This is an important point, but it also shouldn't be overstated. There are many examples of where professional managers lacking passion and personal interest in

This is an important point, but it also shouldn't be overstated. There are many examples of where professional managers lacking passion and personal interest in a business's market have hindered more than helped. As Thiel often says a variety of ways, copycat behavior is unlikely to produce success in a high risk/reward context like a startup. You need an information advantage, and often that advantage is someone who knows their own itch very well. I also hate that the meme for this has become "adult supervision." It's such a patronizing and self-aggrandizing description.