You call me naive like it's a bad thing.

A founders biggest superpower: naivety.

To be naive means to be deficient in worldly wisdom or informed judgment.

Sounds terrible, right? Being naive is often looked upon as a negative attribute. It suggests that you don’t have experience or that you are ignorant. 

But I’d argue that in the startup world, being a bit naive can be your biggest superpower.

Naivety is what allows you to start.

I had no idea what I was getting into when we started That Clean Life. I was a Registered Nurse with no prior business experience. If I had been less naive and known more about things that can plague SaaS companies like sales tax and churn – I probably wouldn’t have started. Being a bit naive meant we discovered and dealt with these things as we needed to, instead of letting the overwhelm of it all prevent us from getting started.

Naivety is what drives innovation.

Have you ever noticed that companies that are new to the market quickly rise to the top? This is often because the people driving these companies are naive. They aren’t restricted by dogma. They aren’t thinking about all the reasons why it won’t work or doing things the way they have always been done.

When building That Clean Life, a bit of naivety meant we thought outside the box when it came to nutrition planning. We weren’t previously in the nutrition industry, which meant our thinking wasn’t clouded with the current state. Being naive allowed us to create a more innovative solution.

Naivety can make you relentless.

When starting a business, you don’t know what you don’t know - and that can actually be a really great thing. Without realizing the barriers, obstacles, and restrictions - you can better persevere in the face of difficulties. Failing isn’t an option when past experiences and industry constraints don’t bog you down.

So, if you are feeling a bit of imposter syndrome and like you don’t know enough to move your business idea forward, embrace it. A little bit of naivety can be your biggest superpower. I mean hey, it has worked out well for me so far.