If getting VC funding is considered partly as a sales job, then Bill Porter's story may be interesting. Consistency in 'top selling' requires qualities like determination & efforts. Natural born 'attractive people' generally are not inclined to put in that extra effort just because they, in their lives so far, probably didn't need to.
Wiki: Bill Porter born with cerebral palsy, was unable to gain employment, but refused to go on disability. Porter eventually convinced Watkins Incorporated to give him a door-to-door salesman job, selling its products on a seven-mile route in the Portland area. He eventually became the top seller for the company.
According to the site, for the 'Certificate of need', the main arguments seems to be following:
"A number of factors spurred states to require certificates of need in the health care industry. Chief among these was the concern that the construction of excess hospital capacity would cause competitors in an oversaturated field to cover the costs of a diluted patient pool by over-charging, or by convincing patients to accept hospitalization unnecessarily."
I couldn't understand this argument. Something seems to be wrong.
IMHO, the guts, the brain, the heart must be tough but also flexible enough to avoid damage & to adapt. The api needs to be user-friendly and soft(most of the time).
Here is a question from a layman's (Stat 101) perspective: Why don't we see many Statistics PhDs, armed only with with a computer, access to free public data and some programming skills, CONSISTENTLY make a killing on Wall St?
Is it because Statistics fails once the number of variables & complexities increase to reflect the real life?
Just from the description in the Wikipedia this is how I read Ray.
He is excellent in marketing, in sales, in networking & as an overall promoter. All qualities we hackers need to cultivate as long as we control ourselves & avoid pitching any vapor-ware.
Some examples of him promoting his product or himself.
1. At 17, appeared on the CBS television program I've Got a Secret - showed off software that composed piano music
2. International Science Fair, first prize for the same.
3. Recognized by the Westinghouse Talent Search
4. Personally congratulated by President Lyndon B. Johnson during a White House ceremony.
...
Incredibly, it goes on and on. Very fascinating, if read with the heart of an entrepreneur. His whole life seems to be a chain of fantastic promotions.
a) Asian American > Latino > White > African American and
b) Blue States > Red States (2012 presidential)