--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There was a study done in the early 20th…" description: "\"There was a study done in the early 20th century of all the entrepreneurs who entered the automobile industry around the same time as Henry Ford; there..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b87/eric-ries-2911_20th-century_there-was-a-study-done-in-the-early-20th_2658143.jpg" --- # There was a study done in the early 20th century of all… ![“There was a study done in the early 20th century of all the entrepreneurs who entered the automobile industry around the same time as Henry Ford; there were something like 500 automotive companies that got funded, had the internal combustion engine, had the technology, and had the vision. Sixty…” quote by Eric Ries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b87/eric-ries-2911_20th-century_there-was-a-study-done-in-the-early-20th_2658143.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b87/eric-ries-2911_20th-century_there-was-a-study-done-in-the-early-20th_2658143.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b87/eric-ries-2911_20th-century_there-was-a-study-done-in-the-early-20th_2658143.jpg) > “There was a study done in the early 20th century of all the entrepreneurs who entered the automobile industry around the same time as Henry Ford; there were something like 500 automotive companies that got funded, had the internal combustion engine, had the technology, and had the vision. Sixty percent of them folded within a couple of years.” [Eric Ries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-ries/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Early automotive entrepreneurs had ideas, technology, and vision, yet most failed quickly, showing high failure rates despite favorable conditions. **In simple terms:** Many startups fail despite good resources. Key Takeaway Learn from failures, iterate quickly. Themes entrepreneurship failure innovation market dynamics Mood analytical pragmatic Type business educational When to use this quote - startup launches - product development - investment decisions Key Concepts risk assessment pivot strategy Questions to Reflect On - What factors differentiate survivors from failures? - How can early failures inform later success? A Different Perspective Success often requires more than resources and vision. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [20th century](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/20th-century/) [Automobile](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/automobile/) [Automobile industry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/automobile-industry/) [Automotive Companies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/automotive-companies-2405409/) [Business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/) [Century](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/century/) [Century Entrepreneurs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/century-entrepreneurs-2405410/) [Company](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/company/) [Couple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/couple/) [Done](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/done/) [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [Entrepreneur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/entrepreneur/) [Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ford/) [Henry Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/henry-ford/) [Industry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/industry/) [Internals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/internals/) [Percent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/percent/) [Sixty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sixty/) [Study](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/study/) [Technology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/technology/) [Vision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vision/) [Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years/) ## Related quotes > [The world runs on individuals pursuing their self interests. 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It was our policies under President Obama's leadership through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debbie-wasserman-schultz/democrats-are-going-to-proudly-run-on-the-fact-that-we-turned-the/) [Debbie Wasserman Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debbie-wasserman-schultz/) > [If any vestige of the American automobile industry is to survive, it must involve state-of-the-art vehicles that are not equal to but surpass the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brock-yates/if-any-vestige-of-the-american-automobile-industry-is-to-survive-it/) [Brock Yates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brock-yates/) > [It is a tough city to live in (Detroit) but a great city to be around. There is so much promise. There just needs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mc-serch/it-is-a-tough-city-to-live-in-detroit-but-a-great-city-to-be-around/) [MC Serch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mc-serch/) > [I think either party would have seen the wisdom in bailing out the American automobile industry, because one job in ten in the United…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-lutz/i-think-either-party-would-have-seen-the-wisdom-in-bailing-out-the/) [Bob Lutz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-lutz/) > [And what's interesting about the hybrids taking off is you've now introduced electric motors to the automobile industry. It's the first radical change in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-anderson/and-what-s-interesting-about-the-hybrids-taking-off-is-you-ve-now/) [Chris Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-anderson/) > [Of agitating good roads there is no end, and perhaps this is as it should be, but I think you'll agree that it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-g-fisher/of-agitating-good-roads-there-is-no-end-and-perhaps-this-is-as-it/) [Carl G. Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-g-fisher/) > [The future of the German automobile industry is very much at stake. Will we help shape the upheaval that goes along with the shift…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joschka-fischer/the-future-of-the-german-automobile-industry-is-very-much-at-stake/) [Joschka Fischer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joschka-fischer/) > [But, as environment minister, I am very interested in a thriving German automobile industry, because I can only pay for the rising costs of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmar-gabriel/but-as-environment-minister-i-am-very-interested-in-a-thriving-german/) [Sigmar Gabriel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmar-gabriel/) > [My father was a die maker for 39 years, so I had a basic understanding of the automobile industry and what the manufacturing world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-barra/my-father-was-a-die-maker-for-39-years-so-i-had-a-basic-understanding/) [Mary Barra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-barra/) > [Folks, you're the reason that the automobile industry is back. Whether it was the wage freezes, the plant closures, folks, you sacrificed to keep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-biden/folks-you-re-the-reason-that-the-automobile-industry-is-back-whether/) [Joe Biden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-biden/) > [If you look for instance at the automobile industry, part of the reason that you have the expansion of that sector, is precisely because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thabo-mbeki/if-you-look-for-instance-at-the-automobile-industry-part-of-the/) [Thabo Mbeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thabo-mbeki/) > [Now, wages in the automobile