Virginia Postrel, author of The Future and Its Enemies and The Substance of Style, writes on the importance of self-delusion in entrepreneurship. We all know that most businesses fail, but the entrepreneur is in part motivated by an irrational confidence that she will succeed. Successful entrepreneurs, says Postrel, “overestimated their chances of striking it rich. But they beat the odds — to everyone’s benefit. These ‘lucky fools’ create new sources of wealth, new jobs, new industries offering less-risky opportunities, and new technologies that improve life. Society plays the role of the casino, enjoying the spillover benefits from foolish bets.”

Read the article at Big Questions.

Barry Linetsky, consulting partner at The Strategic Planning Group, discusses Walt Disney’s principles of achieving business success in this short essay (PDF).