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After spending about 30 years<\/a> covering Silicon Valley for The Washington Post<\/em> and The Wall Street Journal<\/em>, Kara Swisher decided that she could build something bigger on her own.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI thought I could do better,\u201d Swisher told Business Insider\u2019s Dan DeFrancesco during a recent talk<\/a> with the outlet\u2019s staff.<\/p>\n Swisher went on to launch Recode<\/a>, the influential technology news site, in 2014. But before becoming a media entrepreneur, she had already built an established reporting career. For example, she helped produce and co-host a conference series for the Journal<\/em> that became the predecessor to the Code Conference<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Swisher now co-hosts the Pivot<\/em> podcast<\/a> with NYU Stern professor Scott Galloway. She published Burn Book<\/em><\/a>, a 320-page memoir about her encounters with founders and executives in the tech industry, in 2024. She has also amassed two million followers<\/a> across social media channels.<\/p>\n Swisher told Business Insider staff that she was more comfortable with uncertainty than many of the journalists around her when she chose to build her own business. \u201cI was like, what\u2019s the worst thing? I have to come back? I\u2019m a good reporter. That\u2019s always saleable,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Her advice to workers looking to branch out and start their own business is to take an honest look at the downsides before leaving. Deciding to quit can hinge on factors like financial responsibilities and children to support.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Swisher said that quitting a job and going independent is not simply a matter of leaving a newsroom or launching a newsletter. It instead requires a point of view strong enough to give an audience a reason to seek out your work rather than another version of what is already available.\u00a0<\/p>\n Swisher said she has encouraged media professionals to consider building their own companies when they have a distinctive voice and a real desire to create content.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cYou can tell when people really have something to say and want to make something,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n The most promising founders \u2014 in media and other industries \u2014 can identify an unmet audience need and deliver work that feels hard to replace. <\/p>\n That customer focus shaped Swisher\u2019s own move into entrepreneurship. When she left traditional media to build her own company, she concentrated on what audiences already wanted. Her core entrepreneurial principle was to start with the user.\u00a0<\/p>\n Swisher said that she sometimes tells people to remain in stable jobs rather than force an entrepreneurial path. Building a business requires comfort with uncertainty, she added.\u00a0<\/p>\n Swisher said most people can strengthen their entrepreneurial instinct over time. However, she noted that the impulse to take risks was a core part of her personality.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m sort of restless as a person in general. I always joke, I\u2019m a bad employee. I hate being an employee,\u201d Swisher said. \u201cI\u2019m like, \u2018You\u2019re an idiot.\u2019 And I say it, and then it gets me into trouble.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n After spending about 30 years<\/a> covering Silicon Valley for The Washington Post<\/em> and The Wall Street Journal<\/em>, Kara Swisher decided that she could build something bigger on her own.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI thought I could do better,\u201d Swisher told Business Insider\u2019s Dan DeFrancesco during a recent talk<\/a> with the outlet\u2019s staff.<\/p>\n Swisher went on to launch Recode<\/a>, the influential technology news site, in 2014. But before becoming a media entrepreneur, she had already built an established reporting career. For example, she helped produce and co-host a conference series for the Journal<\/em> that became the predecessor to the Code Conference<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\nThe key to going independent<\/h2>\n
Starting a business isn\u2019t right for everyone<\/h2>\n
Key Takeaways<\/h2>\n
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