Photo of David Batstone on a street
© Louise Andersen/David Batstone
Entrepreneurship

The strengths helping this entrepreneur make impact sustainable

David Batstone is a man of many talents. We asked him to take the Red Bull Wingfinder test to discover the four most important.
Written by Will Webster
5 min readPublished on
From establishing his own non-profit in El Salvador, to being a venture capitalist in Silicon Valley, teaching at the University of San Francisco, creating global charity Not For Sale and social enterprises Z Shoes and Rebbl, David Batstone has done it all. But no matter where he's gone, success has followed.
Why? Batstone believes it’s his acceptance of failure and constant desire to learn. But we wanted to delve a little deeper. So we asked him to complete the Red Bull Wingfinder test. Here’s what we discovered.

Highly confident

With confidence you have the self-belief to take the lead, try new things and meet challenges head-on. And that’s exactly what Batstone has done throughout his long and varied career. After starting a non-profit in conflict-ridden El Salvador in the 1980s, he became a tech journalist, before switching again to a venture capital firm in Silicon Valley. A few years there gave him the business acumen to co-found Business 2.0 magazine.
But then, just as that adventure began to take off, Batstone read an article on human trafficking and felt compelled to take action. He downed tools to travel the world and investigate. Five years later, Batstone has created ‘Not For Sale’, and is changing lives in Thailand, Peru and Romania by providing housing for those in need. His life has been defined by self-belief, so it’s no surprise that Red Bull Wingfinder has highly confident as one of his main strengths. And Batstone’s approach to failure is what truly solidifies that.
“Every good idea can be implemented as long as you have the determination and faith to make it happen,” he says. “Most of my success is because I’ve stared failure in the face. And to realise that today’s failure is a short-term loss. But if you’re determined that this idea is going to work – if you really believe in it, and you feel there’s enough momentum in it – it’s the persistence more than anything.”
Photo of David Batstone.

Batstone has combined his Wingfinder strengths to make a real difference

© David Batstone

Highly adaptable

Confidence has been important to Batstone’s success, but it’s only one part of the puzzle. He hasn’t only had the confidence to make career changes, he’s also had the adaptability to embrace those changes and successfully adjust. That’s why being highly adaptable is another of Batstone’s core strengths.
And it’s clear that his flexible thinking and willingness to try new things is closely linked to the always-on approach to learning that he prides himself upon. “I’m always learning,” says Batstone. “It’s like, ‘My god! I’m glad you didn’t meet me last week, because I’m smarter this week!’ That kind of proactive humility is an important quality that was instilled in me as a kid. Be in a learning mode every day when you wake up and even more so now. Think of it as: 'What do I need to do here to make myself valuable for my next job?’”
Batstone believes that working for the less fortunate was a desire ingrained in him as a child. But he confesses that his decade in El Salvador didn’t really go as planned because he lacked the skills and knowledge at the time – “we didn’t really move the needle,” he says. Nonetheless he went forward and continued his learnings elsewhere to ensure that his second crack at philanthropy – Not For Sale – was, and still is, a huge success.

Highly sociable

Batstone’s most recent venture is Z Shoes. And on that endeavour his business partner is his son, Zak. The company produces biodegradable shoes made from organic cotton and rubber sourced from the Amazon rainforest. And Batstone acknowledges the crucial role Zak has played in its development.
Yet this hasn’t been the only time in Batstone’s career when family – and friends – have played a key part: “At the end of the day, it’s your family, friends and network that will ensure your success,” he says. “They will be your first investors and your first customers. If you tell me that you don’t talk to your family, or don’t get along, then you’re not going to be a very good entrepreneur.”
So it’s clear why being highly sociable is another of Batstone’s Red Bull Wingfinder strengths. Maintaining relationships with family and friends, and building new ones with people he has met on his travels has enabled Batstone to find success in outward-facing roles like entrepreneur, philanthropist and professor.

Innovative

For Batstone, Z Shoes – together with his other current venture, herbal organic drink company Rebbl – is a culmination of all the learnings he has gained elsewhere. And that’s why both have been created with a unique business model that is centred around both profitability and social good.
“I felt like when I started ‘Not For Sale’, I opened up my heart but shut down my brain,” explains Batstone. “I know how to build scalable enterprises using technology, capital and talent. But why is it that when I turn my attention to social or environmental good, I don’t rely on capital and I don’t look to the best talent?
“I wanted to instead build a viable, successful company that builds into the very DNA of the company the kind of dignity that creates value throughout the whole process – from the sourcing of goods, to the manufacturer of product, to the way we sell it – and return the profits back to the community.”
Batstone’s original approach with both Z Shoes and Rebbl shows why being innovative is his final Red Bull Wingfinder strength. In both ventures he has generated original ideas and applied them in useful ways to benefit local communities as well as the environment – finding solutions to two standout issues in the modern business world.
Throughout his life, Batstone has applied his four Red Bull Wingfinder strengths to achieve the success he now enjoys. So why don’t you do the same? Take the test today and discover where your strengths can take you.