I don't know any start-up founder that cites his degree as a key motivation for doing a start-up. Nowhere does the post suggest that a PhD is motivation for do

I don't know any start-up founder that cites his degree as a key motivation for doing a start-up. Nowhere does the post suggest that a PhD is motivation for doing a startup. The point is that if you have a valuable skill (whether a PhD or experience as a successful VP), if you take a risk, you'll still have a comfortable position to fall back on.