Why Peter Thiel Thinks Asperger’s Is A Key to Succeeding in Business
In the last 60 years, there has been immense innovation in computer and internet technology, but far less innovation in most everything else. Peter Thiel, billionaire investor and serial entrepreneur, thinks that one of the possible reasons for this could be something that most people consider to be a negative mental disorder: Asperger’s (a mild form of autism).
Peter Thiel made this point on The James Altucher Show while discussing his recently released book (Zero to One). At minute 11:35 of the podcast, he mentions how some of the more successful entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley share this common “dysfunction”:
“One of the strange things in Silicon Valley is that so many of these successful entrepreneurs suffer from a mild form of Asperger’s or something like that. And I always think of this as an incredible indictment of our society: What sort of society is it where, if you do not have Asperger’s, you will pick up on all these social cues that discourage you from pursuing creative original ideas.”
Thiel is referring here to one characteristic of people with Asperger’s. Most of them have little sense of unspoken social norms or how to conform to them. Instead they develop a more self-directed worldview. Their beliefs on what is or is not possible come more from themselves, and less from what others tell them they can do or cannot do. This causes a lot anxiety and emotional hardship, but it also gives them more freedom to be different and experiment with new ideas.
A few people believe that Steve Jobs may have had Asperger’s (or was somewhere on the autism spectrum), which gives a new lens through which to look at Apple’s Think Different campaign and The Crazy Ones ad,
“ … because the people who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world, are the ones who do.”
Our risk aversion and bias to conform are symptoms of what Thiel calls our “incrementalist society.” Most people want to fit in and take cues from what others are doing around them. Most companies copy what works or implement variations on what others have done. They make incremental improvements to existing technology instead of pursuing original ideas. And what becomes possible for the future is only what people are doing now.
The truth is that if you want to start something truly new, you almost by definition have to be unconventional and do something that everyone else thinks is crazy. This is inevitably going to mean you face criticism, even for trying it. In Thiel’s view, because those with Aspergers don’t register that criticism as much, they feel freer to make these attempts.
You can listen to the full 1 hour 15 minute interview with Peter Thiel on The James Altucher Show.
