Traits of an Entrepreneur
I will begin and end this article with two quotations. The first is from Edward Rogers:
"You don't deserve to be called an entrepreneur unless you've mortgaged your house to the business."
--Edward S. (Ted) Rogers
This one sentence pretty much says it all. Entrepreneurs are not necessary gamblers, but they are willing to put everything they own, or go all in, in order to make it happen. In the classical sense an entrepreneur is define as anyone who has possession of a new enterprise, endeavor, venture or idea, and assumes significant accountability for the inherent risks associated with the development, growth, and outcome. He or she is an organizer who combines land, labor, material resources, and/or capital to create and market new goods, products, or services. The term "entrepreneur" is loaned from the French and was first defined by the Irish economist Richard Cantillon, where the term was applied to the type of persona who was willing to take upon themselves a new venture or enterprise and accepts full responsibility for the outcome.
for complete article go to:
http://macromental.blogspot.com/2010/01/traits-of-entrepreneur.html
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Pardon the expression, but
Pardon the expression, but "pish-posh!" I've never mortgaged my house but have more personal skin in the game than most would ever have...
The subject of who and what is an entrepreneur has been debated, sometimes heatedly on door64 for quite some time. Opinions vary, in fact I seem to remember a moment in the not too distant past that you made a point of posting your opinions of "Why Entrepreneurs are Like God"
Indeed, the question should
Indeed, the question should be,"Would you be willing to mortgage your house for your idea?" Yes, I did with the article you mentioned precisely because like God, REAL entrepreneurs create things, just not replicate them.
I am not saying business people are not important, they are. I just saying there is a big difference between entrepreneurs and everyone else.
Thanks for the comments and feedback.
Well, you see, just the
Well, you see, just the other day, you questioned my commitment to my business because I was developing a Plan "B" indicating that I was planning for failure.
My life, my last 15 years, has been spent creating something out of nothing (literally creating, or at least trying to create a business via tech transfer). Doing something that no one has ever done before. Thus, the work my company is doing for the USG is something no one has ever achieved. There are many lessons learned and many to share. Yet, we cannot always succeed.
Indeed, there is a great difference between business people and entrepreneurs. I know which one I am and know the sacrifices made...financially, emotionally and every other way.
One thing is certain...generalizations and "one size fits all" doesn't work.
I concur. I was just
I concur. I was just referencing from Sun Tzu, that is all. A Plan B sometimes prevents you from achieving Plan A!
Yes, you are an entrepreneur, and the first thing we learn is that we still have a lot to learn, and that failure is NOT fatal!
The quote from Rogers,
The quote from Rogers, "unless you've mortgaged your house," can and should be taken both literally and figuratively.
Literally because--especially at the time Ted was growing up--a home was all most people had in the way of equity. VC wasn't as big a business in the 40's and 50's so this was the "shoestring." Well, that and Uncle Fred or a friendly brother-in-law. In any case, the literal meaning here is that the entrepreneur and their family are out on the street--sleeping beneath a bridge--if the venture fails.
However Ted probably didn't mean to imply that in order to qualify for the club, an entrepreneur must borrow against their home equity. Many successful entrepreneurs, for example, never owned a home to mortgage yet still have enough at risk (full accountability and responsibility) to wind up on the street as a result of failure.
Figuratively for several reasons. One because mortgaging the home is, for most people, a last ditch effort. It implies not just *some* skin in the game but all skin--in Texas Hold-em terms, "I'm all in." In this sense, the mortgage stands for whatever "all in" means to a person and that varies from individual to individual.
One point to note: Financial accountability is not the limit of an entrepreneurs responsibility. There are, most often and as one example, other people involved whether it be family, friends, or employees. The entrepreneur takes on these responsibilities as well and they go well beyond financial.
In the case of NY2TX, there is no doubt--using any definition--that he is an entrepreneur; with or without a home equity loan.
Further, a quote from the linked blog post is frustrating, infuriating, and repulsive, "Many people consider themselves entrepreneurs, when in fact, they are just business people, or worse yet, employees."
Employees are "worse" than "business people" who are "worse" than entrepreneurs. That is both insulting and bigoted.
William W. (Woody) Williams
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I guess the more appropriate
I guess the more appropriate quote should be, "...willing to mortgage their home."???
Would you be willing to
Would you be willing to mortgage your home? I wonder how many posters here at door64 would be willing to mortgage their homes for an idea? How much are (or have) you been willing to sacrifice for your own business?
Drawing broad generalizations about entrepreneurship and risk tolerance is a futile effort. My risk tolerance is quantitatively different from yours or someone elses, but qualitatively (the pain factor) the risk tolerance is likely to be very similar.
In "Love Story" the trite saying was "love means never having to say you're sorry." Making blanket statements is pretty much the same thing IMO.
I think the other way to
I think the other way to look at it is, are you all in? Are you really willing to put everything in to make your endeavor successful. It is funny, most people give up just before they reach success. Yes, there are different levels of financial commitment depending on where you are in your financial lifestyle, so mortgaging your home is NOT the only litmus test, but is still is a valid one.
The question was, "Would you
The question was, "Would you be willing to mortgage your home?" You didn't answer the question.
And I still disagree with your premise. There are so many pressures on entrepreneurs, the last thing some people would need or want to do is to risk the roof over their spouses head. Without a supportive spouse, an entrepreneur's survival can be shortened. Same reason why banks extending lines of credit do not want the borrower to pledge their house as collateral.
How much risk is "enough" risk for an entrepreneur to take to make that entrepreneur credible in your eyes?
The answer is yes. I have
The answer is yes. I have in the past and would be willing to in the future it need be. In my eyes, if you are not willing to do that, you still may be considered an entrepreneur, but really do not believe in what you are doing. Just my opinion.
I also concur about the spouse, and that is why I got a divorce. She is NOT an entrepreneur, and never ever could be one. She is way too risk-adverse.
Heard today in Austin (from
Heard today in Austin (from someone I respect tremendously and knows alot about entrepreneurship): An entrepreneur who mortgages his house (or pledges his house) for a business (idea) has no place to live if the business fails (and the percentages are with that result).
The spouse (wife) doesn't need to be an entrepreneur. The spouse (wife) needs to be able to tolerate the rollercoaster ride to wherever the entrepreneur's life leads. EOM
OK, all I can say is that
OK, all I can say is that the richest man in the US, Bill Gates used to live in a trailer in Arizona prior to hitting it big with MicroSoft. I am not advocating that, but he only had a Plan A. I personally know of 20 other entrepreneurs who have similar stories.
Yes, the odds are sharply against most entrepreneurs succeeding, but that is why they actually do succeed (that and that the US has somewhat forgiving bankruptcy code).
I do concur with the assessment on the spouse. I guess I should have clarified that.