Mastering entrepreneurship?
2008-09-11
After reading The Art of Learning, I was thinking of mastery : committing yourself to years of achieving mastery of one single thing.
My first thought was computer programming, but that didn't feel fulfilling enough. I enjoy it, but only as a means to a different goal.
Then I realized the thing I could really commit myself to a lifetime pursuit of mastery is entrepreneurship. It satisfies me on every level - much more for personal and altruistic reasons than financial.
But - what the hell is mastery of entrepreneurship? Starting one successful company? Ten? Or is it something else entirely? There's no championship, no finish line, especially since happiness is a crucial barometer.
And if entrepreneurship is about creating a new company, then focusing on that means starting a company, getting it to proof of success, but not getting involved with ongoing management, since management is a different skill. The focused entrepreneur should then start a new company.
The Art of Learning talks a lot about mastering the simple skills one at a time (“making smaller circles”).
In his chess examples, he would spend weeks competing with his teacher with only 2 pieces on the board, to thoroughly understand strategy with just those 2 pieces.
In his Tai Chi examples, he would spend hours a day for days or weeks on end, just doing one simple arm extension.
But what are the building block ingredients to entrepreneurship? Coming up with ideas? Turning rough ideas into a specific written plan? Turning plans into a working system and specific goals? Working with people to ensure those goals are met?
Sorry I'm all questions and no answers today, but I'm really curious to hear your thoughts. Please leave any thoughts in the comment box, below. Thanks!
I think entrepreneurship is a constantly changing, multi-dimensional medium that dynamically creative folks such as yourself thrive in.
Similar to a song, there is a certain structure, or framework to work within. Well, if you can liken a genre to a product or service... But that's the tangible, logical, measurable stuff. What drives and motivates is the emotional, spiritual, intangible...the unpredictable, unavoidable, etc.
CD Baby was "just a" this or that, back when you started. You couldn't know where it'd take you or what it'd evolve into. But the seeds and energy you provided created that magnetic synergy and it multiplied. It's an enormous tree now that many artists and music fans around the world know about.
So what is it about entrepreneurship that you'd look to "master"? I think you're right in that it's tough to discern a starting point, as the concept is fairly vague. In essence, it's living by your own standards, designing businesses based on your ideas and the perceived needs of the target arena. But again, I think for you it's more the personal rewards, as you said.
What you're doing now is already part of the mastering process, I think. Expanding your perspective by visiting exotic, unique, and downright amazing places on this planet has no doubt affected your approach to your next business plan. How many businessmen do that?
End rant.
Entrepreneur is a word that is a combination of two words from the French language. "entre" means between. "preneur" means to take.
So, in this etymological analysis, to be an entrepreneur means to get between an opportunity and its manifestation and take it (the opportunity) to a logical actualization. The excellent guidelines presented here are all about that process. Thank you for providing this service.
Hi Derek, I think entrepreneurship does have some key features that distinguish it from many other descriptions.
To me, it's about applying creativity to business to solve a problem or create value in the world.
As you said, managing a company is different than creating one. Many people come up with ideas, but entrepreneurs implement those ideas through systems. I think systems separate entrepreneurs from small business owners. A small business owner can think of an idea that solves a problem in their local market, but it may not scale because it requires the owner to operate it. Being self-employed might just mean your boss is your clients. Entrepreneurs create and implement scalable ideas that can run (and ideally grow) without them.
I don't think an entrepreneur is required to work with people. The only employee might be a website or automated system.
Thinking about the mastery of entrepreneurship makes me think of people who call themselves serial entrepreneurs. Maybe that means they innovate in multiple industries, or create an entirely new market. Some people use money or profits as a scorecard. Most successful entrepreneurs don't need more money to spend, they see profits as a measure of the success of their idea in creating the most amount of value for the greatest number of people in the world.
It's certainly an interesting topic, so I'd love to hear what others think!
Interesting questions. I think a successful entrepreneur is someone that is able to create value (1 or more times) from little or nothing. I don't think it matters if the entrepreneur sold the company or is still running it.
An entrepreneur definitely needs to be resourceful and just plain get things done. Having ideas are good, but there are plenty of entrepreneurs who aren't "idea people" - they just know how to take an idea, gather the right resources, and build.
I think entrepreneurship can be defined as a certain way of thinking about and interacting with the world. When I look around I see solutions to the problems we all face or just different, perhaps more efficient ways to do things. However, this is only one of many ingredients and, like yeast won't by itself create bread, the ability to strategically think about problems and solutions does nothing without action.
If there is one crucial support system an entrepreneur uses to get to the point where he or she can actually define success, it is the ability to act; not without fear, but in spite of fear. Success in all entrepreneurial ventures depends on one's ability to understand and move beyond fear in order to do what is required.
Wow. Trance, Charles, John, Justin, Jake : thanks for your great feedback! Gives me a lot to think about.
I like that it's about action, not just ideas.
John: great point about systems and serial entrepreneurs.
I definitely agree with the above posts.
I think action is what separates an entrepreneur from a (mere) dreamer.
I can't tell you the number of conversations I've had in bars or with friends and family that revolved around some great idea they had. However, nearly always, they lacked the focus and intent to act on it.
While most people would class most entrepreneurs as dire capitalists, there are plenty of committed social activists that I would consider entrepreneurs. Muhammad Yunus from Grameen Bank is one of my favorites.
Indeed it is a fascinating topic to wrap our head around.
I think in addition to being an action-oriented and systematic person, I would think of entrepreneur as also a great positioner/framer (like those words?) and a persuader.
