Favorite Historical Figure

[PaintedBlack]

A lot of entrepreneurs and internet marketers are conflict-driven people in positions of planning and management. They manage their resources to capture traffic/consumers away from the competitor. More often than not they will even have people they lead in the workplace looking up to them. This all reminds me of historical figures whose entrepreneurship revolved around plunder and conquest, as well as keeping their own realm afloat.

Is your business journey inspired by some historical figure? A leader, diplomat, inventor? King or Emperor? Maybe some great explorer, or a mere knight of legend.

I know many of you will think of artists and musicians too! My favorite figures are much older though, hope some of you share my view.

I was first inspired as a kid by Robin Hood, who else. As a kid I watched cartoons about him, as a teenager I watched TV series, and as an adult, I read up on history and stopped liking him honestly.

In the end, I settled for Caesar as my favorite figure. I think the true picture of him was skewed in media, I find him to be much more modest and calm then TV would have you believe. There were much worse glory hounds than him throughout those times, but it just so happens that in the time of his reign, he was constantly challenged from every side both in politics and military conflict. He would make up silly reasons to be awarded triumphs and his handwritten records are believed to be extremely hyperbolized. A personality cult was more of a political tool than a drug for him, IMO.

He was a great leader but made mistakes in every walk of his life. He lost battles over blunders, couldn't deal with politics at home, he relied on the people around him too much. His legions were close to certain defeat and death multiple times, but he always did his best to boost morale and happened to make it out. They say he made peasants' lives better, but he also slaughtered civilians because he couldn't risk them turning against him.

In conclusion, he was a flawed person, yet in the historical moment of his career, there was just nobody better for the job, and he made most out of the chance he was given. And so he was remembered as the greatest, the whole world remembering his name. Emperor titles of tsar and kaiser are both derived from it. He lived like every day could be his last, giving 100% of his effort, relying EXCLUSIVELY on his ingenuity to make up for all of his shortcomings. Outgunned in every single battle yet always figuring a new way out.

So, who's yours and why?
I imagine many won't have the time to read this whole thing, but as soon as they see the first replies they will know what this is about ^^

 

[blackbrut]

Bob Marley

 

[mqsss]

Stalin

 

[TheVigilante]

Quite sure this thread will head in wrong direction soon

 

[BassTrackerBoats]

Quite sure this thread will head in wrong direction soon

We have a warning system in place whereby we give out infractions should people post inappropriate content in here or any other thread.

 

[Hints404]

I'm inspired by the Dovahkiin (dragonborn) in skyrim.


Seriously though, I lean more towards Genghis Khan, thomas edison and nikola tesla. i like their character plus its a zero sum game

maybe we should limit to financial history greats, in which case the emperors of the babylonian empire are my choice

 

[TheVigilante]

We have a warning system in place whereby we give out infractions should people post inappropriate content in here or any other thread.

I said because my favorite historical figure is someone from Germany and I do not want to create a stir here

 

[MisterF]

I said because my favorite historical figure is someone from Germany and I do not want to create a stir here

Pied Piper?

As Greg mentioned, provided these aren't offensive names, etc there are no problems.



Mine would be 1 of 2.


Leonardo da Vinci, Inventor, artist, and all-round genius.

SunTzu, Military tactician who had knowledge way before his time

 

[PaintedBlack]

I'm inspired by the Dovahkiin (dragonborn) in skyrim.


Seriously though, I lean more towards Genghis Khan, thomas edison and nikola tesla. i like their character plus its a zero sum game

maybe we should limit to financial history greats, in which case the emperors of the babylonian empire are my choice

Yeah, Genghis was insane lmao. To defeat and subsequently kill so many leaders is not something most nations have been able to do, let alone individuals.
As for financial history greats, wasn't Crassus an expert there? Set people's homes on fire and charge them to extinguish it with your private firefighter brigade 2000 years ago. And if the house completely burns down, he would buy the plot and rebuild it. Basically, he founded real estate agencies. He did much more than that in finance of course. I think his personal wealth was in the dozens of billions of today's dollars.

He met his end on the battlefield in the famous noob box.

Spartacus ... the real one of course

I was actually expecting Spartacus to pop up among the first several replies, not surprised ^^!

 

[mzonas]

Spartacus ... the real one of course

 

[TheVigilante]

Pied Piper?

As Greg mentioned, provided these aren't offensive names, etc there are no problems.



Mine would be 1 of 2.


Leonardo da Vinci, Inventor, artist, and all-round genius.

SunTzu, Military tactician who had knowledge way before his time

Each and everyone on this forum knows so wont post... that 6 letter name...

 

[BassTrackerBoats]

Spartacus ... the real one of course

That is the name I use when I make dinner reservations.

Every time.

 

[AngoraSpace]

Socrates for my critical thinking, Da Vinci for my creative sense, Einstein for my balance soul.

 

[fb3003]

fred trump

 

[ContentExpert]

Pied Piper?

As Greg mentioned, provided these aren't offensive names, etc there are no problems.



Mine would be 1 of 2.


Leonardo da Vinci, Inventor, artist, and all-round genius.

