Nick Woodman, Founder of GoPro
Picture this.
It’s September 2004, and a 29-year-old Nick Woodman is standing at a convention center for a trade show in San Diego.
He’s got boxes of chunky plastic cameras that look like they belong in a late-night ‘90s commercial.
At this point, Nick’s just a surfer kid turned entrepreneur who spent months living out of his van and selling shell necklaces to bankroll a strange, obsessive idea: what if anyone could capture epic footage of themselves in action, not just the pros?
Most people walking that trade show floor don’t even give Nick’s booth a second glance.
But then a Japanese distributor stops, picks up one of the weird-looking cameras, and simply says, “I’ll take a hundred.” For Nick, this was the first external proof that his wild obsession just might work.
What he couldn’t have known in that moment was he was standing at the starting line of how he built a company that would fundamentally change how millions of people document and share their lives.
This is just one of the inflection points in our latest episode of Inflection Moments, as we explore the key moments that led to Nick’s success as a self-made billionaire.
Together, we uncover that extraordinary success is built not through flawless execution, but through pivotal inflection points marked by uncertainty, perseverance, and the courage to keep swinging after public failure.
Want to hear the full story? This article just scratches the surface of Nick’s remarkable journey. Listen to the complete episode of Inflection Moments to discover the deeper insights about decision-making, strategic thinking, and what it really takes to build something extraordinary while staying true to your principles.