# Our world view
As we build Shopify, we continue to learn lessons about commerce, entrepreneurship, and society, and how they interact with one another.
Our objective is to teach the world about the unexpected truths we’ve uncovered along the way. At every chance, through every narrative, we should share and teach Shopify’s version of the world.
Here are some of the principles behind Shopify’s worldview, and some great questions about the deep history of commerce:
Ordinary people change the world.
Every extraordinary person started out as an ordinary person. So did each of our merchants. At some point, they realized that the products around them were made by people just like them; people who had opinions on how to do things better, and then did them. The power of their dissatisfaction was the entrepreneurial building block they needed to carve out their corner of the world—but they are no different from you or me.
To grow entrepreneurship, you have to decrease friction.
The reason why more people don’t become entrepreneurs isn’t because of a lack of interest. It’s because their environments don’t give them superpowers. By reducing emotional, social, legal, political, financial, and technological friction, we can increase entrepreneurship. For more context, read Tobi's piece in The Economist (original doc).
Entrepreneurship drives communities forward.
So many people profit from the success of a single local business. That business has the power to change the town, the family, and the community. Many studies show the power of the “local multiplier effect.” Buying locally greatly multiplies the amount of money that stays in local circulation. Plus, small businesses are huge drivers of employment and account for most new jobs created in the US and around the world.
Entrepreneurship is universal.
Every culture in the world has entrepreneurs within it. In an increasingly centralized world, entrepreneurship is the best way to integrate remote, rural communities into the global world of commerce and ensure that they survive. The diversity implied in this may make it hard for some to work for Shopify.
Great products come from great craftsmanship.
Pay respect to the deep level of mastery and practice that goes into honing someone’s craft. Real care and craftsmanship is at the core of every good product. Good products tend to be the things you want to buy; the ones you tell people about; the ones you keep for years.
Consumerism is what happens when people don’t love their products and need to continually buy more of them as replacements. The kinds of products we celebrate are the ones people purchase and love long-term.