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An Entrepreneurship Definition for Economic Development Programs
The entrepreneurship definition we like is the process of becoming a successful business owner. Innovation, action orientation, and creativity are critical characteristics. However, it's also possible to become a business owner by accident, grow into the role, and be wildly successful, so don't think of business ownership as something belonging only to those who possess certain traits.
In spite of our preferred slant, as we all know, sometimes entrepreneurs simply follow a successful formula and become quite prosperous. Franchises are examples. At a minimum, the entrepreneurship definition must include doing something new to make money, even if you’re only doing it in a new location.
Increasingly there's recognition that nearly everyone can be an entrepreneur. A thought leader in this field is Saras Sarasvathy, who thinks that we might be ignoring the largest category of folks—those who would like to be entrepreneurs but don't know how. Abilities Useful to EntrepreneursA laundry list of abilities, natural or acquired, that would be useful to an entrepreneur includes: • General business knowledge • Knowledge of the particular business and its markets • Oral presentation and persuasion • Interpersonal skills • Preparing and presenting a business plan • Being able to exert control • Organizational skills • Planning skills • Ability to motivate others • Capacity to handle stress and uncertainty • Ability to create, discover, or recognize an opportunity • Personal drive and energy • Ability to accept and deal with setbacks At the community level, it's critical to provide entrepreneurship support if you want to broaden your economic base. While not every entrepreneur will succeed, even at a modest level, that’s even more reason to encourage the process. A community or a nation can and should foster a culture of positive attitudes toward entrepreneurs, and an understanding of their needs. We like the technique of providing an economic development incubator because of the networking and learning from one another, almost as much as the obvious economic advantages. So if you need an entrepreneurship definition, just make sure you include the elements of enterprise formation, newness in some respect (the newer the better, usually), and investing your own or someone else's money in a business.
Return from Entrepreneurship Definition to Economic Development
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