ENTREPRENEUR THINKING TRAITS BORN OR MADE WHO ARE
ENTREPRENEUR THINKING TRAITS: BORN OR MADE?
WHO ARE ENTREPRENEURS ‣ Entrepreneur "Entrepreneurship is about coming up with an idea, wanting to take it somewhere and against all the odds making it happen (exponentially and with profit), that's what entrepreneurs do” Lord Bilimoria www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
TRAITS: SHOW ME THE CHILD OF 7, I’LL SHOW YOU THE ADULT Nature Nurture Born Made www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
ENTREPRENEUR ACTION AIMS & OBJECTIVES Aims: § Consider the scope of entrepreneurship, entrepreneur activities and the relevance of entrepreneur traits. Outcomes: § Overview of entrepreneur actions § Consider the entrepreneur Traits, Characteristics and Behaviours § Identify Entrepreneur traits § Consider entrepreneur type traits and how these drive entrepreneurship § Establish means of stimulating entrepreneur type traits within teams www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
ENTREPRENEURSHIP Questions § What is entrepreneurship? § What is special about small businesses? § How do we start a new venture? § What resources support entrepreneurship and business development? § What personality traits are required for success? www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
THE ENTREPRENEUR BORN OR MADE? Who is an Entrepreneur? : An entrepreneur is a person who organises and manages a business undertaking, assuming the risk for the sake of profit. In theory, any person (any age) who starts and operates a business is an entrepreneur. www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
DEFINING ENTREPRENEURS • Entrepreneurship is the act of being an entrepreneur, who starts any economic activity for being self-employed • Entrepreneurship is the process of the entrepreneur. It is an attempt to create value through recognition of business opportunity. • Basically, entrepreneurship is communicative and management functions to mobilise financial and material resources. www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
ENTREPRENEURS, STRATEGIC RISK-TAKERS ‣Entrepreneurs are … ‣ Founders of businesses that become large-scale enterprises. ‣Entrepreneurs ‣ Risk-taking individuals who take actions to pursue opportunities and situations others may fail to recognize or may view as problems or threats. ‣Entrepreneurship ‣ Strategic thinking and risk-taking behavior that results in the creation of new opportunities for individuals and/or organizations. www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
ENTREPRENEURS ARE PEOPLE Entrepreneurs are, People who: ‣ Start a business ‣ Buy a local franchise outlet ‣ Open a small retail shop ‣ Operate a self-employed service business ‣ Scale a business Intrapreneurs ‣ People who introduce a new product or operational change in an existing organization. www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
TYPICAL ENTREPRENEUR CHARACTERISTICS ‣ Internal locus of control ‣ High energy level ‣ High need for achievement ‣ Tolerance for ambiguity ‣ Self-confidence ‣ Passion and action-orientation ‣ Self-reliance and desire for independence ‣ Flexibility www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
BACKGROUNDS AND EXPERIENCES Conscious and Unconsciously Mentoring ‣ Parents were entrepreneurs or self-employed. ‣ Families encouraged responsibility, initiative, and independence. ‣ Have tried more than one business venture. ‣ Have relevant personal or career experience. ‣ Become entrepreneurs between 22 and 45 years of age. ‣ Have strong interests in creative production and enterprise control. ‣ Seek independence and a sense of mastery. www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
WOMEN & MEN ENTREPRENEURS ‣Reasons for women or men becoming entrepreneurs: ‣ They become motivated by a new idea. ‣ They think and believe they can do better than their employer ‣ Seeking a pathway to opportunity and progress in their own lives or lives of others www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
MYTHS ARE LIMITING BELIEFS ‣Common myths about entrepreneurs: ‣ Entrepreneurs are born, not made. ‣ Entrepreneurs are gamblers. ‣ Money is the key to entrepreneurial success. ‣ You have to be young to be an entrepreneur. ‣ You must have a degree in business to be an entrepreneur. ‣ In reality entrepreneurs have unlimited beliefs, they are unbounded. www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
ENTREPRENEURS AND CONTRIBUTION ‣Entrepreneurs and small businesses make a massive economic difference: • Over 50% of employees work for entrepreneurs and small businesses • Taxes. Many employ 1 to 100 employees • Entrepreneur businesses are independently owned and operated • SME’s have flexibility to make fast decisions and progress mankind ‣Routes: • Start-up • Buy an existing business • Buy a franchise www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
