51黑料

"The School motto is about looking to the horizon and the future. You can't see the horizon if you are looking down at your feet!"

Daniel Mumby spent much of his school life as the 鈥榥ew kid鈥�. His parents moved regularly which meant Daniel became adept at navigating new friendships and new environments.

鈥淓very experience you have is never wasted because it gives you insight that benefits you at some point in your life,鈥� he says.

He spent Years 9 and 10 at Yarra and initially felt like a square peg in a round hole, but connected around interests, including his love of computing.

鈥淎t Yarra I saw myself as a Technology Entrepreneur. I learnt to computer code in five languages and that was something that I doubt I could have done at any other school in the country at that time.鈥�

Daniel made the most of the experiences on offer at Yarra and was part of the school magazine and the computer club. He spent the hour-long bus ride to and from school reading. He is still an avid reader and recommends Napoleon Hill鈥檚 Think & Grow Rich and the Bible as offering powerful insights.

鈥淚 read the Bible from an insight sense and to discover what context and understanding I can glean from others. It鈥檚 been around a few thousand years and there鈥檚 a lot of wisdom in it,鈥� he says.

Known as That Startup Guy, Daniel has built a business out of looking towards the horizon. And as the founder of Startup Foundation venture studio, he inspires, develops and invests in aspiring entrepreneurs to create disruptive and innovative businesses. He鈥檚 built around 15 ventures so far, including not-for-profit initiatives. Along the way he has built knowledge, skills and networks.

鈥淚 don鈥檛 risk an idea to chance. I document my thoughts to work out where I am and where I want to get to. I join the lines between dots before people can see the dots. But resilience and getting up time and time again is what matters most in entrepreneurship. It鈥檚 not survival of the fittest 鈥� it鈥檚 about getting knocked down and getting up again. It鈥檚 survival of the most adaptable.

鈥淲hat I am doing may or may not work, but I won鈥檛 die wondering. My father and my grandfather instilled in me that if you don鈥檛 try something, you will always have regrets.鈥�

Daniel feels there is always a place in the world for young people who feel they don鈥檛 automatically fit into their school environment.

鈥淚 was quite bright but a bit disconnected from my social environment at school. I didn鈥檛 have a very long attention span and so I struggled a bit but it鈥檚 important to remember that school is where you start- it鈥檚 not where you finish,鈥� he says.