What Entrepreneurs Can Learn From MrBeast’s Business Philosophy – Forbes
Jimmy Donaldson on the Diary of a CEO podcastIn a candid, late-night interview with Steven Bartlett on The Diary of a CEO podcast released today, Jimmy Donaldson – better known as MrBeast – offered insights into the empire he’s building. Speaking after the finale of his record-breaking Amazon show “Beast Games,” Donaldson revealed the inner workings of his operation with remarkable transparency. The conversation painted a picture of something that looks less like a traditional media company and more like a high-growth technology startup.Like many legendary tech founders, Donaldson’s origin story begins with an almost pathological focus on a single mission. “I don’t feel risk, if anything it excites me,” he explains, echoing the risk tolerance that defines successful tech entrepreneurs. “One of my greatest superpowers is my obsession,” he adds, describing the singular focus that has driven his success.This mindset comes with personal costs that many founders would recognize. “If my mental health was a priority, I wouldn’t be as successful as I am,” Donaldson admits candidly. “Sometimes I feel like a robot to my businesses,” he reflects, though quickly adding, “I am not a robot.” This internal struggle between human limitations and entrepreneurial drive is a familiar narrative in Silicon Valley.What truly sets MrBeast’s operation apart is its approach to scale. His production company employs around 300 people, with another 100 at his chocolate company Feastables, and approximately 50 more across other ventures. “I work every hour my eyes are awake,” he shares, demonstrating the kind of founder intensity that defines early-stage tech companies.His approach to talent management mirrors that of top tech firms. “Your no.1 job as a leader is to make sure your great people are working with other great people,” he explains. “Working with people that aren’t motivated is the fastest way to make me depressed.” Perhaps his most insightful observation about talent retention: “The 8th wonder of the world is investing heavily in an employee and then they stick around for a decade.”Like any tech startup, MrBeast’s operation faces constant pressure to innovate while managing risk. “Your highest chance of flopping is when you do something new,” he acknowledges. Yet, his approach to failure is quintessentially startup-like: “As long as when we mess up – we articulate why.” This philosophy of learning from failure while maintaining forward momentum is straight from the tech startup playbook.His recent Amazon show “Beast Games” exemplifies this high-risk, high-reward approach. “I lost 10’s of millions of dollars on that show,” he reveals, adding “We spent way too much money on Beast Games.” Yet, characteristically, he maintains “I have no regrets building Beast Games.” His reasoning? “I can’t let the YouTube community down – if I fail it is over, no streaming platforms will ever touch a creator again.”The reach of MrBeast’s platform is staggering. “Sometimes 3+% of humans alive are watching my videos,” he notes, describing a scale of influence that few tech platforms achieve. However, this reach comes with its own challenges. “In my lifetime I have read over 5,000 comments telling me to kill myself,” he reveals, highlighting the dark side of digital scale.Like many tech founders, Donaldson prioritizes growth over personal wealth. “In my bank account I have less than a million,” he reveals, explaining his philosophy: “Money is fuel to grow business.” He further elaborates, “You find a business that you enjoy, that’s better for mother nature or earth or people, and there you go, life, that’s my theory.”The pressure to maintain growth is relentless. “YouTube is like running on a treadmill cranked up to the max – if anything you are making the treadmill run faster,” he explains. This constant push for growth and innovation mirrors the never-ending product development cycles of tech companies.Perhaps most intriguingly, Donaldson has discovered that positive impact can generate unexpected backlash, much like tech companies facing criticism for their social initiatives. “The more good you do, the more people think you are secretly evil,” he observes. “If you are trying to be liked, I don’t recommend helping people.” Despite this, his philosophy remains unchanged: “A world where I help people is better than a world where I don’t.”The physical and mental demands of building at this scale are significant. “I live life on hard mode,” Donaldson admits. “If you wake up and have energy, you’re leaps and bounds ahead of me.” These admissions echo the stories of many tech founders who’ve sacrificed personal wellbeing for their vision.As Donaldson continues to scale his operations, his ambitions remain characteristically bold. The MrBeast operation represents something entirely new: a creator-led business that combines the best practices of tech startups with the creativity of media production.Despite his numerous challenges and setbacks – or perhaps because of them – his perspective remains refreshingly direct: “I f***ed up so badly so many times.” Yet, like any successful tech founder, he continues to push forward, innovate, and scale, setting new standards for what’s possible in the creator economy.