On positioning/framing, I think what differentiates an entrepreneur from just a person with an idea is how to turn an idea into a scheme, vision, and present it in a way people can understand it. You have to have intimate knowledge of the industry and the trends you're operating in, and see how your ideas fit in and can find people whose problems you can solve. An extraordinary idea may not need much help from proper framing, but those are very hard to come by -- entrepreneurship, like songwriting, is how to borrow and expand pieces that already exist and solve problems in new improved ways.
And the framing leads to the next area -- I think an entrepreneur needs to be an effective persuader. I read somewhere that if you just do market research and create products people think they need, you'd get the dullest products. What makes entrepreneurs amazing is that they think of things we didn't know we needed them. But yet, since the idea or its application is new, people have to be persuaded first, from investors to employees to customers. They have to buy into your product. This requires passion to begin with, but also requires communication and leadership skills.
It is a great challenge, to be an entrepreneur. But the more I think about it, the more I realize that I am one myself. Not a good one or an experienced one, yet, but I'm definitely entrepreneurial. (phew, that's a very long word!)
ari
"It's the journey, not the destination"
Sometimes it's not even about the mastery of something, but to savor the flavor along the way. Stuff you've tasted but would never crave, but might add an interesting bit of seasoning to something else.
Damn.
Now I'm hungry.
Entrepreneurs create and add - ideas, systems, jobs, value, profits.
They succeed through focus and execution.
Derek, you wrote about the later eloquently way back on August 29th, 2005 on Emergic.org in a post "Ideas Are Multiplier Of Execution" (http://archives.emergic.org/archives/2005/08/29/index.html).
CD Baby made me pay attention. That post made me a believer.
You ask "what are the building block ingredients to entrepreneurship?" Look inward. Your life story contains all the ingredients you'll ever need plus plenty left over to share with the rest of us.
PS: Thanks for sharing so generously.
In its most basic sense, finding a need and filling it. Fences are down, nothings impossible, open field, let the creative juices start flowing, asking lots of questions staying with it. Plant that seed, no matter how small, water it, nurture it, dream about it. Patience, persistance and courage.
I can totally see you wanting to master entrepreneurship. When I was laid off from my job of 10 years as a magazine editor in chief, I was sent to an outplacement agency where they taught me to not sound bitter about being axed for Christmas while 6 months pregnant with my second child (I'm doing well with that, no? ;-)). They also had me take many tests.
Interestingly, while I am extremely creative and a good manager, I did not score well on entrepreneurship, which the tests defined as a person who loves starting and selling businesses. That said, I am doing well as an indie musician and freelance writer, but the whole entrepreneurship thing as an end in itself eludes me. But you strike me as a classic person who embodies these characteristics -- and does so in a very positive, human, generous way. I look forward to reading more about your journey!
To stick with the circle metaphor, it seems entrepreneurship is like making 5, 10, or 15 small circles at the same time... probably even more for some.
I think the key is to have the courage to make those circles, even if they may not be perfect.
You learn and correct them as you go... and each circle affects the other in some way or another.
Interesting article about being an entrepreneur here : An entrepreneur is someone who starts successful businesses.
I've started several ventures and only one of them has ever truly succeeded, and there were two reasons why it flew. 1 - We created genuine value for the end user and 2 - Focus. Pure and simple - no side-projects. Just core business.
When i think about the skills needed to be a master of entrepreneurship the foremost
is willingness to take risks. From quitting your day job to standing out from the crowd and doing something unconventional - entrepreneurs are risk-takers.
The question then is what are the simple practices that can develop this necessary mindset and skill? In an earlier life I was the director of an Outward Bound School
and ran a seamanship and mountaineering course in Washington state. When we would start with a group of students (travelling on the water in a small open rowing and sailing boat) we needed to develop the comfort level for taking risks. Later in the course
the students would be placed on a major peak ascent in the northern cascades and they needed to be ready (in their mindset) to take on what would be very real physical risks.
So we introduced several relatively safe risk-taking activities which were physically safe and yet pushed the students' emotional comfort zones so that increasingly they
would be ready to taking on more real challenges.
one daily practice was called 'dipping'. we jumped into the ocean (50 degrees) every morning, first thing, without fail. On day one everyone resisted this practice.
It can be pretty challenging to get up a lot of enthusiasm for jumping into cold water before the sun us up. But gradually we were able to transform this practice by giving it context and creating a culture and rituals and metaphors around 'dipping'.
as people of the sea jumping in the water became part of our identity. if we played games and danced and chanted and basically warmed ourwelves up ahead of time - the
practice became engergizing. it was the only way to get clean each day. it gave us a connection to the ocean that felt real. it greatly expanded our personal comfort
zone and created more acceptance around other risks we faced.
and because we became used to being in the water it made us safer as traveller on the sea. and gave us courage to sail in rough weather.
it always came to pass that students in each would become a dipping evengelists - and work to sell the dip to others. even advocating double dips or triple dips and different times during the day. and when each group moved on into the mountains they missed the dips...
my suggestion here is that for the entrepreneur seeking to become a master is the regular practice of taking 'safe' risks that will continue to expand your comfort zone and so that the practice becomes part of the entrepreneur's identity.
my own risk-taking practices include improvisational theater -- i work with a group that meets bi-weekly and we are challenged to create new responses in the present moment. I love this work because it always involves taking risks and being pushed beyond my comfort zone. It definitely hones my self-identity and skill as risk taker.
great post, I've recently quit my jobs in the hopes of becoming an entrepreneur and always loved Josh's work with chessmaster.
Keen to checkout his book, I don't even play that much chess just loved to listen to him talking about chess strategy and relating it to life haha.
Anyway, nice to have stumbled onto your blog (via skelliewag) and look forward to reading more.
Interesting list of books. T. Harv Ecker's was great! Let me know when you are back in town, so I can send you mine.