WWW. ENTREPRENEUROPPORTUNITY. COM ‣Motivation, Entrepreneurship and the Internet • Huge opportunity to trade on the Internet • Online buying and selling • Dotcom businesses • Entrepreneurs are limited only by their own creative limitations • Trade B 2 C or B 2 B • Innovative technology such as Uber, Amazon, www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
GLOBAL OPPORTUNITIES ‣International Business for Entrepreneurs and global platforms • Brexit and other disruptors • The internet provides huge global opportunity • Social media, Facebook, connecting people around the world • Exporting and importing opportunities • Lots of support from governments and NGO’s www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
ENTREPRENEUR FAMILIES ‣Family businesses • Most businesses in the world are family owned • Traditional businesses – manufacturing, retail, farming • Owned, run and financially controlled by family members • Family businesses provide stability and adaptability • Can be succession issues, who is going to takeover? • Issues can lead to family feuds www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
SOME REASONS FOR FAILURES ‣Reasons for small business failures: • Experience • Expertise • Strategy • Strategic leadership • Financial control • Speed of growth too fast • Commitment • Ethical failures www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
8 REASONS FOR BUSINESS FAILURE Poor Finance Manage ment Poor Leaders hip Experien ce Weak Commit ment Poor Why Busines ses Fail Grow too fast Strategy Poor Ethical Failure No Expertise www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
VENTURE CREATION Entrepreneur Actions ‣ Good ideas and the courage to give them a chance ‣ Prepared to meet and master the test of strategy and competitive advantage ‣ Identify a market niche that is being missed by other established firms ‣ Identify a new market that has not yet been discovered by existing firms ‣ Generate first-mover advantage by exploiting a niche or entering a www. entrepreneur-thinking. com market before competitors?
DETERMINING DIFFERENTIATION Who is your customer? ‣ What customer profile are you expecting to attract? ‣ How will you reach key customer market segments? ‣ What determines customer choice to buy or not buy your product/service? ‣ Why is your product/service a compelling choice for the customer? ‣ How will you price your product/service for the customer? ‣ How much does it cost to make and deliver your product/service? ‣ How much does it cost to attract a customer? ‣ How much does it cost to support and retain a customer? www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
LIFE CYCLE OF ENTREPRENEUR VENTURES ‣We have 4 stages of entrepreneur ventures: 1. ORGANISE – Birth 2. GROWTH – Breakthrough 3. PAIDBACK – Leverage & scale 4. PROTECT – Maturity ‣ Each stage presents different challenges ‣ A different approach and mindset is required for different tasks ‣ There are 4 Entrepreneur Roles Coordinator, Inventor, Leader and Manager www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
VENTURE CYCLE Birth Idea Recognition Coordinator Leverage/S cale Systems/Pr ocess Leader Breakthroug h Solutions Inventor Maturity Refine Strategy Protect rewards Manager www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
ARE BUSINESS PLANS BORN OR MADE? ‣Elements of a Business Plan • Executive Summary • The Marketing Strategy • Industry Analysis • Operations • Company Description • Human Resources • Product & Services • Finance projections • The Target Market • Capital Requirements • Key Milestones www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
PAIN & PLEASURE • The customer must have a problem • You must provide a solution that alleviates the customer problem • The customer must be willing to pay for the solution • The solution must be scalable • This way we can move our customers away from pain to a more pleasurable position • Examples of pain: too slow, too hot, too cold, hungry, wet, dry, www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
TYPES OF LEGAL BUSINESS OWNERSHIP The complexities of legal status: ‣ Sole proprietorship ‣ Partnership ‣ General partnership ‣ Limited liability partnership ‣ Corporation ‣ Limited liability corporation (LLC) www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
