S3 | E4: Supersonic Flight and Why Big Ideas Aren't Crazy
Sep 5, 2023
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Blake Scholl, founder of Boom Supersonic, discusses his mission to bring supersonic commercial passenger flights to the world by 2026. He shares his journey of starting an aerospace company, the importance of simplicity and understanding in navigating new domains, and the value of learning, admitting weaknesses, and company reflection. He also emphasizes the significance of developing the skill to see unseen problems and embracing seemingly impossible challenges.
Personal growth plays a crucial role in the success of a startup.
Founders should prioritize their own personal motivation over societal norms.
Identifying overlooked opportunities can lead to innovative solutions and success in entrepreneurship.
Deep dives
Recognizing past mistakes and learning from them
The founder of Boo Super Sonic, Blake Scholl, reflects on his prior startup experiences and shares the lessons he learned. He admits to making mistakes in his first startup and wanting to do things differently the second time around. Blake emphasizes the importance of self-reflection and self-improvement as a founder, acknowledging that personal growth plays a crucial role in the success of a startup.
Taking on a mission that seems crazy
Blake discusses his decision to pursue the mission of bringing supersonic commercial passenger flights to the world. He acknowledges that at the time, it may have seemed crazy to others, but he was motivated by a deep passion for aviation and a desire to solve a problem that had been largely neglected. Blake shares how he evaluated his own capabilities and made the decision to embark on this daunting mission.
The importance of personal motivation
Blake emphasizes the significance of personal motivation when pursuing ambitious goals. He believes that one's passion and drive for a particular idea or problem should take precedence over external opinions or societal norms. Blake encourages founders to optimize for their own personal motivation and to pursue ideas that truly inspire and excite them.
Overcoming challenges and learning from failures
Blake highlights the challenges he faced and the mistakes he made in his entrepreneurial journey. He shares stories of personal growth, including the realization that failure is an integral part of the entrepreneurial process. Blake emphasizes the importance of embracing discomfort, learning from failures, and constantly pushing oneself to grow and improve.
Seeing opportunities where others see impossibilities
Blake discusses the ability to see problems and opportunities that others overlook. He encourages founders to identify areas where there is a lack of focus or attention, and to pursue those opportunities with passion and determination. Blake shares examples of how he recognized the potential in bringing back supersonic flight and addressing the issue of traffic, despite others considering these ideas to be impossible or unfeasible.
In this episode, Alice and Gena spoke with Blake Scholl, founder of Boom Supersonic. Described by The Guardian as 'the man who aims to bring the son of Concorde to the skies', Blake is on a mission to bring supersonic commercial passenger flights to the world as soon as 2026.
Why, you ask? Well, since Blake never got the chance to fly on the Concorde himself, and nobody appeared to be trying to revive supersonic air travel, he decided to do it himself. In his words, 'I realised that I wanted to work on the most important thing that's not impossible'.
In this conversation Gena, Alice and Blake discuss what moved Blake to take on this mission at a time when it would’ve seemed crazy to almost everyone, how he honestly answered the question 'am I the person to go do this?', how he’s had to grow and change to keep pace with his company, and much more.
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