i’ve read several attempts to crack a definition. most explanations disseminate how entrepeneurs behave, or what traits (curiousity, tenacity) they posses. here i describe a pattern in their identity.
an entrepreneur is someone who doesn’t comply.
they don’t comply with the burger recipe down the street, with the price of a taxi, with the quality of a mattress, or with the gas mileage of a car. but bitching and complaining alone does not a better world make.
an entrepreneur is also someone who provides an alternative.
to refuse compliance without this component is to be a hater. it’s to sacrifice long-term benefit (innovation) for short-term endorphins (commiseration).
in this way, entrepreneurs are just haters who go 1 extra step:
hate => re-build => profit.
i reckon most [successful] entrepreneurs started as haters, then became builders after spotting the reward potential. those who didn’t, joined labor unions.
Saul Alinksy, the radical 60s leftist, correctly said in his “rules for radicals”— “the price of a successful attack is a constructive alternative.”
That one is conveniently forgotten by his protégés. They joined those labor unions. But to your pt true entrepreneurs — they co-opted Saul and ran with it. Irony.
thanks for sharing! due to his behaviors i’ve remained intentionally ignorant of his writings, despite hearing they’re worth a read. this is indeed incredible irony.
This is Aunt Nancy. I did subscribe, but I still can’t read your latest post, “What is an Entrepreneur?”