????當(dāng)谷歌收購(gòu)我擔(dān)任首席執(zhí)行官的初創(chuàng)公司PostRank時(shí),，這家科技巨頭也給我提供了一個(gè)在加州工作的極好機(jī)會(huì)。我的收入會(huì)有所提高,，能得到期權(quán)，還有一筆豐厚的留任獎(jiǎng)金,。想到自己能來(lái)到美國(guó)最美麗的地區(qū)之一,，為一家非常成功的跨國(guó)公司工作，并在簡(jiǎn)歷里添上一塊“榮譽(yù)勛章”,，這感覺(jué)十分美妙,。誰(shuí)不想為谷歌工作呢？但到最后,，我的直覺(jué)告訴我,，這樣做不對(duì),。于是，我謝絕了谷歌,，轉(zhuǎn)而加入了第4家初創(chuàng)公司,，開(kāi)啟了另一段不安穩(wěn)且不可預(yù)知的職業(yè)生涯。

????這項(xiàng)決定是基于直覺(jué)做出的,，不夠理性,，但它卻是正確的選擇。我的直覺(jué)告訴我要做自己最擅長(zhǎng)的事情——捕捉處于萌芽階段的創(chuàng)意,，讓它發(fā)展成為一件偉大的杰作,。我之前一直在空余時(shí)間指導(dǎo)在線學(xué)習(xí)公司Axonify的創(chuàng)始人，而我的直覺(jué)告訴我,，他們的創(chuàng)意足以成長(zhǎng)為一家擁有顛覆性力量的公司,。人們覺(jué)得我瘋了。在線學(xué)習(xí)公司,？真的嗎,？你得有多無(wú)聊？但我知道那就是我應(yīng)該做的,，那是個(gè)巨大的市場(chǎng),。我可以預(yù)見(jiàn)，如果我們方法得當(dāng),，就能開(kāi)辟一條新道路,，成為這一領(lǐng)域的領(lǐng)軍者。這太讓我興奮了,。這家公司肯定有風(fēng)險(xiǎn),，但正是這種風(fēng)險(xiǎn)讓我興奮。我覺(jué)得自己需要在工作中冒險(xiǎn)才能感到快樂(lè),，而這種風(fēng)險(xiǎn)比大多數(shù)人愿意承擔(dān)的都要大,。

????成為一名企業(yè)家意味著你必須不斷做出決策。有時(shí),，正確的決定也最具風(fēng)險(xiǎn)性,，而通常情況下，“正確”或“錯(cuò)誤”決定的界限并不明顯,。從理性角度來(lái)看一些決定是正確的,，但從直覺(jué)上看它們可能會(huì)是錯(cuò)的。對(duì)你的公司有利的決定,，卻未必對(duì)你自己有利,。如果說(shuō)我從自己企業(yè)家的生涯中學(xué)到了什么的話，那就是在做出艱難決定時(shí),，平衡好直覺(jué)和事實(shí)十分重要,。

????從我的經(jīng)驗(yàn)來(lái)看,，市場(chǎng)對(duì)初創(chuàng)公司命運(yùn)的影響要超過(guò)創(chuàng)業(yè)者的預(yù)期。相信只要靈光一閃,，構(gòu)想出偉大創(chuàng)意,，其他事情就水到渠成，自然十分美妙,。同樣,，一些人想當(dāng)然地認(rèn)為，只要擁有完美的產(chǎn)品和強(qiáng)大的技術(shù),，成功就是囊中之物,。可惜的是,，事實(shí)并非如此,。

????想要建立一家成功的公司，你得找到一個(gè)足夠大的目標(biāo)市場(chǎng),。你還需要深刻了解這個(gè)市場(chǎng)及其競(jìng)爭(zhēng)格局,、動(dòng)態(tài)和趨勢(shì)。一個(gè)規(guī)模龐大但日漸蕭條的市場(chǎng)和一個(gè)小市場(chǎng)沒(méi)什么區(qū)別,。決定進(jìn)入哪個(gè)市場(chǎng),，是一名企業(yè)家首先要做的最基礎(chǔ)的決定之一，他不僅要能洞察數(shù)據(jù)中的奧秘,，還得有敏銳的直覺(jué),。

????在建立公司的整個(gè)過(guò)程中，創(chuàng)始人都需要專(zhuān)注于嚴(yán)謹(jǐn)?shù)难芯?。決定要建立什么樣的公司之后,，應(yīng)當(dāng)盡可能多地積累信息，從各個(gè)角度抨擊你的假設(shè)和想法,。當(dāng)你在產(chǎn)品,、營(yíng)銷(xiāo)和戰(zhàn)略上做出決策時(shí)，保持這種做法,。作為一名領(lǐng)袖,，你的工作就是每天都在大體正確的軌道上保持前進(jìn)，而不是在一些大問(wèn)題上跑偏,，或是發(fā)現(xiàn)自己深陷錯(cuò)誤的推斷中難以自拔,。

