Where is the modern day entrepreneur?

What is “entrepreneurship”? I believe the definition is well understood and that most people would be able to identify it when they see it. However, the term seems to have been bandied about quite frequently in recent years.

One problem is with self-classification. People are not good at describing or classifying themselves. Typically, an individual describes himself as he would like to be perceived – not as he actually is perceived. This phenomenon applies to “entrepreneurship” as well. When one proclaims himself as being such-and-such, I tend to let the evidence make the determination. A reporter once asked a great football coach about the poor record of his team, given the immense talent. The coach’s response was, “we are what we are”.

In terms of “entrepreneurship” I have observed a great deal of misclassification. Entrepreneurship implies a creative thinker in terms of business and commerce and one who is a risk taker. In actuality, I have seen very few risk takers among those self anointed as “entrepreneurs”. Today’s entrepreneurs typically take high salaries and assume little risk. When one venture fails, they seem to easily move on to the next high paying entrepreneurial opportunity.

Part of the problem is the environment. The space of innovation and creative thought is surreal. In it, creative thinkers, speculators, idealists, and others mingle easily. Those who enjoy risk and are adrenaline junkies can also find a happy home there. But that does not qualify those individuals as entrepreneurs.

So what is an entrepreneur? That is an article for another time. For now, I’ll just quote a Supreme Court justice, “I know it when I see it”.

Take the guy at the corner pizza shop. He takes out a loan for $40k for a pizza oven, spends another $25k on rehabbing a storefront, and has no choice but to make the business work. He puts a lot on the line, relatively speaking, and is willing to take the risk that he can make great pizza. Now that is my idea of an entrepreneur.