THE FINANCIAL CAPITAL ‣How will we Finance the new venture, money we made or was born with: ‣ Sources of outside financing ‣ Debt financing ‣ Equity financing alternatives ‣ Venture capitalists ‣ Initial public offerings ‣ Angel investors www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN LARGE ‣ ENTERPRISES Entrepreneurs & Intrapreneurs (employees trusted to think like entrepreneurs) • Intrapreneurs make decisions in a business owned by someone else • Entrepreneur thinking in large organisations drives change / growth • Encourage entrepreneurship with think tanks, forums • Business development centres • Business and science hubs • Research and development • Business incubator and Skunk-works www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
DRIVERS OR BARRIERS • Socio-economic • Occupational Background • Psychological • Migratory character • Cultural • Entry (factors) • Caste/Religion • Nature of enterprise • Family background (family business) • Investment (Wealth, bank loans, • Standard of Education • Ambition • Level of Perception investors etc) www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
LIFE’S MOTIVATIONS ‣ Doing anything in life requires 1 of 2 motivations: 1. Money you need or so much money you can't refuse. 2. A passion to achieve what you desire. www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
2 TYPES OF ENTREPRENEUR ‣ The Social entrepreneur • Is primarily motivated by a deep desire to improve upon or fundamentally change, prevailing and detrimental socio-economic, educational, environmental or health conditions. • The key trait of the social entrepreneur is, “they are driven to engage in certain activities for the benefit of mankind and not by the promise of profit”. ‣The Solus Entrepreneur • Primarily motivated to pursue profit to fulfill personal physiological wants and needs. • They often work alone but not always. They buy and sell land, Buy and sell cars, Start shops and sell online etc. www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
4 ROLES OF ENTREPRENEURS ‣Different traits for different roles: 1. The identification of a market opportunity 2. The generation of a business idea (product or service) to solve a problem. 3. The commitment of resources and the acceptance of risk to pursue the opportunity and return a profit. 4. The creation of a management system (organisation) to implement the opportunity motivated business idea. www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
BEHAVIOUR, CHARACTERISTICS, TRAITS ‣ One of the most studied subjects for behaviour, character and traits is the entrepreneur. ‣ The world is fascinated by people who make $billions and live a lifestyle most of us only dream of. ‣ How do they do it? ‣ Do entrepreneurs possess special traits? ‣ Difficult to find the answers as most studies only focus on successful entrepreneurs. ‣ However, we can see that the entrepreneur environment is extremely complex www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
BEHAVIOUR, CHARACTERISTICS, TRAITS ‣ Success is determined by 3 things: 1. Our Behaviours 2. Defining Characteristics 3. Personality Traits www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
WHAT ARE TRAITS CHARACTERISTICS & BEHAVIOURS? 1. Behaviours - the way in which a person acts especially towards others (the way we put into practice our traits and characteristics). 2. Characteristics - typical of a particular person (the way we have learned to behave) 3. Traits - Component of a person's behavior that is assumed to serve as an explanation of his or her enduring personal characteristics (this is what makes us who we are). § So a person may behave in a way that is entrepreneurial such as growing a business, and making decisions about growth is a typical characteristic of an entrepreneur but traits impact what the decision may be and how it's implemented. Therefore traits go to the core of a person and make us who we are. www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
THERE ARE MANY OPINIONS ON TRAITS • The 5 Characteristics of Successful Entrepreneurs • The Big 5 • 7 Traits of Successful Entrepreneurs • 11 Traits of Entrepreneurs • 17 Traits To be a Successful Entrepreneur • What does this all mean? • Are entrepreneurs born or made? www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
SPECIAL ENTREPRENEUR TRAITS? § It is argued that entrepreneurs possess certain special traits. § Some traits are more important than others and while characteristics can be learned, traits arguably cannot. § No-one will possess all the traits and most entrepreneurs will only possess a few. ‣ Some examples of entrepreneur traits: www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
ENTREPRENEUR TRAITS – INTERNET EXAMPLES ‣ 1. Motivated by fear. ‣ 2. No, makes you work harder. ‣ 3. Excited by the unknown, you make your own path & thrive on uncertainty. ‣ 4. Willing to take responsibility. You Call the shots. ‣ 5. Committed to your business with your heart and soul. www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
