisition in 18 months; you can spend a lifetime working for social change with seemingly little progress.\u00a0 And while some dedicated idealists might be willing to sacrifice their own financial success to work towards a cause, the people who are willing to do so generally don’t have the requisite skill set to be entrepreneurs.
\n\u00a0<\/p>\n

How can we address these issues?<\/h3>\n

<\/p>\n

The poorest 4 billion in the world represent a huge potential market<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The two issues go hand in hand.\u00a0 Remember, I noted that big problems tend to offer a poor *perceived* risk\/reward ratio.\u00a0 Actually, big problems can generate big returns–just look at the stock price of Tesla Motors<\/a>, as an example.\u00a0 But a lack of exposure correlates strongly with a lack of perceived opportunity.\u00a0 Plumpy’Nut<\/a>, a simple mix of peanut paste, milk powder, and vitamins, is being used to treat malnutrition and famine.\u00a0 It saved 90% of treated children during a famine in Niger.\u00a0 Plumpy’Nut’s owner, Nutriset, now franchises manufacturers in 11 countries, and UNICEF buys enough to feed 2 million at-risk children per year.
\n\u00a0
\nC.K. Prahalad<\/a> called this the fortune at the bottom of the pyramid, pointing out that the poorest 4 billion in the world represent a huge potential market.<\/p>\n

The best way to convince entrepreneurs to work on big problems is to educate them and convince them that they can make more money by doing good.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\nThe best way to convince entrepreneurs to work on big problems is to educate them and convince them that they can make more money by doing good than by improving the click-through rate on mobile ads.\u00a0 If you have a problem you think entrepreneurs can help you solve, the best answer isn’t to offer a prize (you probably don’t have the money anyways) but rather to figure out the massive business opportunity that problem represents, then write about it.<\/p>\n

Or, if you discover a truly billion-dollar opportunity, start your own company!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Big problems tend to offer a poor *perceived* risk\/reward ratio, you can spend a lifetime working for social change with seemingly little progress. Actually, big problems can generate big returns. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":7885,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[476,1510,1529],"tags":[2247,1397,450,1058,462,677,383,119,359],"class_list":["post-7762","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","category-career","category-technology","tag-article","tag-bfp","tag-career","tag-chris-yeh","tag-impact","tag-opin","tag-starting","tag-success","tag-tech"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nThe Big Problem With Big Problems: Why More People Aren't Working On the Big Issues - UNREASONABLE<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/unreasonablegroup.com\/articles\/the-big-problem-with-big-problems\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Big Problem With Big Problems: Why More People Aren't Working On the Big Issues - UNREASONABLE\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Big problems tend to offer a poor *perceived* risk\/reward ratio, you can spend a lifetime working for social change with seemingly little progress. 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