Wow Christian - really appreciate the multitude of very significant points you've brought up. I don't necessarily subscribe to the idea that being wealthy will significantly increase a person's likelihood of entrepreneurial success. My point was more the idea that having enough money that you feel permitted to fail, and therefore freer to take risks, is a great luxury that can definitely make the barriers to entrepreneurship seem a lot less intimidating. That said, there's also a such thing as golden handcuffs or as you've brought up, the idea that being financially comfortable might decrease a person's hunger or drive to innovate, take risks, or be ambitious at all.

I think you raise one point that I didn't mention in the article: The driven, ambitious people who seek to bring about innovation and start companies might be that driven with or without money. Thus, perhaps the personalities that gravitate to entrepreneurship (and succeed) wouldn't be swayed significantly by their personal financial position one way or another.

It's hard to say. But I do feel that having a financial safety net can offer great peace of mind that allows people to go all out in their entrepreneurial pursuits without getting off track by chasing quick (and fleeting) dollars (out of desperation) or otherwise getting derailed by the fear of failure.