ENTREPRENEUR TRAITS – INTERNET EXAMPLES ‣ 6. Passion. Your business is the only thing on your mind. You think even when you’re eating and sleeping. ‣ 7. Big picture perspective and you are not defined by your job. ‣ 8. Curious. You like to ask questions and consider all the possibilities. ‣ 9. Vision. You understand that if you dream about it, you can realise it. ‣ 10. Flexible. Throw away the plan, change direction, adapt, whatever it takes. www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
ENTREPRENEUR TRAITS – INTERNET EXAMPLES ‣ 11. Disciplined. To be successful at anything, you must dedicate time and effort. ‣ 12. Focused. It’s the only way you’ll be able to complete each task before you! ‣ 13. You often feel impatient with those around you. It seems like everyone else is standing still. What you want, you want now. ‣ 14. Persistent -- to a fault. ‣ 15. Confidence. Surrounding yourself with competent, smart associates is no problem for you, because you’re secure in your strengths, and you know what your weaknesses are. ‣ 16. You’re insecure. Your self-doubt motivates you to reach for more. ‣ 17. You believe that failure is not an option. www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
7 TRAITS OF ENTREPRENEURS Tenacity – Dealing with failure Rule Breaking – defy conventional wisdom, be smart, aggressive, illicit risk Passion – Believe you can change the world Flexibility – if its not working, be honest with yourself Vision – Be several steps ahead of the market Self-belief – Be confident, conservative and take risks Tolerance of Ambiguity – managing fear of failure www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
TENACITY • Starting a business is an ultramarathon. You have to be able to live with uncertainty and push through a crucible of obstacles for years on end. . This trait is known by many names--perseverance, persistence, determination, commitment, resilience--but it's really just old-fashioned stick-to-it-iveness. ‣ "Tenacity is No. 1, ” "So much of entrepreneurship is dealing with repeated failure. It happens many times each week. " ‣ When failure happens, you have to start all over again. But the rapid expansion triggered mistakes, including an invoicing glitch that left the company without enough cash reserves. The business had to be sold for a fraction of its value. Mc. Candless didn't agree to the terms and was fired. He lost the company house and car and wound up moving into his girlfriend's apartment. "It was a very tough time, " he recalls. "I came very close to going bankrupt. ” www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
PASSION ‣What drives entrepreneurs? • Most people believe entrepreneurs are driven by money. Some are. • But most entrepreneurs will say they are driven by passion for their products or services • Driven by the opportunity to solve problems that benefit mankind • A passion and belief that they can change the world drives entrepreneurs on through hard times and provides internal rewards. • Products and services that are better, cheaper, faster all benefit mankind www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
VISION § Opportunity Recognition § One of the defining traits of entrepreneurship is the ability to spot an opportunity and imagine something where others haven't. § Entrepreneurs have a curiosity that identifies overlooked niches and puts them at the forefront of innovation and emerging fields. § They imagine another world and have the ability to communicate that vision effectively to investors, customers and staff. www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
TOLERANCE OF AMBIGUITY • This classic trait is the definition of risk-taking--the ability to withstand the fear of uncertainty and potential failure. • Entrepreneurs ask lots of questions to help overcome fear with certainty • However, the ability to control fear is the most important trait of all. • Fear of humiliation, not having cash to make the payroll, no cash • Fear of debt and bankruptcy, losing your house • The mental battlefield. Fear makes us quit or push on through. www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
SELF-BELIEF – ENTREPRENEUR SPIRIT § Self-confidence is a key entrepreneurial trait. You have to be crazy-sure your product is something the world needs and that you can deliver it to overcome the naysayers, who will always deride what the majority has yet to validate. § Researchers define this trait as task-specific confidence. It's a belief that turns the risk proposition around--you've conducted enough research and have enough confidence that you can get the job done that you ameliorate the risk. § You have to have a lot of self-confidence. Be willing to take a risk, but be conservative. www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
