Entrepreneur’s Credo

Entrepreneur’s Credo

I do not choose to be a common man.
It is my right to be uncommon … if I can.

I seek opportunity … not security. 
I do not wish to be a kept citizen,
humbled and dulled by having the state look after me. 

I want to take the calculated risk;
to dream and to build, to fail and to succeed.
I refuse to barter incentive for a dole.

I prefer the challenges of life
to the guaranteed existence;
the thrill of fulfillment to the stale calm of Utopia. 

I will not trade freedom for beneficence
nor my dignity for a handout.
I will never cower before any master nor bend to any threat.

It is my heritage to stand erect, proud, and unafraid;
to think and act for myself, 
to enjoy the benefit of my creations.

And to face the world boldly and say:
"This, with God’s help, I have done."

All this is what it means to be an Entrepreneur.

Thomas Paine

Wisdom and Integrity

Wisdom 

is knowing the right path to take

Integrity

is taking it.

MH McKee

Guest Post: Entrepreneurial Diaries: Entrepreneurship is a Commitment to the Journey

Jorge Soto, an intermittent (out of town) Protégé from many years ago has gone through many startups, and although he has not yet caught the brass ring, he has survived to tell the story of what he has learned from it all:

Entrepreneurial Diaries: Entrepreneurship is a Commitment to the Journey: I always joke around about how I have been torturing myself for nearly 10 years by being in the startup game as an entrepreneur. When I fi...  (more)

Failing Gracefully

For most would-be entrepreneurs, the thought of trying to start a business presents a wide array of challenges, and in the tricky business of starting your own company, the idea of “failure” is usually the most daunting opponent. In today’s tech saturated economy, the start-up culture has grown consistently more prevalent, with entrepreneurs and dreamers packing up and heading in droves to pursue the dream of tech stardom. 

While not every business is going to turn into the next Facebook, and certainly not every CEO will become the next Mark Zuckerberg, there is nonetheless something exciting about starting fresh and working your way up to running a company worth putting your name on. However, getting to that point takes a great deal of time, talent, and resources that even the most ambitious of entrepreneurs are daunted by. 

If there’s one thing a seasoned business owner will tell you, however, it’s that you can’t make an omelet without breaking a few eggs; or rather, to succeed in a start-up, sometimes a little failure can be the best thing for you and your company.

You are not the only genius in the world...

We’ve all been there. When it seems that ingenious idea you’ve come up with, researched, begun developing, and worked hard at turning into reality is no longer just your idea. If you haven’t been here yet, you most likely will at some point. It’s the moment you realize that you’re in fact NOT the only one with that creative idea.  You, in fact, are not the only Master Mind at work.

Recently a product we’ve been working on (and an ideology that’s been over 50 years in-the-making) for habit building, continuous improvement and positive reinforcement was made public by another company to launch in August. Similar concept as ours, same key players to support the idea, and even the same books and resources to back up its philosophies. Darn, and another one bites the dust.

So what do you do when this happens? Because in the startup community, it will in fact occur. Do you toss the idea out the window, throw all your research and work aside to begin an entirely new adventure? Maybe. In some situations, you may have to. However, I’d like to think that there is another option. An option that in the end is better for everyone (customers, users, the company) AND can still possibly put you on top.

History repeats itself. The same is true for business. Products cycle through fads and endure waves of popularity. So, don’t lose heart that your idea for a product seems to have been stolen by a well-funded startup with big-name founders. Instead, look hard into what they’re lacking and how you can make their product even better. Find the missing puzzle piece and develop it. Discover what the customer wants and choose a feature, or upgrade that makes your product even better…putting you back on top.

(written and posted by Erika Lal)

"It's not the strongest who survive,

nor the most intelligent,

but rather the ones most responsive to change."

Charles Darwin

You learn more quickly 

under the guidance of experienced teachers.

You waste a lot of time 

going down blind alleys

if you have no one to lead you.

W. Somerset Maugham

The Razor's Edge, 1943