It has always been said that having confidence in yourself and that others also take you into account is essential when it comes to succeeding in everything you set your mind to. But what if the secret to success was the opposite? So believes Whitney Wolfe Herd, the founder and CEO of the dating app Bumble. According to her, being underestimated is quite a superpower. Below we tell you why.
Wolfe Herd launched Bumble in September 2014 after resigning from her position as vice president of marketing at Tinder – the dating app she also co-founded – and filing a sexual harassment and discrimination lawsuit against the company and her co-workers. What she experienced in her other job inspired her to create a platform where women start conversations with their potential partners.
From the beginning, Bumble’s approach was a problem for investors, who considered that it would not arouse any interest among men because it did not conform to established social norms, according to CNBC’s Make It. What’s more, some went so far as to say that the idea of Bumble “was stupid.” The rejection also came from individuals, who sent her hurtful emails and tweets about her application.
Instead of making her give up on her project, the disdain from investors and individuals helped Wolfe Herd understand that it was a new idea that they were not yet able to visualize. This approach encouraged the founder of Bumble to believe in herself and her project.
It also gave him the power of the element of surprise. Since they did not identify it as just another competitor, the rest of the companies did not bother to observe its movements. According to her, this allowed her to pass her rivals without them seeing her coming from her, “like Princess Peach in Mario Kart”.
When he finally launched Bumble, it was after raising $10 million in funding from dating app Badoo co-founder Andrey Andreev and Tinder co-founder Chris Gulczynski. In 2021, . Currently, the dating app is valued at $6.7 billion.
Thus, the contempt and rejection felt by investors and users served as an incentive for Wolfe Herd to work harder in order to prove them wrong. In his case, it was the push he needed to carry out his personal project, but it can also serve as motivation for those who want to look for a job where they are taken into account.
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