FLEXIBILITY § Business survival, like that of the species, depends on adaptation. Your final product or service likely won't look anything like what you started with. Flexibility that allows you to respond to changing tastes and market conditions is essential. "You have to have a willingness to be honest with yourself and say, 'This isn't working. ' You have to be able to pivot, " www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
RULE BREAKING – (NOT LAW BREAKING) § Entrepreneurs exist to defy conventional wisdom. A survey last year by Ross Levine of the University of California, Berkeley, and Yona Rubinstein of the London School of Economics found that among incorporated entrepreneurs, a combination of "smarts" and "aggressive, illicit, risk-taking activities" is a characteristic mix. This often shows up in youth as rebellious behavior. § In fact, simply starting a business breaks the rules, as only about 13 percent of Americans are engaged in entrepreneurship doing what the majority isn’t doing. www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
BORN OR MADE § Search entrepreneurs and we often come up with people like, Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, Richard Branson § Iconic figures who seem to have been Born Entrepreneurs § They inspire but they also intimidate § But what if we weren’t born a genius or a risk-taker? § Research demonstrates that entrepreneurs can emerge at any stage of life and from any realm, and they come in all personality types and with any grades. § While entrepreneurs can be economists and lawyers they are also very often c graders. www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
Focus on anything means leverage! ARE ENTREPRENEURS BORN OR MADE? • There is no right or wrong answer as long as there are entrepreneur’s then that is a great result. • However, if we are to have more entrepreneurs we have to understand them. • Understanding entrepreneurs means entrepreneur thinking programmes. ‣ Three Concepts: 1. Born – its decided at birth 2. Made – trained to become entrepreneurs 3. Entrepreneur Value – Entrepreneur tendencies increase & decrease throughout life. www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
ENTREPRENEUR JUICE? Lord Alan Sugar: “It doesn't matter which business school you go to or what books you read, you can't go into Boots and buy a bottle of entrepreneurial juice - entrepreneurial spirit is something you are born with. " www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
ENTREPRENEUR VALUE • Great words, but the research does not support this view, arguably, everyone has some entrepreneur spirit and some people have more entrepreneur spirit, more knowledge, more experience, more ideas and more investment opportunity. • Arguably, this is because they think differently, they are not satisfied with the norm and are willing to challenge the status quo and provide solutions. • Having arrived at the consensus of opinion that entrepreneurs think differently this is a great result. We can develop training programmes that help people think differently and leverage knowledge through focus on improving our knowledge and its application. • The question is are we able to ‘bottle it’ (sell it in Boots) and share it with others and then influence entrepreneur thinking to a large enough degree to drive entrepreneur activity and create more jobs. • What else must be discovered to make an entrepreneur environment and drive the probability of venture success? www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
WHAT THE RESEARCH SHOWS US ‣ Research shows that economists and lawyers and those well educated have the highest propensity to be entrepreneurial! ‣ They are hardly born entrepreneurial lawyers or economists but their training builds confidence and high earnings. ‣ The same can be said about doctors who start practices, scientists that develop drugs and pharmaceutical companies, racing drivers who develop green technology for town cars, swimmers and footballers that develop fashion ranges, bricklayers who become house-builders and sellers of homes and, ‣ Entrepreneurs are they any different, somewhere along the way there is a brainfest, information being elicited and interpreted according to the mood of the receiver and the environment and maybe put to use at some future point in time. ‣ It's non-sensical to think of anyone being born into anything, www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
ENTREPRENEURS TOOLBOX ‣ While people will start businesses as and when the circumstances are right for them, ‣ Training and exposure to entrepreneurship will provide the toolbox ready to be accessed and applied to the relevant situation, much like a carpenter will choose a chisel or a saw or a hammer depending on the stage of work to be focused on. ‣ Entrepreneurs adapt their skills to take advantage and make the best of an opportunity. www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
