opportunities that I’ve had in my own businesses and I wanted to encourage others. My idea was to explain the world of small business to people considering it, so I started a series of short programs — no charge — for anyone who was interested, but limited to three at a time. That’s when I met Tim Davidson; he was in one of those first informal sessions. Before I knew it he had me doing online seminars or webinars. Some of you may have seen one of them.
“It turns out my career is relevant. You can see some of the highlights: forty-five years as an entrepreneur in several businesses in different industries. One of those was in the first wave that faced serious off-shore competition. We had to make a tough choice: either sell, if we could, or move the company offshore and manufacture overseas. Fortunately we were able to sell. Within ten years the domestic industry was decimated. I had to reinvent myself several times over the years but that’s the new normal we all face today. Now my goal is to encourage the broadest possible use of entrepreneurial thinking because we are already in this new era of entrepreneurship we’re discussing today. That goes well beyond starting or running a business. I can’t stress enough how important it is for every individual to become their own brand, making good strategic decisions along the way. So entrepreneurship for all, but entrepreneur’s such an awkward word isn’t it?”
Once again several people nodded as Sam took the opportunity to drink some water. As he continued another slide popped up: “Understanding Entrepreneurship.”
“It’s a long word, sixteen letters. If you hashtag it that makes seventeen characters, which plays havoc with your Tweets. Oh yes, I’m on Twitter. Every author has to be.”
There were many smiles and a few chuckles around the room as many in the audience, including myself, conjured up images of retirement age Sam pounding out tweets on his laptop.
“When you write about entrepreneurs, as I have, you are constantly using the words ‘entrepreneur,’ ‘entrepreneurial,’ or ‘entrepreneurship’ because there just aren’t good alternatives. If you look up most words in the thesaurus there will be eight or ten close options and you can choose the one that works the best for your situation. But there’s not even one appropriate entry for entrepreneurship — there are no good single word alternatives. One of the few alternatives given is ‘free enterprise,’ and that’s just plain wrong. Free enterprise does not define the word, it’s just one environment in which entrepreneurs thrive, but I assure you they will do well in any environment from dictatorship to communism because they’re problem solvers. In fact, in offering up that equivalent the thesaurus is reinforcing the idea that entrepreneurship only applies to business, which is just wrong. The guiding principles of entrepreneurship can be applied to every aspect of life. Take control and make things happen.
“Finally, if you look up the word’s derivation you will find that the word ‘entrepreneur’ derives from the French verb entreprendre which means ‘to undertake.’ However, if I was encouraging all of you to become undertakers very few of you would have come today, local boy or not.”
Most of the audience laughed at that.
“More than just awkward, the word is intimidating and it has an element of mystique about it. With all of these complications, it’s no wonder that the concept is so misunderstood. Worst, all of the publicity about entrepreneurs revolves around specific types that get all the attention. Most of the time we hear about the gamblers and misfits who strike out on their own either because they can’t or don’t want to conform. Or we read about the tech entrepreneurs tied to the world of venture capital where only one in ten succeeds. Together these two kinds have helped create the stereotypical idea that entrepreneurs have to take huge risks and suffer a high rate of failure. We rarely hear about the many other types of entrepreneurs running businesses in so many other areas in the mainstream economy. We only hear about them when we need them, at times when unemployment is high and we need them for job creation. Successful entrepreneurs in the traditional economy manage their risk and avoid failure. Being an entrepreneur is about the results that you get, not the risk that you take.”
There was some polite applause at that comment. Most people, myself included, were dissuaded from independent business because of the perceived risk. I could remember Sam and Gary arguing about this perception years ago. Sam continued on.
“Risk should not be a barrier to entry for anyone, whether in business, in social entrepreneurship, or in life itself. Emphasizing the need for risk makes for bad decisions, encouraging some people to take ridiculous risks because they think they have to, while other people let meaningful opportunities die because they’re risk averse. There is always an inverse relationship between risk and reward. That’s why only one in ten venture capital investments succeed so well, or, in other words, just 10 percent of the time do we see success in the risky high-tech community. High risk can provide high rewards if success is the result but the odds are poor. The chances are better elsewhere, but remember, having ideas just makes you a dreamer. Making those ideas a reality is what converts you to an entrepreneur. Every idea is not an opportunity. Every opportunity is not viable. Sustainability is a critical part of assessing any idea. Beyond the risk perception, there are so many myths about entrepreneurs that need to be dismissed because we’re in a new age where entrepreneurship has become critical. Why do I say that? Well, consider the world we live in. The two most dominant economic factors are globalization and technology.
“We live in a very competitive world. When I started my career you could run a very successful business entirely within five hundred miles of your home base. Technology was gaining momentum but it was evolving at a manageable pace. That was fifty years ago. Now there is one constant we can count on in our lives — rapid change. We have to chase markets around the world. We have to compete with competitors who we don’t know or understand. Technology is moving at warp speed as we flirt with a quantum world. Welcome to the era of Big Data. It’s no longer possible to know everything. In fact, most of us don’t understand much of what we do know. Success in our fast-paced society requires different traits than in the past. We all must become more adaptable and resilient. These are the traits of entrepreneurs who in a variety of ways follow a different life philosophy than others. Entrepreneurs will not give up until they find a way; they don’t have to know the way. It’s about the mindset, not the skill set. Entrepreneurs never ask if they will accomplish something but jump right to how they will do it. They literally make things happen instead of waiting for them to happen. Every problem is an opportunity, and through determination entrepreneurs are problem solvers. All of us can and must learn to think this way. There is no room for prison thinking in a world dominated by change. The ability to find a way within the quagmire of ever expanding knowledge is becoming an essential skill.”
There was a minor disruption around the room as a number of people muttered comments to their neighbour. It appeared that Sam had hit a nerve for many.
“For more than fifty years our business schools have been working on what is emerging as a flawed model that’s producing executives for large corporations mired in a culture of control. In my college days the word entrepreneur was never used. Twenty-five years ago it was rarely used. Now every college and university offers programs in entrepreneurship. There is a rush to find effective ways to teach the fundamentals and a pressing need for mentorship from people like me who have lived the life. The rush to embrace entrepreneurs started in earnest after the recession hit in 2008. Downturns call for corrections. When a recession attracts the adjective ‘great,’ correction needs to be swift and decisive. Our dominant and biggest organizations
