“I’m an entrepreneur”. Youngprenuer, Mumpreneur, Investorprenuer – it seems these days that everyone is their own business idol. I put to you that if one calls themselves an entrepreneur, then they probably aren’t one.
If other people call you an entrepreneur, then you probably are – word of people’s success spreads like wildfire, and if you aren’t recognised by the general public as an entrepreneur you either aren’t doing enough or you need to get yourself a publicist.
Coming from the French “entreprendre“, meaning ‘to undertake’, those of you who create and run your own business are considered to be entrepreneurial (or at least consider yourselves as such), regardless of whether or not that business fails or stagnates.
I argue that simply owning your own business and working for yourself does not make you an entrepreneur. In this case, you are a business owner. A true entrepreneur, like any stock portfolio worth mentioning, has diversified their wealth. This means multiple revenue streams, never being complacent and never, ever ceasing your charge into the fray of innovation.
Just because you participate in a market, be it owning your own restaurant or e-commerce store, does not mean that you are pioneering within your market or even seeing true success.
‘Pioneering’ and ‘Success’ are the two phrases I will reiterate. All too often we reward those who tread the waters of success with a total, albeit misguided acceptance of their self-given ‘entrepreneur’ title. I put to you that the only way to truly stand out and give any truth to the word is to innovate until your business becomes many businesses.
However, you are not an entrepreneur because you have a 9-5 job and also freelance. You are not an entrepreneur because you got out of bed one day, decided to quit your career and open up an organic, fair-trade coffee supply in a market that is already oversaturated.
You are only an entrepreneur if you spot a need that isn’t being filled or a market gap that you can close and capitalize on. You are only an entrepreneur if you then re-capitalize on your previous successes and expand – and on and on it goes.
And although I may be biased, a healthy stock portfolio doesn’t hurt your chances of succeeding in doing this, as we all need to get our initial capital from somewhere!
Entrepreneur – we need to elevate the word. Aspiring entrepreneurs are stopping themselves from achieving their potential by rewarding themselves with the title, too early. I recommend you hold off on telling your friends you’re the next Richard Branson until you actually have something to show for it. Instead, use your obscurity to fuel your entrepreneurial fire and emerge victorious when the time comes for you to herald your newly found success.
About the author
Dale Gillham is the Chief Investment Analyst at Wealth Within.