Entrepreneurs are Everywhere THE UBIQUITOUS ENTREPRENEUR ‣ They run Airlines, Retail Outlets, Manufacturing, Restaurants, Farms, Technology. In fact every industry has entrepreneurs. Every country, race, religion, gender. ‣ They are often not Type A personality, overachieving, hyper-organised workaholics. ‣ They do share characteristics but this is the nature of the beast. ‣ They are different to managers or employees but they have different roles and tasks. ‣ They are curious and innovative ‣ They have discipline and motivation ‣ They tolerate stress www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
ENTREPRENEURS AND ECONOMIC DRIVERS ‣ The ‘entrepreneur leap’ is the point where an entrepreneur decides to start a venture and run with an idea. ‣ ‘Convergent thinking’, a point in time where attitude, knowledge and skills meet, opportunity, environment and resources. ‣ The entrepreneur believes they can pull all this together to exploit the solution and make a profit. From my research it is apparent that the driver is either the solution to a problem or the money that can be made from the exploitation of the solution. ‣ The belief is so strong the entrepreneur then makes the ‘entrepreneurial leap’. www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
ENTREPRENEURS AND ECONOMIC DRIVERS www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
LEAPING REFERENTS ‣ The entrepreneur leap is a coming together of attitude, knowledge, skills, opportunity, resources and environment. ‣ Understanding the drivers of entrepreneurship is very difficult because of the many variables amongst people, industries and circumstances that drive or prevent the decision to make the ‘entrepreneurial leap’. ‣ Breaking down the ingredients of entrepreneurship helps us to understand the thinking process and to develop processes to leverage resources and scale the solution. ‣ Treat entrepreneurship just like any product solution or service! ‣ There also very strong environmental factors. www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
WHAT MAKES ENTREPRENEURS LEAP? ‣ Ideas, Money, Wants & Needs: The evidence suggests that money ideas and environmental circumstances are all factors in entrepreneurship. ‣ One of the biggest environmental factors is the availability of jobs. ‣ Job shortages / redundancy payments meant unprecedented increase in self-employment. People with no income and no job prospects often leap. Why? ‣ An Australian study found that capital is not a barrier to entrepreneurship it is the shortage of ideas that poses the problem for growing entrepreneurs. ‣ Are those who are forced to leap already entrepreneurs? Or did they suddenly realise they weren't employees and were born entrepreneurs? ‣ Circumstances made them act, decided to take charge of income generation through launching entrepreneurial ventures (and then coming up with an idea). www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
2 REASONS FOR LEAPING • Entrepreneurs start businesses for two reasons: • because they want to and because they need to. • Starting a business to satisfy a ‘want’ may relate to the great idea • Whereas ‘need’ is more likely to be a desperate attempt to fund physiological needs. • Thus, there are different motivation factors for leaping. How does this fit into theories of: Born? Made? Entrepreneur Value? www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT • Do we see more entrepreneurs in upturns or downturns? • Studies in 2015 found as jobs are more plentiful entrepreneurial ventures become less attractive leading to fewer start-ups. • Compare, the high risk of entrepreneur investment with the security of a tried and tested employer. • Or the difficulty of running an entrepreneur venture, finding support, training and investment and dealing with business regulations and complexity. • All these barriers may lead to a reduction in new start-up ventures. • The biggest barrier may be the high first year failure rate and short-term difficulties up to year 5. It’s not until after year 5 that business survival rates increase substantially and entrepreneurs survive and succeed, most businesses fail before year 10. www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
