So You Want To Be An Entrepreneur?

Jan 9, 2010 Wisdom 0 comments

The word entrepreneur could literally be interpreted a description of someone who ‘goes in and undertakes a venture’ of some kind.

In practice, it’s a description a state of mind and choosing to be in that state of mind for most of your days is a lifestyle choice. For many, that’s a one-way choice: the thrill of truly being your own boss makes all the stress involved worthwhile and the idea of going back to working for someone else is unthinkable.

Most people are just not cut out to be entrepreneurs, which is lucky, or there would be no-one for entrepreneurs to hire. Reasons not to become an entrepreneur include:

  • Because you merely aspire to the lifestyle or think it will look good on your CV (that’s just posing);
  • If you are someone who fears rather than enjoys measured risk (you will not sleep at night);
  • If you just want to get rich (you would be better off becoming an Investment Banker instead).

Bear in mind that:

  • Only you can choose to become an entrepreneur. Nobody can award it to you. It is about the way you live, not the label you are wearing.
  • You can study what entrepreneurs do, and you can display enterprising behaviour. Both can be valuable. Neither makes you an entrepreneur.
  • There are a variety of Motivations for starting a business and therefore entrepreneurs vary widely. Most enjoy and contribute value for only part of the growth path for businesses.

If you are still interested, check Meng’s notes at Amazon
See also a thread in our forum on which folk recommended books