Defining Entrepreneurship
An entrepreneur is often defined as someone who creates a new business and bears most of the risks and rewards associated with it. Moreover, an entrepreneur generally pursues the business after identifying a gap in the market.
Therefore, if there is a certain market that is not necessarily being catered for, therein lies an opportunity to introduce an entrepreneurial venture.
That being, entrepreneurship can then be regarded as the process of setting the business up, this is inclusive of elements such as market research, sourcing and managing the most fitting personnel, as well as getting all the required materials and equipment to get the business operational, amongst other things.
In countries where unemployment is high, entrepreneurship is widely championed because it is a way of increasing the number of jobs available, whilst also contributing to the economic activity of the country.
Entrepreneurship should be regarded as a long-term game, much like all other investment opportunities. For example, an aspiring trader will spend time learning about forex trading in USA, as it is a key player in the financial markets.
Similarly, an aspiring entrepreneur will dedicate time to finding out as much as they possibly can about the industry they are operating in, competitors, opportunities, and threats that exist, as well as the regulatory bodies, if any.
While certain careers have clear-cut paths and steps to success, that is not entirely true for entrepreneurs.
Being a self-starter comes with a relatively higher level of risk and uncertainty because what works for one entrepreneur may not necessarily work for the other, even if they operate in the same industry.
Can It Be Taught?
With the above in mind, some people still question whether or not entrepreneurship can be taught. The truth is, there is no definite answer to this, however, it is generally believed that entrepreneurship can be taught.
In fact, now more than ever people are pursuing various entrepreneurial ventures because of the sense of freedom and accomplishment that comes with knowing that you are building something from the ground up for current and future generations to benefit from.
Many view entrepreneurship as a way to build a legacy, while others have been forced into entrepreneurship because of financial circumstances that pushed them to find innovative ways of making money.
Unlike professional careers, entrepreneurship can be pursued by just about anyone who adopts the correct mindset. Entrepreneurs often develop their skills through on-the-job learning and experience, as opposed to booking learning and studying.
Some concepts can only be fully taught through practice. Although entrepreneurship is taught at some schools and higher institutions of learning, it means nothing without implementation.
Given the environment that entrepreneurs operate in, irrespective of the industry, there are some key traits that have been identified amongst some of the world’s most successful ones.
These include, but are not limited to, adaptability, risk tolerance, innovation, persistence, resilience when faced with failure, and the ability to be proactive and forward-looking.
Unpacking Startups and Business Growth
Entrepreneurs are the driving force behind any startup venture and its subsequent growth. While some might be of the belief that once a business has successfully been launched, that is when an entrepreneur can relax, which is far from true.
On the contrary, real work starts when a startup has been successfully introduced to the market because this is when innovation and response to customer needs become crucial.
Matter such as staying afloat, gaining market share, and building a reputable and credible business is brought to the fore.
Entrepreneurs need to remain proactive in order to stay relevant and meet customer needs. The success or failure of a business during its startup phase will ultimately determine its overall trajectory and place in the market in the future.
When one looks at some of the most innovative and revered brands in the world, the likes of Samsung, Apple, and MAC Cosmetics, their reputation and international acclaim were built through years of providing goods and services that customers want.
Doing so consistently is key. If a startup starts off on a high and attracts many customers but fails to maintain it, there is very little chance that it will be able to reach a stage where it will be looking to expand because there would be little to no business growth.
Business growth can only be established if the entrepreneur is able to connect with customers and understand their needs, which are ever-changing.
Popular Tools for Entrepreneurs to Use
In order to get a better understanding of the market and operating environment, there are some tools that entrepreneurs can turn to. To get a better understanding of the internal and external environment, an entrepreneur can make use of a SWOT Analysis.
This is a way for the entrepreneur to identify the internal strengths and weaknesses of the business; a strength could be the fact that the business has friendly staff members that customers enjoy engaging with, while a weakness could be conflict within the team.
Both of these elements are unique to your business and can only be amplified or resolved by you and your team. The external market is analyzed by identifying the opportunities and threats that exist that are often out of your control.
An example of an opportunity could be growth, which has been seen in the form of franchises. Franchises are generally a result of business growth opportunities that arose from the fact that a certain area did not have the services or goods that you offer.
An example of a threat could be regulations and prohibitions by the government, as was the case in 2020 for many businesses.
Although entrepreneurs can do very little about the threats that exist, they must always have contingency plans in place so as to reduce the overall impact of the threats on the business and its success.
With the advent of technology, there are also some management tools and apps that entrepreneurs can use to delegate, manage teams, communicate with customers, and plan their days.
This is also mostly why it is said to be a good time to invest in tech stock currently because technology and mobile apps play a big part in all of our lives because of the convenience they provide.
A popular project management tool across the globe is Slack, which allows for delegation and progress tracking. To relay new information and announce promotions or updates, entrepreneurs can make use of e-mail marketing through Mailchimp.
Mailchimp allows you to send batch e-mails or newsletters to your subscribed customers. Another popular technological tool is Google Calendar.
This comes as no surprise because Google is a trusted tech giant and people often make use of its features and services.
Google Calendar can be used to set up meetings and note engagements, and it is widely used because it also has a reminder feature ahead of the planned engagement, meaning that it reduces your chance of forgetting or being late for the planned engagement.
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