Start-ups and lessons from a saltwater aquarium

By Hunt Lambert, contributing writer

One of my interests is saltwater aquariums. I started scuba diving at age seven and love the ocean, but I live in Colorado. Fortunately, some creative entrepreneur figured out how I could bring the ocean into my living room.

Shortly after I took up my aquarium hobby, I looked in the tank late at night with a flashlight. To my amazement, there was new life. On the underside of a rock, a small sponge and a tiny clear shrimp were living where only empty rock surface had been the day before.

As my interest grew, and my tank expanded from 60 to 250 gallons, I chanced to look into the overflow area where the pumps and filters are housed. There in the dark, I found an entire ecosystem that had established itself. I realized then that the aquarium could teach me more about entrepreneurship than any class I had ever taken – or now teach.

Creating the right environment

At Colorado State University's Office of Economic Development we teach that the path to start-up success is to find a product or service that will attract enough paying customers, establish an effective management team, raise enough (but not too much) money, find a sustainable advantage, and then deliver superior value to investors. What I learned from my aquarium is that if you create the right environment, life will prosper.

From then on, I knew that if I can keep the water healthy, the ecosystem will flourish. In fact, the ecosystem will work without a written plan, without superior managers, and without contributions from investors (you don’t even need to provide outside food). To keep the water healthy, simply simulate the natural process of the larger ocean by cycling enough water volume to remove contaminants and introduce required chemicals and minerals.

Entrepreneurial ecosystem

The United States has been the leader in entrepreneurship and innovation because it is the best environment for the entrepreneurial ecosystem. Our "water" is healthier than most of the rest of the world, and so we attract and grow innovative people and start-ups (new life) that are uniquely able to take advantage of the resources around us.

The United States supports highly efficient capital, service, and product markets, and offers political stability, low corruption, quality education, natural resources, a highly creative and entrepreneurial scientific community, and exceptional mangers. It is also acceptable in the United States to try again. How could the entrepreneurial ecosystem not thrive here? This is why start-ups create most new net employment in the country. Even though some become "food" for others, some consume the food, and some just grow like a giant clam. Each plays an important role in maintaining the entire environment.

Healthy waters

At Colorado State, President Larry Penley and Provost Tony Frank have created an environment where the water is healthy. We attract great participants to our ecosystem and are increasingly able to influence the surrounding "aquarium life forms" to test our waters and partner with to create a bigger and even healthier environment.

The formation of CSU's Office of Outreach and Strategic Partnerships, the emergence of CSU's Superclusters, the creation of CSU Ventures, the announcement of CSU-Colorado, and a hundred other new life forms like CSU-developed AVA Solar and EnviroFit are testimonials to the health of our water.

The economic environment, like a saltwater aquarium, is full of possibilities. I can't tell you exactly what we'll see the next time we turn on the flashlight at night, but I am confident there will be new life, and it will make our environment healthier.

Hunt Lambert is the director of the Office of Economic Development for Colorado State University.