1

THE IDEA ENTREPRENEUR

I think it was the e-mails from TED that made it clear to me that we had a new kind of cultural player on the scene: the idea entrepreneur.

I had joined an online discussion group and, on an impulse, opted to receive daily updates on current TED topics. (TED, for those who haven’t opted in, stands for Technology, Entertainment, Design, and refers to the famous talks.) The TED e-mails started arriving with the subject line Ideas Worth Spreading. I would scan the topics—ranging from the political (Why can’t America have a political system comprised of professionals rather than career politicians?) to the philosophical (Who am I?)—and soon enough found myself wondering: Are these really ideas? Are they truly worth spreading? ...

Get Breaking Out now with the O’Reilly learning platform.

O’Reilly members experience books, live events, courses curated by job role, and more from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers.