--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It's really hard to run a business…" description: "\"It's really hard to run a business against somebody who is not acting as if it were in business.\" — Bill Gurley" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/262/bill-gurley-27212_acting_it-s-really-hard-to-run-a-business-again_2306956.jpg" --- # It's really hard to run a business against somebody who is… ![“It's really hard to run a business against somebody who is not acting as if it were in business.” quote by Bill Gurley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/262/bill-gurley-27212_acting_it-s-really-hard-to-run-a-business-again_2306956.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/262/bill-gurley-27212_acting_it-s-really-hard-to-run-a-business-again_2306956.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/262/bill-gurley-27212_acting_it-s-really-hard-to-run-a-business-again_2306956.jpg) > “It's really hard to run a business against somebody who is not acting as if it were in business.” [Bill Gurley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gurley/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Running a business against someone who doesn’t treat it like a business creates unfair competition and chaos. **In simple terms:** Competing with non‑business‑minded rivals is difficult. Key Takeaway Choose partners who share business mindset. Themes competition ethics strategy Mood analytical serious Type strategic advisory When to use this quote - venture capital negotiations - industry regulation - team building Key Concepts market dynamics fair play leadership Questions to Reflect On - How do you protect your venture from unethical rivals? - When should you exit a market? A Different Perspective Not all markets have clear ethical standards. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Acting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acting/) [Business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/) ## Related quotes > [When I was younger, I felt very alone and that I didn't fit into my own skin. I loved the idea of becoming somebody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannon-purser/when-i-was-younger-i-felt-very-alone-and-that-i-didn-t-fit-into-my/) [Shannon Purser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannon-purser/) > [In theater, you're playing characters. You believe you're somebody else, and you're acting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-simmons/in-theater-you-re-playing-characters-you-believe-you-re-somebody-else/) [Gene Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-simmons/) > [In order to be able to work with somebody in acting, you've first got to think that person's a good actor before you can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-dekay/in-order-to-be-able-to-work-with-somebody-in-acting-you-ve-first-got/) [Tim DeKay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-dekay/) > [Public business must always be done by somebody. It will be done by somebody or other. If wise man decline, others will not; if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-adams/public-business-must-always-be-done-by-somebody-it-will-be-done-by/) [John Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-adams/) > [You have to be un-comfortably comfortable in this business. There's always somebody else who wants what you have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malik-jackson/you-have-to-be-un-comfortably-comfortable-in-this-business-there-s/) [Malik Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malik-jackson/) > [Show business is - you're there by somebody's fluke. And as long as somebody likes you, and the show is going well, you're fine.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-rivers/show-business-is-you-re-there-by-somebody-s-fluke-and-as-long-as/) [Joan Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-rivers/) > [For me, it really doesn't make much difference whether you work with someone two hours or two months. We're there to do a job…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-wahl/for-me-it-really-doesn-t-make-much-difference-whether-you-work-with/) [Ken Wahl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-wahl/) > [“Basically it’s none of our business how somebody manages to grow, if only he does grow, if only we’re on the trail of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaim-potok/basically-it-s-none-of-our-business-how-somebody-manages-to-grow-if/) [Chaim Potok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chaim-potok/) > [I'm 43 years old, and I know who I am, and I own my mistakes. They're my business. And when somebody who doesn't know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gwyneth-paltrow/i-m-43-years-old-and-i-know-who-i-am-and-i-own-my-mistakes-they-re-my/) [Gwyneth Paltrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gwyneth-paltrow/) > [If you hang around long enough to show these people what you can do, you have a chance in this acting business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-cady/if-you-hang-around-long-enough-to-show-these-people-what-you-can-do/) Frank Cady > [Acting is a business and a political act and a craft, but I also feel like it's a service - specifically, for a military…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-driver/acting-is-a-business-and-a-political-act-and-a-craft-but-i-also-feel/) [Adam Driver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-driver/) > [From as early as I can remember, I wanted to have something to do with the acting business. I was a TV junkie as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cherien-dabis/from-as-early-as-i-can-remember-i-wanted-to-have-something-to-do-with/) [Cherien Dabis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cherien-dabis/) > [Acting's more of a business for me now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-quaid/acting-s-more-of-a-business-for-me-now/) [Randy Quaid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-quaid/) > [I'm in the acting business. That's the ego business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-white/i-m-in-the-acting-business-that-s-the-ego-business/) [Betty White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-white/) > [The longer you are in acting business, the more you cherish the times when you're working with people that do great work, and can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-bakula/the-longer-you-are-in-acting-business-the-more-you-cherish-the-times/) [Scott Bakula](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-bakula/) ## More by Bill Gurley > [I have never seen Jeff Bezos, Marc Benioff, or Reed Hastings complain about being public. Nor have they ever argued that being public prevented…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gurley/i-have-never-seen-jeff-bezos-marc-benioff-or-reed-hastings-complain/) [Bill Gurley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gurley/) > [I think one thing that may have happened with both Facebook and Zynga is that they may have waited too long to go public.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gurley/i-think-one-thing-that-may-have-happened-with-both-facebook-and-zynga/) [Bill Gurley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gurley/) > [If one asserts that buying customers below what they charge them is a corporate strategy, this is in essence an arbitrage game, and arbitrage…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gurley/if-one-asserts-that-buying-customers-below-what-they-charge-them-is-a/) [Bill Gurley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gurley/) > [Many consumer Internet business executives are loyalists of the Lifetime Value model, often referred to as the LTV model or formula. Lifetime value is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gurley/many-consumer-internet-business-executives-are-loyalists-of-the/) [Bill Gurley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gurley/) > [Almost everybody who thinks about local thinks about daily deals, but companies like OpenTable and Zillow and Yelp are all getting their money from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gurley/almost-everybody-who-thinks-about-local-thinks-about-daily-deals-but/) [Bill Gurley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gurley/) > [There is no fear in Silicon Valley right now,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gurley/there-is-no-fear-in-silicon-valley-right-now/) [Bill Gurley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gurley/) > [You can't make money with a consensus accurate prediction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gurley/you-can-t-make-money-with-a-consensus-accurate-prediction/) [Bill Gurley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gurley/) > [Having an investor on your board of directors who is naive about public markets or finds them complex or scary is non-optimal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gurley/having-an-investor-on-your-board-of-directors-who-is-naive-about/) [Bill Gurley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gurley/) > [Facebook has stitched together your social graph. The idea of an interest graph is to bring together everyone that has shared interests. If I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gurley/facebook-has-stitched-together-your-social-graph-the-idea-of-an/) [Bill Gurley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gurley/) > [It's not for everybody to tweet, it's for everybody to follow. The more people figure that out, they see it's RSS-plus. It's literally the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gurley/it-s-not-for-everybody-to-tweet-it-s-for-everybody-to-follow-the-more/) [Bill Gurley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gurley/) > [Most firms are hierarchical in nature, with everyone getting different slices of the economic pie. The problem is those slices are negotiated every time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gurley/most-firms-are-hierarchical-in-nature-with-everyone-getting-different/) [Bill Gurley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gurley/) > [If the goal is to build companies that maximize long-term equity value, then optimizing corporate performance in a way that Wall Street appreciates is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gurley/if-the-goal-is-to-build-companies-that-maximize-long-term-equity/) [Bill Gurley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gurley/) > [Marketing executives like big budgets, as big budgets make it easier to grow the top line.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gurley/marketing-executives-like-big-budgets-as-big-budgets-make-it-easier/) [Bill Gurley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gurley/) > [No one's fearful, everyone's greedy, and it will eventually end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gurley/no-one-s-fearful-everyone-s-greedy-and-it-will-eventually-end/) [Bill Gurley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gurley/) > [Silicon Valley is way more correlated with Nasdaq than anyone admits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gurley/silicon-valley-is-way-more-correlated-with-nasdaq-than-anyone-admits/) [Bill Gurley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gurley/) [Explore all 21 Bill Gurley quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gurley/) ## More Acting quotes > [I actually think acting is a form of self-hypnosis. You have to be hyper, hyper aware of what's going on around you. