Entrepreneurship

In American culture, there is an ideal that anyone can be successful if they work hard enough. Whether it’s true or not, this ideal is often what prompts entrepreneurship: the idea that one person can work hard enough to turn a good idea into a successful company. In this section, we’ll explore what it means to be an entrepreneur, from definition to categories, traits, and motivation.

What Is an Entrepreneur?

Merriam-Webster defines an entrepreneur as “one who organizes, manages, and assumes the risks of a business or enterprise.” What’s missing—or perhaps understated—in this definition is the importance of initiative. It’s more accurate to define an entrepreneur as someone who sees an opportunity—some hole in the market, or some way to better provide a current service—and works effectively to create a solution, carefully designing how the solution will be made and distributed.

Atari and Chuck E. Cheese founder Nolan Bushnell captures both the initiative and sense of urgency that is part of the entrepreneur’s DNA: “A lot of people have ideas, but there are few who decide to do something about them now. Not tomorrow. Not next week. But today. The true entrepreneur is a doer, not a dreamer.”