Page 8 - FDI Alliance International Magazine, July 2019 Interactive Issue_Neat

WHAT IT MEANS TO BE AN

ENTREPRENEUR

The road to entrepreneurship is often a direction? Though each person’s motivation is stagnation and would rather fail while moving
treacherous one filled with unexpected nuanced and unique, most entrepreneurs are forward than languish in inactivity.
detours, roadblocks and dead ends. There are spurred on by one or more of the following
lots of sleepless nights, plans that don’t work motivators: Flexibility – Not everyone fits into the rigidity of
out, funding that doesn’t come through and a traditional corporate culture. Entrepreneurs
customers that never materialize. It can be so Autonomy – Entrepreneurs want to be their are often looking to free themselves from these
challenging to launch a business that it may own bosses, set their own goals, control their constraints, find a better work-life balance,
make you wonder why anyone willingly sets own progress and run their businesses how or work at times and in ways that may be
out on such a path. they see fit. They recognize that their business’s unconventional. This doesn’t mean they are
success or failure rests with them, yet they don’t working fewer hours – oftentimes, especially in
Yet despite all these hardships, every year, view this responsibility as a burden but, instead, the early stages of growing a business, they are
thousands of entrepreneurs embark on this as a marker of their freedom. working longer and harder – but, rather, that
journey determined to bring their vision to they’re working in a way that is natural and
fruition and fill a need they see in society. They Purpose – Many entrepreneurs have a clear instinctual to them.
open brick-and-mortar businesses, launch tech vision of what they want to accomplish and
startups, or bring a new product or service into feel compelled to work tirelessly to make that Financial success – Most entrepreneurs realize
the marketplace. happen. They genuinely believe they have they aren’t going to be overnight billionaires,
a product or service that fills a void and are but that doesn’t mean they aren’t at least a little
So what motivates entrepreneurs to venture forth compelled by a single-minded commitment to bit seduced by the potential of making a ton of
when so many others would run in the other that goal to keep pushing ahead. They abhor money. Some may want to establish a financial
safety net for themselves and their families, while
others are looking to make a huge profit by
creating the next big thing.
Legacy – Entrepreneurs are often guided by a
desire to create something that outlasts them. A
segment of this group is led by ego and a craving
for notoriety. Others want to create a brand
that has longevity and becomes an institution.
Another group wants to pass on a source of
income and security to their heirs. There are
also those entrepreneurs who hope to make
a lasting impression on the world and leave
behind an innovation that improves people’s
lives in some tangible way.

If you’re contemplating an entrepreneurial
venture, you should first identify which of the
above motivators serve as your guiding force.
Then consider if you have the specific character

8 FDI ALLIANCE | JULY ISSUE 2019