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-moore/i-actually-think-acting-is-a-form-of-self-hypnosis-you-have-to-be/) [Julianne Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-moore/) > [Many Republicans have always reminded me of professional WWF wrestlers. They come into the ring all pumped up and acting like they're invincible and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-feig/many-republicans-have-always-reminded-me-of-professional-wwf/) [Paul Feig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-feig/) > [I'm a big fan of all the Boston guys that are acting - Matt Damon , Ben Affleck, Mark Wahlberg - they made a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenny-wormald/i-m-a-big-fan-of-all-the-boston-guys-that-are-acting-matt-damon-ben/) [Kenny Wormald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenny-wormald/) > [Acting is a grind, just like music is a grind. Sometimes it takes longer than what you can give.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/big-sean/acting-is-a-grind-just-like-music-is-a-grind-sometimes-it-takes/) [Big Sean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/big-sean/) > [It was only when I started making short films in college and I was looking for girls to play the me-ish parts that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-dunham/it-was-only-when-i-started-making-short-films-in-college-and-i-was/) [Lena Dunham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-dunham/) > [Writing is something I took up rather than anything I had an inclination toward. I like acting -delivering someone else's message - but writing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-martin/writing-is-something-i-took-up-rather-than-anything-i-had-an/) [Steve Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-martin/) > [I can still function when I don't have that balance I crave. I had a tendency to be precious about acting, thinking of it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-regan/i-can-still-function-when-i-don-t-have-that-balance-i-crave-i-had-a/) [Laura Regan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-regan/) > [Actors don't hate acting. Most people don't hate acting! Whether you're a child mucking around with your friends or a grown up being paid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liv-hewson/actors-don-t-hate-acting-most-people-don-t-hate-acting-whether-you-re/) [Liv Hewson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liv-hewson/) > [It was only when I went to acting school that I was like, "You are absolutely such a pigheaded freak show that you thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giles-matthey/it-was-only-when-i-went-to-acting-school-that-i-was-like-you-are/) [Giles Matthey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giles-matthey/) > [Once I committed to acting, this has been it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernie-hudson/once-i-committed-to-acting-this-has-been-it/) [Ernie Hudson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernie-hudson/) > [It definitely helps to have the acting experience going into singing, because when you're singing, you have to portray the emotion you were feeling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-newman/it-definitely-helps-to-have-the-acting-experience-going-into-singing/) Ryan Newman > [The show was number one in the ratings, Gordon Russell was our head writer, the story lines were magnificent and the acting most exciting.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-storm/the-show-was-number-one-in-the-ratings-gordon-russell-was-our-head/) [Michael Storm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-storm/) > [I've done so many other projects where you're in a room with a reader and you're acting your lines out: 'We have to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-cummings/i-ve-done-so-many-other-projects-where-you-re-in-a-room-with-a-reader/) [Jim Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-cummings/) > [I do not believe in public shaming. I do believe that young adults go to college to learn things, and that this process will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-weingarten/i-do-not-believe-in-public-shaming-i-do-believe-that-young-adults-go/) [Gene Weingarten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-weingarten/) > [Poetry has, in a way, been my bridge to my acting career.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/omari-hardwick/poetry-has-in-a-way-been-my-bridge-to-my-acting-career/) [Omari Hardwick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/omari-hardwick/) [Browse all 12,062 Acting quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acting/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It's really hard to run a business against somebody who is not acting as if it were in business.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Bill Gurley" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gurley/it-s-really-hard-to-run-a-business-against-somebody-who-is-not-acting/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Acting" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gurley/it-s-really-hard-to-run-a-business-against-somebody-who-is-not-acting/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/262/bill-gurley-27212_acting_it-s-really-hard-to-run-a-business-again_2306956.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/262/bill-gurley-27212_acting_it-s-really-hard-to-run-a-business-again_2306956.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/262/bill-gurley-27212_acting_it-s-really-hard-to-run-a-business-again_2306956.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It's really hard to run a business against somebody who is not acting as if it were in business.” — Bill Gurley", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Bill Gurley", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gurley/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It's really hard to run a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gurley/it-s-really-hard-to-run-a-business-against-somebody-who-is-not-acting/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gurley/it-s-really-hard-to-run-a-business-against-somebody-who-is-not-acting/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```