Entrepreneurship 101
If you are reading this blog now and are not an entrepreneur yet, I recommend continuing because this blog is exactly for you.
We’ve all heard the success stories that start in garages and then turn into world-class companies. We read profiles of people in magazines who send us blanket messages – “If you dream, you can do it.” So let us start with a blanket message, too: “All that glitters is not gold.”
Now, let’s get to the matter at hand.
There are many reasons why people become entrepreneurs. Independence and the ability to take the future into one’s own hands are often one of the main ones. On the one hand, entrepreneurship frees a person from dependence on the employer and, on the other hand, allows the entrepreneur to determine her own schedule, location, and workload. The entrepreneur is also free to choose her field of activity not according to her education but according to her interest. In many cases, the benefits received by a successful entrepreneur exceed the value of the labor invested in the employment market, making entrepreneurship more attractive. Finally – entrepreneurial success allows people to move away from the active labor market before retirement age and devote the rest of their lives to their own interests without seeking economic benefits.
However, not everything is so simple. Achieving goals requires overcoming many challenges and engagement in selfless hard work. Therefore, before choosing the path of entrepreneurship, it is necessary to see the full picture and not just get distracted by the attractiveness of potential success. Before embarking on an entrepreneurial path, you should thoroughly evaluate your own capabilities and skills, study the market and its needs. The entrepreneur’s personal and business goals are closely related. When a person does not have a good idea of what she wants from her business, she has to answer three important questions: What kind of enterprise do I want to create? What risks and sacrifices does this enterprise require? Are these risks acceptable to me?
Despite the widespread belief, people are not born as entrepreneurs, and with the right desire, diligence, and interest, anyone can become an entrepreneur. However, different skills – innate, acquired, or social – contribute to entrepreneurial activity success differently. Because the failure rate in entrepreneurship is very high, it is not recommended to start a whole new business without proper skills and knowledge. Innate qualities such as creativity, high motivation, and ambition are essential. Acquired qualities, knowledge, experience, and proper education play an important role in an entrepreneur’s success. Often factors such as social ties, family, place of birth are positive assets in entrepreneurial activity.
Back to the questions:
What kind of enterprise do I want to create?
Defining your goals precisely is one of the first and most necessary steps. Over time it is indeed possible to revise goals, desires, and expectations. Still, strict business rules will not allow you to succeed in a business that started without preparation. It is essential to define your goal and create a sustainable enterprise that will survive without you or a fast-profit enterprise with no long-term plans. Long-term sustainability is not needed by entrepreneurs looking for quick profits. Similarly, they do not need to create a business that survives without them. But sustainability is important for entrepreneurs who are finally going to sell their business. Sustainability is even more important for entrepreneurs who want to build a company that can survive and withstand the changes of technology, employees, and generations of customers.
Are these risks acceptable to me?
It is impossible to set the right goals if the entrepreneur fails to fully understand what she wants and, therefore, what challenges she will need to overcome to achieve it. Depending on what stage of your life you are in now, you are likely to be willing to take risks in different ways. The challenges you will encounter along the way of entrepreneurship require time, energy, financial resources, and attention from you. If you are not ready to use the maximum of your abilities for the job you are planning to start, I recommend you not to start this job at all. It is energy and diligence that will help you overcome the challenges on the path to entrepreneurship. Obviously, not everyone has equal financial and time resources, but it is possible to compensate for their lack with proper diligence. Risks such as less free time for your family and friends, financial expenses and commitments, less energy for your other favorite activities, you should definitely consider before you start entrepreneurship.
Most of the stories that started in garages did not reach us because the characters of these stories chose the wrong goals, did not prepare properly, could not assess the risks and themselves, or were not lucky enough. We can do nothing with the latter, but the rest is up to you. So, before you start writing the script for your movie, make sure you have the right goals in mind, acknowledge the challenges and difficulties, and are prepared to deal with them.
We will try to help you with practical tips and lessons!