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Daniel Ek Was Too Naive to Know Spotify Would Fail

By Daniel Ek · Startup Growth · 1 min read

Ek didn't know he needed music licenses when he started Spotify. He thought you just stream it. That naivety kept him going for two and a half years until the licenses came through.

Key Points

If you ask entrepreneurs would they do it again knowing how hard it would be, most would say no
Youth lets you see solutions instead of problems — experienced people see why things won't work
Ideas are 5%, execution is 95%

If you ask entrepreneurs would you have done it if you knew how hard it would be, most would have said no.

He Didn't Know He Needed Licenses

Ek: I started my first company at 14. I took over as CEO of uTorrent at 22. Spotify, I was 23.

Was youth an advantage? Definitely. If you ask entrepreneurs would you have done it if you knew how hard it would be, most would have said no. But because you're young and in my case quite naive, you go into situations like — hey, this can't be too hard.

When I started Spotify, I didn't actually know that I needed licenses from record labels. I was like, well, you stream it. Someone said no, you kind of need some licenses. I thought that can't be too hard. Surely they must be up for it. It took me about two and a half years to get started.

When I started Spotify, I didn't know I needed licenses from record labels. I thought you just stream it.

You See Solutions, Not Problems

Ek: That's what kept me going — I saw the solution, I didn't see the problems. I think many people as they get older and wiser, what I call pattern recognition — you don't really have that when you're young.

Instead you see — this is not how I want it to work — and you actually go out and seek a solution. A lot of people with experience will say this is not going to work because of X, Y, Z. It turns out most things do work.

I saw the solution. I didn't see the problems. A lot of experienced people will say this won't work because of X, Y, Z.

He Said Skype Would Never Work

Ek: People come up to me and ask about ideas for companies. In all honesty, I have no idea what's going to work or not. In 2004, someone approached me with this company called Skype. They wanted people to make phone calls from their computers. I said it's never going to work. That turned out to be a pretty big thing.

Ideas Are 5%, Execution Is 95%

Ek: I'm not a visionary in terms of knowing what will work and what won't. What I do know is that if you keep executing, the right person will figure out a way to sell umbrellas in the Sahara. They'll figure out it's for sun protection. Or that it can generate electricity.

It's really all about execution. Ideas are 5%. Execution is 95%.

Ideas are 5%. Execution is 95%.