industry are made up of two components, what we call base rates and the cost of living factor which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-woodcock/now-wages-in-the-automobile-industry-are-made-up-of-two-components/) [Leonard Woodcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-woodcock/) > [People look at me and think I am an expert in the automobile industry, and I'm not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/akio-toyoda/people-look-at-me-and-think-i-am-an-expert-in-the-automobile-industry/) [Akio Toyoda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/akio-toyoda/) ## More by Eric Ries > [The lesson of the MVP is that any additional work beyond what was required to start learning is waste, no matter how important it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-ries/the-lesson-of-the-mvp-is-that-any-additional-work-beyond-what-was/) [Eric Ries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-ries/) > [HubSpot has used the lean startup method to build a spectacularly successful company. What I particularly love about HubSpot is that they are so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-ries/hubspot-has-used-the-lean-startup-method-to-build-a-spectacularly/) [Eric Ries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-ries/) > [By the time that product is ready to be distributed widely, it will already have established customers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-ries/by-the-time-that-product-is-ready-to-be-distributed-widely-it-will/) [Eric Ries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-ries/) > [It was 1999, and we were building a way for college kids to create online profiles for the purpose of sharing... with employers. Oops.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-ries/it-was-1999-and-we-were-building-a-way-for-college-kids-to-create/) [Eric Ries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-ries/) > [Except in very narrow cases, where there's breakthrough science that needs patent production, worrying about competitors is a waste of time. 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What differentiates them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-ries/there-s-nothing-wrong-with-raising-venture-capital-many-lean-startups/) [Eric Ries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-ries/) > [“In the Lean Startup model, every product, every feature, every marketing campaign—everything a startup does—is understood to be an experiment designed to achieve validated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-ries/in-the-lean-startup-model-every-product-every-feature-every-marketing/) [Eric Ries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-ries/) > [Learning is the essential unit of progress for startups.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-ries/learning-is-the-essential-unit-of-progress-for-startups/) [Eric Ries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-ries/) > [“...a long-term reputation is only at risk when companies engage in vocal launch activities such as PR and building hype. 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We sent a generation to college. We cultivated the most educated workforce…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/america-thrived-in-the-20th-century-because-we-made-high-school-free/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [The 20th century has been marked by cynicism, selfishness, greed, and the desire to please, all without changing the status quo. In the 21st…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scar-arias/the-20th-century-has-been-marked-by-cynicism-selfishness-greed-and/) [Óscar Arias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scar-arias/) > [I've studied the lives of the 20th century's great businessmen and concluded self-confidence was instrumental in all their success.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-spanos/i-ve-studied-the-lives-of-the-20th-century-s-great-businessmen-and/) [Alex Spanos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-spanos/) > [Universal literacy was a 20th-century goal. Before then, reading and writing were skills largely confined to a small, highly educated class of professional people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-mackay/universal-literacy-was-a-20th-century-goal-before-then-reading-and/) [Hugh Mackay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-mackay/) > [The great wars of the 20th Century made it into the worst Century ever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-ambrose/the-great-wars-of-the-20th-century-made-it-into-the-worst-century-ever/) [Stephen Ambrose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-ambrose/) > [That is very different from how it used to be in the 20th century. Media was very one way. There's a small little industry.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-gordon-levitt/that-is-very-different-from-how-it-used-to-be-in-the-20th-century/) [Joseph Gordon-Levitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-gordon-levitt/) > [If you look back on the history of the 20th century, the 19th century or even to the ancien régime of the 18th, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zygmunt-bauman/if-you-look-back-on-the-history-of-the-20th-century-the-19th-century/) [Zygmunt Bauman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zygmunt-bauman/) > [Up to the 20th century, we can say that this whole period was an Earth epoch, 'Earth' meaning the riches of the earth, simple…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lech-walesa/up-to-the-20th-century-we-can-say-that-this-whole-period-was-an-earth/) [Lech Walesa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lech-walesa/) > [I think this century more than any other really has seen the phenomenon of people being uprooted in such numbers, such a degree. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/i-think-this-century-more-than-any-other-really-has-seen-the/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [If you look at that incredible burst of fantastic characters that emerged in the late 19th century/early 20th century, you can see so many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-moore/if-you-look-at-that-incredible-burst-of-fantastic-characters-that/) [Alan Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-moore/) > [Cruel and paradoxical though it undoubtedly is, the record shows that yje most succesful 20th century monarchs have been those who were not actually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-cannadine/cruel-and-paradoxical-though-it-undoubtedly-is-the-record-shows-that/) [David Cannadine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-cannadine/) > [An interesting thing about New Zealand, you know, literature is that it really didn't begin in any real sense until the 20th century.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eleanor-catton/an-interesting-thing-about-new-zealand-you-know-literature-is-that-it/) [Eleanor Catton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eleanor-catton/) > [The Warmth of Other Suns is a sweeping and yet deeply personal tale of America's hidden 20th century history - the long and difficult…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-brokaw/the-warmth-of-other-suns-is-a-sweeping-and-yet-deeply-personal-tale/) [Tom Brokaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-brokaw/) [Browse all 672 20th century quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/20th-century/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "There was a study done in the early 20th century of all the entrepreneurs who entered the automobile industry around the same time as Henry Ford; there were something like 500 automotive companies that got funded, had the internal combustion engine, had the technology, and had the vision. 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