Nigel Eccles, Co-Founder of FanDuel, Flick & StarStock – Work In Sports podcast

The Work in Sports Podcast - Insider Advice for Sports Careers

Hey everybody, I’m Brian Clapp, VP of Content and engaged Learning at Work in Sports.com and this is the Work in Sports podcast. I’m no psychiatrist, I barely understand why I do what I do, but I can tell you that fear is a pretty insane driving force. Chased by a bear, you’ll run faster than ever before. Have a big test tomorrow that determines the status of your scholarship - you’ll study harder than ever. Fear is a strong motivator. Well, scratch that, fear makes us uncomfortable, and we try our hardest to return to comfort, that is the human condition, get into comfortable spots and build a house there. So yes, fear contributes to the motivation, but really it’s the idea of staying in a fearful state that motivates us to get out of it. OK, let’s not get all nuanced and into the psycho-babble -- suffice it to say, if you are sitting on your couch doing nothing, and a racoon comes in through the window, after screaming, you’ll move, fast. The fact the remote was just out of reach, or you needed water, or the doritos on the countertop didn’t get you to move… but that damn racoon sure did. Fear works. I’ve interviewed many entrepreneurs over my career, and they are a different breed. You think their motivation comes from money - I’m going to make this thing and sell it to Apple for a billion dollars -- that’s not it. It’s not the money. Success is the goal. Legacy. Developing something completely new, disrupting a marketplace, changing the world. That is what entrepreneurs seek. Like an artist, they are consumed by their passion for their vision. And more importantly, to put a fine point on it, they are ruled by fear. What if this isn’t it? What if my idea doesn’t work? What if it doesn’t disrupt? What if i am not special? This fear drives Entrepreneurs to work harder and with more passion and focus than most others can reach. Failure is not an option. Because of this passion and focus many entrepreneurs aren’t willing to pivot. They stick to their vision with steadfast determination, determined to find success where they thoughtit would be. Today’s guest, Nigel Eccles co-founder of FanDuel, Flick and StarStock, is a serial, and successful, entrepreneur, but he’s also a pragmatist. FanDuel, the multi-billion dollar daily fantasy sports company, wasn’t a pure idea created on the cliche cocktail napkin during a discussion amongst friends over adult beverages. FanDuel was HubDub - the original idea was an online political prediction market. It failed because as nigel himself said “HubDub didn’t really have a good business model” I can see where that would be a problem. But Nigel isn’t the type to just pack up and turn off the lights. He looked at what they had created, and how to pivot it into a new and different market. Sports. He and his HubDub team pivoted. I’m guessing, and he may not admit this, because his fear of failure drove him to see other options for his success. https://youtu.be/Qe-LqEodZFQ And FanDuel has been successful. At the time Nigel sold his interest FanDuel had around a 450 million dollar valuation. A few years later, it is now valued at 11.2 billion. His creation has changed the world. And like most entrepreneurs, one genius move isn’t enough. Nigel is now focused on new start-ups, Flick, The Ultimate Chat App for Sports Influencers and Their Fans, and StarStock, the stock market for sports cards. Both incredibly cool ideas -- let’s get into it, here’s Nigel Eccles co-founder of FanDuel, Flick and StarStock… Questions for Nigel Eccles, Co-Founder of FanDuel, Flick & StarStock 1: I’ve read about 20 different articles on you and your background as prep for this interview, and the most common describer for you is “math geek”. I’ve also seen “the most controversial player in the world of sports entertainment.” How would you describe yourself and your journey to where you are now?