Musings
thoughts on entrepreneurship and adventure
The past two weeks have been interesting to say the least.
Earlier this year, I made a promise to myself that I would work on overcoming some of my self-limiting fears. I wasn't exactly feeling stuck - I have a lot of great things going on - and I've never been one to shy away from risk, but I felt like there were some things that I wasn't pursuing because of fear.
Today’s post is just a quick hit, but an important one.
It’s about punctuality.
One simple, foolproof way to get ahead in life is by being chronically punctual. Consistent and habitual punctuality is an easy way to stand out from the rest of the world, most of whom are chronically late.
It amazes me how many people are so cavalier about being late. Showing up 5, 10 even 20 minutes late is swept under the carpet with a quick ‘Sorry, I’m late.'
I love being an entrepreneur. I love the freedom of being able to do what I want, when I want, to set my own schedule and set my own course in life. I couldn't imagine myself following any other path (the rare times in life when I did, it usually didn't turn out particularly well.)
Being an entrepreneur is also incredibly hard.
Entrepreneurship often comes with a heavy emotional toll. It's all consuming and takes over your life in ways you can't imagine.
It's a jealous lover that doesn't like to share.
Here's some straight talk on entrepreneurship, from someone who's been doing it for 19 years.
I attend many entrepreneurship events and belong to several entrepreneurship groups. There I see entrepreneurs hungry for success, entrepreneurs who recognize that the bottom line is the most important measure of their success - an organization that makes healthy profits can grow, can scale, and can impact more customers.
I would describe very few of these entrepreneurs as greedy - they are simply driven to make their companies succeed. They're driven by passion for an idea and recognize that the best way to see that idea spread is to build a highly profitable enterprise.
Applied to the social enterprise sector, that same profit drive, would, in my humble opinion, be transformative. It's why I urge social entrepreneurs to address their business model first, then build out their 'social' model.
