Top ten myths about Entrepreneurs
From Wikiversity
1. Entrepreneurs are born, not made.
This is the biggest myth so let’s dispel this right away! Sure, some people are more likely to become entrepreneurs if their parents that have made a success of it or if they have witnessed another family member working for themselves but it’s not down to genes. In fact many who see what a tough life it can be go the other direction and take steady jobs.
It should be clear to you now that you can acquire the right technical skills and mindset to become an entrepreneur through education and experience. One key thing you must develop from the outset is the drive, ambition and courage to see your venture through – but don’t worry, if you are following your dream and basing your business on what you love you will find these things come naturally!
2. Entrepreneurs are well educated, rich and young
This is the media at work again. Let’s look at the facts, who do you know that’s starting a business? They’re probably in their forties or older (many surveys have proven this to be the average age). They don’t tend to be MBA graduates either. In fact so many successful entrepreneurs have little formal education that it’s now become something of a slogan for entrepreneurs.
And rich…well having money may make life a little easier for getting capital but it can often lead to lack of ‘fire in the belly’ needed to take the risks required to succeed. In today’s world you can succeed with a healthy amount of common sense, very little money and start at any age you like as long as you have the energy to push your idea into the world.
3. Entrepreneurs are big gamblers.
Experienced entrepreneurs are not generally big gamblers. Of course there are times when you have to take a significant risk but that’s rare. Most entrepreneurs attempt to minimize the risk of a new opportunity by calculating the consequences of their decisions before they implement them.
The idea that entrepreneurs are inherently risky is down to a number of things. The fact that their lives appear to be more carefree and unstructured gives the impression of a life of constant risk, as does striking out into the unknown without the safety net of an employer. This impression is reinforced by high profile failed entrepreneurs in the media.
It’s a fact of course that going it alone is more likely to fail but frankly with adequate preparation it’s not that much more risky than getting fired from your job. Entrepreneurs do not deliberately seek to take unnecessary risk but nor do they shy away from unavoidable risk.
4. Entrepreneurs are loners and cannot work with others.
Donald Trump and Richard Branson may appear to be loners and autocrats but the reality is that their success is down to a core team of managers working for them and executing their ideas. It’s true that many of us will start out alone with our idea but again, if we are experienced, we soon look to create a strong team around us to help get the idea of the ground. Two heads are better than one and while strength of character and courage are often needed from the entrepreneur to get things started, things won’t get that far without a high quality management team.
Most entrepreneurs will actively seek the advice of others and will make many business contacts to validate their business ideas. The most successful entrepreneurs are leaders who build great teams and effective relationships working with peers, directors, investors, key customers and important suppliers.
The entrepreneur who is a ‘loner’ and will not talk to anybody will never start a successful business. One of the key reasons is that most businesses need funding. The no. 1 reason businesses get funded is the quality of the team behind the business – one man is not generally enough.
5. Entrepreneurs only care about money
It would be wrong to say that most entrepreneurs are in it for the money because so many could make more if they went back to work in their former jobs, almost all are driven by other reasons. Of course, everyone would like to be wealthy and live a good life. Indeed it would be fair to say that many entrepreneurs are competitive and use their ability to generate wealth as a way to keep score but anyone who just does a job for the money won’t stick at it for long or will end up poor.
Much more motivating for the entrepreneur is the sense of personal achievement and pride along with feeling in control of their own destinies, and the reward of realizing their vision and dreams. Money is viewed as a tool and a way of keeping score, rather than an end in itself. Entrepreneurs thrive on the thrill of the chase. Often even after an entrepreneur has made a few million pounds/dollars or more, he or she will get right down to work on the next new vision.
6. Most successful entrepreneurs start their companies with a break-through invention or technology
It’s true that these types of entrepreneurs get the most ‘air-time’ but if you look at the facts, the glamorous and inventive ideas are great but not the cornerstone of the world economy. Usually it is the simple things in our daily lives that get reinvented or improved. This reinvention is the core of most entrepreneurial activities. Indeed, even the blockbuster products like the iPod were actually improvements on someone else’s original idea and design.
The trick is spotting an opportunity to improve something, offer it at a better price or delivery mechanism or fill a gap in the market There are opportunities aplenty in so many parts of our lives so there’s no need to emulate Bill Gates to get ahead as an entrepreneur. In fact, research shows that most entrepreneurs are not basing their business on technology-based services or products so you don’t need to either unless that’s your thing.
7. Fail at your first business and you will never get a second chance
Firstly, you will soon learn that it may well take a few tries at life as an entrepreneur before you have your first real success. Almost all entrepreneurs have to learn on the job as even the best business schools can only ever teach you the theory. The chances of success are always slim and experienced investors and entrepreneurs know this.
They key thing is to fail well – that is to learn from the experience and to act with integrity. Try not to let staff and suppliers down. Be honest and open. If you do fail the people that matter will respect you for trying your best. What’s more, if you are not playing fast and loose with their funds, they are likely to come back to you too as you are much more likely to succeed having failed.
8. They couldn’t get a good job so they work for themselves
This may appear true as many entrepreneurs are not ideal employees for the very reason they are good entrepreneurs but in reality the majority of new entrepreneurs have worked for a company for many years before they take the plunge. The experiences they had from their jobs give them both the skills as well as the ability to spot opportunities. When they don’t have the direct experiences, clever entrepreneurs will often get a job in a business they intend to launch to find out all about the operational, financial and other issues behind the business .
Then, once you do start a venture you will need to stick at it for 5-7 years for an average business, to get a decent return on your investment of time, money and sweat. So, in reality most entrepreneurs will be in this game out of choice or opportunity. That said, in today’s unstable world many of us will be forced into working for ourselves if the corporate machine fails leaving us with a family to feed and that’s a good enough motivation for starting your own business in my book!
9. Entrepreneurs have to sail very close to the wind to succeed
Once again the media hasn’t done the world of entrepreneurship many favors. In the past entrepreneurs were represented in sitcoms and film as the rogue trader/artful dodger type. Now we have reality TV showing people stepping all over each other to become an apprentice entrepreneur. Once again, both representations are misleading. Sometimes as an entrepreneur you may be tempted to compromise the letter of the law or your personal integrity but every time it will be a mistake. Much like the person that becomes an entrepreneur for the money, you will fail.
Of course, you may have to be a little ‘innovative’ at times and pretend to be a little bigger and better than you are to impress the first client, but you should never willingly mislead, as it will always end in tears. Your reputation will be the most valuable thing over the years and you need to protect it.
10. You will have no life as an entrepreneur
All successful entrepreneurs work long hours at least in the early years. But that’s no different to any corporate manager in today’s world. The great benefit of being an entrepreneur is that, in time, you can pick and choose how you structure your life around you and not your boss’s. After you have created a stable business you can actually decide how and where you spend your time and many entrepreneurs have incredibly flexible lives that work around their family needs and schedules. In my experience my time is my own and I work and live my life according to whatever schedule suits me that day. This means that if I want to go to my son’s soccer match during the day that’s what I will do and then work into the evening. It’s that flexibility that one of the perks of the job but you will have to work long hours to pay for that luxury.
So you want to be an Entrepreneur?, Jon Gillespie-Brown, 2008 Wiley & Co