POTENTIAL ENTREPRENEURS • Entrepreneurs are not always entrepreneurs at some stage they were at college, university, in good jobs or poorly paid employment or unemployed or building a successful entrepreneur venture. • But it seems people display entrepreneur thinking and entrepreneur potential before being successful entrepreneurs. • Thus, people are always potential entrepreneurs. • But we don’t know where the next idea or the next entrepreneur will come from or when they will emerge. • People with an identified ‘need’ in the form of income, financial capital to invest and an idea they ‘want’ to share, are all referents that make entrepreneurial leaps more probable and may explain why there is an increase in the self-employed during recession. www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
CAREER ENTREPRENEURS • However, there are some people who decide they want to be entrepreneurs as a career. Is it about control, are we happy to let others control us and then suddenly decide we can't work for others anymore and have to take-back control? • This also demonstrates people may prefer employment but when the need arises and tensions converge why do people exercise their inherent entrepreneurial tendencies and what makes entrepreneurs at some point, revert to employment? • The evidence suggests that our entrepreneurial propensity grows and recedes depending upon our economic ‘wants’ and ‘needs’ and environmental factors. • In countries where there is no state support ‘you work or you don’t eat’ and this is a huge motivator to escape poverty through entrepreneur thinking. www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
GLOBAL SIMILARITIES • Although much time and effort is spent arguing over whether entrepreneurs are born or made we do know that, these same entrepreneurial tendencies have similarities all around the globe. • No matter where we live, being self employed and running small businesses is not always about making millions. • It's often about basic human physiological needs, survival or just wanting to help others. www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
ENTREPRENEUR RIGHTS • Economics theory of entrepreneurship ‘all people have the right to be entrepreneurial and to receive the rewards for their entrepreneurial efforts’. • All people are entitled to be entrepreneurs suggests people are naturally entrepreneurial. • Entrepreneurship is a natural characteristic of humans and up until 1985 entrepreneurs had never been considered to be a special type of person. • This is supported by the fact entrepreneurs come from every possible background, this demonstrates there is something special about every person on this planet and an abundance of ‘ejuice’. • It's more likely that referents that align a persons skills and values are a catalyst for entrepreneurship rather than a person having been born with a higher order entrepreneurial spoon in their mouth! www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
TRAINING REFERENTS • We may have an opportunity to influence people’s entrepreneur skills and values and consider how referents may be exploited as entrepreneur opportunity. • The research suggests we can think like entrepreneurs when we understand them and if we understand them we can drive entrepreneurship, improve the possibility of opportunity recognition, encourage the entrepreneur leap, increase the probability of venture survival and increase economic activity, jobs and social benefits. • There are great humanitarian benefits for supporting entrepreneurs and discovering how they think and leveraging the entrepreneur thinking process. www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
SHAPING, MAKING, DRIVING 5 Questions ‣ Are entrepreneurs born with cash or do they make cash? ‣ Are entrepreneurs born coordinators or do they learn to identify value? ‣ Are entrepreneurs born inventors or do they learn to create value? ‣ Are entrepreneurs born leaders or do they learn to deliver value? ‣ Are entrepreneurs born managers or do they learn to protect value? www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
Cash Born or Mad e? Manage r Leader Coordin ator Inventor www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
Traits: Born or Made TRAITS • We found: • 52 identified traits • 11 proven traits • Does anyone possess all the identified traits? www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
CAN WE GROW TRAITS? EXAMPLES • Ask, what's wrong with it? • How can we do it better? • Am I thinking big enough? Stimulate Creativity • Games, Puzzles • Adventure course, Team building • Sciences • Exposure to industries, Benchmarking, Best practice • Use various environments and different teams • GROWTH process etc www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
CAN WE LEVERAGE TRAITS & SKILLS ‣ 2 Tools to leverage inventor type skills: § Brainstorming § Negative mental attitude www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