????我見(jiàn)過(guò)太多企業(yè)家太過(guò)于專(zhuān)注某個(gè)創(chuàng)意或投資自己的某項(xiàng)產(chǎn)品，以至于他們不愿意聽(tīng)從自己的直覺(jué),，面對(duì)殘酷的現(xiàn)實(shí),。一點(diǎn)點(diǎn)偏執(zhí)是可貴的財(cái)富,，它能讓你時(shí)刻把握市場(chǎng)趨勢(shì)和信號(hào),。然而,，最大的挑戰(zhàn)并不在于收集那些信息，而在于詮釋它們,。不要低估你的本能,，它能綜合考慮事實(shí)并告訴你哪種決策最好。

????最后,，下一個(gè)杰作絕不僅僅是個(gè)絕妙的主意,。這代表著一家公司進(jìn)入了一個(gè)大型目標(biāo)市場(chǎng)，響應(yīng)市場(chǎng)需求,，比對(duì)手更快地吸引顧客,。還不止這些。這意味著一家公司的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)者或團(tuán)隊(duì)知道何時(shí)傾聽(tīng)自己直覺(jué),。在直覺(jué)的驅(qū)使下,，他們努力追求偉大的事物，并利用所有的經(jīng)驗(yàn)和理性的信息將自身想法變成現(xiàn)實(shí),。

????直覺(jué)就像一張引導(dǎo)企業(yè)家穿過(guò)迷宮的鳥(niǎo)瞰圖,，甚至當(dāng)他們擁有一張路線圖的時(shí)候，也是如此,。它會(huì)幫助你更快地作出決策,，克服那些阻礙初創(chuàng)公司發(fā)展的自我懷疑。用事實(shí)來(lái)檢驗(yàn)?zāi)愕闹庇X(jué),，并用你的直覺(jué)來(lái)檢驗(yàn)事實(shí),。

????作者卡羅爾?利曼是在線學(xué)習(xí)公司Axonify的首席執(zhí)行官。（財(cái)富中文網(wǎng)）

????譯者：嚴(yán)匡正

????審校：任文科

????When Google bought PostRank, the last startup in which I was CEO, the company also offered me a fantastic job opportunity in California, which came with a pay increase, options and a significant retention bonus. It was pretty cool to think I could move to a beautiful part of the U.S., work for a global and massively successful company, and basically add a “badge of honor” to my resume. Who wouldn’t want to work for Google? But, in the end, it didn’t feel right in my gut. So, I declined, opting for the insecurity and unpredictability of embarking on a fourth startup instead.

????This was not the rational decision, but it was the intuitive one—and the right one. My intuition was calling me to do what I know I’m best at—taking an idea in its early stages and building it into something great. I had been advising the original founders of e-learning company, Axonify, in my spare time and my intuition was telling me that the grains of their original idea could transform an area of the corporate enterprise that was ripe for disruption. People thought I was crazy. Corporate learning? Really? How boring can you get? But I just knew it was what I needed to do, and that the market was gigantic. I visualized blazing a trail and being a category leader if we did it right. And that totally excited me. It was risky, but that was also what excited me. I think I need a level of risk in my work to be happy—more risks than most people are willing to take.

????Being an entrepreneur means you constantly have to make decisions. Sometimes the right choices are the riskiest and there is often no clear “right” or “wrong” choice to make. The right choice from a rational perspective could be the wrong one from an intuitive one, or what is right for your company may not be what is right for you. If I’ve learned anything from my entrepreneurial career, it is the importance of balancing intuition with fact when making tough decisions.

????In my experience, markets have a more powerful impact on the fate of a startup than entrepreneurs anticipate. It is nice to believe that brilliant, innovative ideas arrive in a “eureka” moment and the rest falls into place. It is also nice to think that having the perfect product and strong technology is a recipe for success. However, neither of these notions is true.

????The desire to build a successful company requires finding a large addressable market. It also requires a deep understanding of that market and its competitive landscape, as well as the dynamics and trends at play. A large but dying market is no better than a small one. Deciding which market to go after is one of the first and most fundamental decisions an entrepreneur makes, requiring insight from data as well as intuition.

????Founders should commit themselves to rigorous research throughout the entire process of building a company. When deciding what to build, gather as much information as you possibly can and attack your assumptions and ideas from all angles. Then, keep this up as you make decisions about product, marketing, and strategy. As a leader, your job is to be generally correct everyday and make incremental progress, rather than being specifically wrong about big things and find yourself stuck in false assumptions.

????I’ve seen many entrepreneurs who are so dedicated to an idea or invested in the product they’ve built that they are unwilling to listen to their gut and face harsh realities. A little paranoia can actually be a great asset because it keeps you hyper-tuned into the signs and signals of the market. However, the biggest challenge is not in gathering that information, but in interpreting it. Don’t undervalue your intuition’s capacity to synthesize the facts at hand to tell you which decision is the best one.

????Ultimately, the next big thing is not just a brilliant idea. It is a company that tackles a large addressable market, responds to market trends, and grabs customers faster than anyone else. But it is also more than that. It is a company led by an individual or team who knows when to listen to their gut; who are driven by an intuitive sense that they are on to something big and can channel all the empirical, rational information into making their vision a reality.

????Intuition is like the bird’s eye view that guides entrepreneurs through a maze, even when they have a map. It will help you make decisions faster and overcome self-doubt that stops startups in their tracks. Use facts to check your intuition, and intuition to check your facts.

????Carol Leaman is CEO of Axonify.