SunTzu, Military tactician who had knowledge way before his time

Yes, he's one of my favorites as well.

I actually purchased the "Art of War" book a couple of months back at my local Barnes & Noble.

 

[Sherb]

Timothy Dexter, the accidental mogul: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timothy_Dexter

At the end of the American Revolutionary War, he bought large amounts of depreciated Continental currency that was worthless at the time. After the war was over, the U.S. government made good on the dollars. By the time trade connections resumed, he had amassed a fortune. He built two ships and began an export business to the West Indies and to Europe.

Because he was largely uneducated, his business sense was considered peculiar. He was inspired to send warming pans (used to heat sheets in the cold New England winters) for sale to the West Indies, a tropical area. His captain sold them as ladles for the local molasses industry and made a good profit. Next, Dexter sent wool mittens to the same place, where Asian merchants bought them for export to Siberia.

People jokingly told him to "ship coal to Newcastle". He did so during a miners' strike at the time, and his cargo was sold at a premium. At another time, practical jokers told him he could make money shipping gloves to the South Sea Islands. His ships arrived there in time to sell the gloves to Portuguese boats on their way to China.

He exported Bibles to the East Indies and stray cats to Caribbean islands and again made a profit; eastern missionaries were in need of the Bibles and the Caribbean welcomed a solution to rat infestation. He also hoarded whalebone by mistake, but ended up selling them profitably as a support material for corsets.

 

[Hints404]

Timothy Dexter, the accidental mogul: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timothy_Dexter

At the end of the American Revolutionary War, he bought large amounts of depreciated Continental currency that was worthless at the time. After the war was over, the U.S. government made good on the dollars. By the time trade connections resumed, he had amassed a fortune. He built two ships and began an export business to the West Indies and to Europe.

Because he was largely uneducated, his business sense was considered peculiar. He was inspired to send warming pans (used to heat sheets in the cold New England winters) for sale to the West Indies, a tropical area. His captain sold them as ladles for the local molasses industry and made a good profit. Next, Dexter sent wool mittens to the same place, where Asian merchants bought them for export to Siberia.

People jokingly told him to "ship coal to Newcastle". He did so during a miners' strike at the time, and his cargo was sold at a premium. At another time, practical jokers told him he could make money shipping gloves to the South Sea Islands. His ships arrived there in time to sell the gloves to Portuguese boats on their way to China.

He exported Bibles to the East Indies and stray cats to Caribbean islands and again made a profit; eastern missionaries were in need of the Bibles and the Caribbean welcomed a solution to rat infestation. He also hoarded whalebone by mistake, but ended up selling them profitably as a support material for corsets.

wow, luck or sixth sense?

 

[SultanSultan]

Niccolò Machiavelli.

I'd recommend everyone to read 'The Prince'. His principles are very applicable to today’s business spheres.

His quote “Since love and fear can hardly exist together if we must choose between them, it is far safer to be feared than to be loved.” sums him up pretty well, but his philosophy is far more complex.

 

[HoNeYBiRD]

I can't say, i have a favorite or a role model, but i was named after a historical figure. If we think about it for a sec, we have a great deal of similarities with many of them. We conquer new territories. We win some battles, we get defeated. If we are successful, we have many enemies/competitors, just like they had and eventually we will also die, just like they did.

 

[PaintedBlack]

Timothy Dexter, the accidental mogul: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timothy_Dexter

That is just absurd lmao. I've heard of this dude before but I didn't know to what extent was he lucky. I guess he had some subconscious sense beneath his train of thought. Something must have guided him, pure luck just seems unlikely.
Though, maybe instead, the locals of those colonial areas were the real businessmen here. If I was in their place I would probably just insulate my hut with the sweaters and let's not get into the other products.

Niccolò Machiavelli.

I'd recommend everyone to read 'The Prince'. His principles are very applicable to today’s business spheres.

His quote “Since love and fear can hardly exist together if we must choose between them, it is far safer to be feared than to be loved.” sums him up pretty well, but his philosophy is far more complex.

One of the first serious books I've read. Had me laughing in many parts and I rarely laugh at written stuff. Absolute gold. Especially when we consider the political climate in which it was written. Machiavelli was playing with fire, a lot like Dante did with his Inferno, taking a jab at the church. They knew how not to telegraph their true intentions.

I can't say, i have a favorite or a role model, but i was named after a historical figure. If we think about it for a sec, we have a great deal of similarities with many of them. We conquer new territories. We win some battles, we get defeated. If we are successful, we have many enemies/competitors, just like they had and eventually we will also die, just like they did.

Attila was the OG Europe invader. But I do slightly prefer Genghis, he had a way of dealing with disrespectful people. His army would often avoid going through settlements that Khan established positive relationships with, and instead, they would go straight for those who made transgressions. Kinda ironic how he executed, boiled and crushed, a bunch of Russian princes and nobles, and in the end his homeland came under Russian influence all those centuries later.
Fun fact: Mongolians use a Cyrillic alphabet today, quite weird.

I like to think that there were 2 directions of entrepreneurship pre-colonial era: Politics and trade.