ENTREPRENEURSHIP: ADVANTAGES & DISADVANTAGES Advantages Disadvantages • Own your own business • Long hours • Enjoy the Profits • Own investment at risk • Sense of pride • Must be aware of ever- • Flexibilty in work schedule changing government regulations • Tough decisions (such as hiring & firing) www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
52 ENTREPRENEUR TRAITS
Identified Entrepreneur Traits Discover Achieve Protect Conscientiousness Conservatism Creativity Dogmatism Endurance* Enthusiasm Future orientation Impulsiveness Innovativeness* Need for affiliation Openness to experience Optimism Originality Practicality Shyness Scepticism Tolerance for ambiguity Aggressiveness Agreeable Emotional stability Expedience Extraversion Flexibility* Forthrightness Higher order need strength Internal locus of control Need for achievement* Protestant work ethic beliefs Self-confidence Self-efficacy* Self-reliance Sobriety Tenacity* Tough-mindedness Type-A behaviour Benevolence Conformity Delay of gratification Discipline Goal orientation* Humility Need for autonomy* Need for dominance Neuroticism Norm orientation Passion for work* Pro-active personality* Risk-taking propensity Rigidity Stress tolerance* Self-esteem Trustworthy Inventor Leader Manager *Traits that were matched to entrepreneurial behaviour (Andreas Rauch, Michael Frese)
11 TRAITS THAT MAKE THE DIFFERENCE 1 Flexible 6 Tenacious 2 Need for achievement 7 Tolerate Stress 3 Passion for work 4 Self efficacy 5 Proactive www. entrepreneur-thinking. com 8 Goal Oriented 9 Autonomous 10 Innovative 11 Endurance
CONCLUSION - ENTREPRENEURS ARE BORN ‣ Steve Jobs sold devices at school to fellow students ‣ Dhirubhai Ambani as a child sold bhajias at local markets ‣ Richard Branson started a youth-culture magazine at 16 ‣ Some people are headstrong, driven, passionate, risk-takers, persuasive ‣ Hypo-maniacs – brimming with ideas, irrational confidence, infectious energy ‣ Some people have REALLY BIG IDEAS, dream of scale, unlimited boundaries ‣ They think fast, talk fast and make fast decisions www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
CONCLUSION - ENTREPRENEURS ARE MADE ‣ We are not born able to do anything useful ‣ Over 50% of entrepreneurs say they were transitioned from employees ‣ Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerburg are minority examples ‣ Entrepreneurship is hugely complex ‣ Some form of business experience is vital ‣ Most entrepreneurs learn their craft along the way ‣ Most start their business ventures after age 30 ‣ It’s a coming together of experience, knowledge, circumstances and referents www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
TRAITS: BORN OR MADE CONCLUSION ▸ The conclusion that can be drawn from these two countering arguments is that just as there are so many different entrepreneurial ideas ▸ There is no one route to entrepreneurship. ▸ There are some who are born with a desire to create ventures and have inherent qualities that make them successful entrepreneurs, ▸ There are others who learn and acquire them along the way. www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
KEY BENEFITS TRAITS BORN OR MADE: ▸ Helps us discover our own entrepreneur qualities ▸ Identifies the make-up of entrepreneurs ▸ Focuses on developing team entrepreneur thinking skills ▸ Encourages a ‘can do’ attitude ▸ Entrepreneur thinking doesn’t seem so elusive ▸ The entrepreneur process becomes more transparent ▸ Transparency creates an opportunity for leverage and scale www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
WHO ARE ENTREPRENEURS: SUMMARY § Traditionally entrepreneurs are seen to be born or made § New concept that people have entrepreneur value § The economic environment affects decisions § Personal circumstances such as wants and needs are powerful drivers § The ingredients of entrepreneurs are defined by certain traits, roles, tasks etc § When we know the ingredients of something we can improve quantity / quality www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
BE WHAT YOU WANT TO BE TRAITS: BORN OR MADE & THE ENTREPRENEUR § Three concepts, born or made or value § Entrepreneurs may have no opinion either way § However, successful entrepreneurs often spend their time telling others how its done! ▸ But, Born or Made is a limiting belief ▸ Entrepreneurs don’t hold limiting beliefs ▸ More important to think like an entrepreneur ▸ Focus on what we can do, improve and progress everything & everyone! www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
TRAITS: BORN OR MADE? EXERCISE ▸ What type of people become entrepreneurs? ▸ Are entrepreneurs born or made? ▸ Test – Entrepreneur Thinking www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
WHO ARE ENTREPRENEURS? ADDITIONAL RESOURCES ▸ More resources at www. entrepreneur-thinking. com
ENTREPRENEUR THINKING WHO ARE ENTREPRENEURS?
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