What is the true meaning of Entrepreneurship?
Let me start by explaining why Entrepreneur always gets a capital E in my world: Entrepreneurship offers tremendous added value to individuals and nations; economically, socially, culturally and environmentally.
(Updated 23/01/23)
Why Entrepreneurship gets a capital E
In all fields of my work, Entrepreneur gets a capital E because 98 percent of businesses in the world are small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) created by Entrepreneurs.
Entrepreneurs are the backbone of any economy; they create jobs, employment, innovation and skills, and are Focused on solving society’s challenges, providing sustainability and growth.
I am proud to be an Entrepreneur and very proud of what we collectively as Entrepreneurs do for economies, globally. We deserve much more than a capital E!
What does Entrepreneurship really mean?
If you ask people across the world “what does Entrepreneurship mean?”, they will tell you that it is about a business start-up.
However, Entrepreneurship is much more than being a business owner or start-up.
Let me explain:
Throughout my time working on policy development in Brussels, at the heart of the European Union, I have come to understand that people are hooked on words and their specific meanings, rather than on action and impact, whichever country the policymakers belong to.
Words have their strict dictionary-defined meanings and yet, at the same time, we also give meaning to them according to our own life experiences. When it comes to Entrepreneurs and Entrepreneurship, by their extensive impact on society, and the wide scope of their actions, they do not fit into a box, nor into a simple dictionary definition.
Societies are keen to label people and that means we all must fit into one pigeon-hole or another so that we can be “managed”. The objective of an Entrepreneur is to escape any boundaries being imposed on their creative spirit:
Entrepreneurs have a desire to achieve success under their own terms.
My favourite definition of Entrepreneurship is that of the European Commission which defines Entrepreneurship as 'having an idea and turning an idea into an action', which is applicable to all parts of daily life and is not restricted solely to business start-ups. It can be in the private sector, the public sector, the health sector, within charities, within communities, and even within the home.
This is how I see Entrepreneurship too.
Having worked on Entrepreneurship and female Entrepreneurship for the last 20 years in Brussels, the most disappointing part is that despite “Entrepreneur” being a European word, Europe is actually one of the least Entrepreneurial regions in the world.
This proves my point that it is not words that count, but actions!
Now think about this more deeply – WE are ALL Entrepreneurs
(Big caveat here: We are NOT all made to be businesspeople!)
Each of us is a unique individual, specifically talented and passionate about our ideas and turning them into action. It means we are each different, so, how can we all fit into a single box? Or even multiple boxes? (Women entrepreneurs, necessity entrepreneurs, social entrepreneurs...)
Our objective should always be to get out of the box!
How to become an Entrepreneur
Well as I have said, we are all Entrepreneurs. Each day we turn thoughts into ideas, and ideas into action.
Go back and walk through your day:
What thoughts did you have?
How did they turn into ideas?
And most importantly, how did that materialise as actions?
Simple example: Your brain created a stimulus which was that you were thirsty. The thought was to have a drink. You got up and made yourself a cup of tea.
What other thoughts turned into concrete actions?
What were your biggest actions of the day? And,
What was the stimulus to make you move into action?
Did you make the best value of your day or was it full of wasted thoughts?
Here is something serious for you to think about:
Many people struggle to wake up and get out of bed every morning. Why?
It is because they do not know what to get up for!
In other words, they struggle with their purpose in life.
When we have something to do, we get up and do it - If it is important to us!
What do YOU need to get up for?
Being an Entrepreneur is as simple as knowing what you are really getting up for in the morning. For YOU, from now, that is to achieve the ONE goal you would like to achieve for yourself. The one I have been trying to get you to put on the Blank Piece of Paper.
How to turn your idea into action
So, the first thing I must tell you is that you do not need a business plan to turn your idea into an action!
Did you know, there is not a single successful Entrepreneur in the world, who started their business with a business plan?
All successful Entrepreneurs, all successful people, started with an idea, demonstrated that their idea worked and then, some (not all), prepared a business plan to attract investment!
We are going to use the same process for achieving YOUR SUCCESS!
The How? is not important
We do not have to prepare complex plans or roadmaps of ‘How?’ we will achieve our desires. Actually, the ‘How’ is not important. You must trust that you will achieve your ambition.
Believe in yourself because if you don’t believe in yourself no one else will believe in you either.
Believe and know that you CAN achieve what you have written on your Blank Piece of Paper.
You should have the completed ‘Blank Piece of Paper’ in front of you now, ready to start on your road to success.
To achieve what you have written on your Blank Piece of Paper you must now work to materialise it, to make it happen.
You must move from thinking about it – to DOING it.
7 Fs for Success
To make it simple, I have designed 7 Fs for you, and over the next blogs, I will go through each of these Fs.
(Or, if you can’t wait and if you want to enjoy reading and working through my book, it’s called: “Madi No Excuses”. The objective of the book is to turn 7 Billion Ideas to Action - Including YOURS!)
Each of the Fs will take you on a new journey. It will be as if you are travelling into new considerations, new areas, searching for new solutions and new ways of working, evaluating and assessing the things you are uncovering and discovering, which maybe, you had not probed previously. Each F will take you one step closer to the success you deserve, the way you define it.
Let me explain the 7 Fs and how I have used them:
This is an excerpt from Madi No Excuses!
“I wanted to share my story with others on how I ‘Fantasized’ about changing the world; about showing them how it is ‘Feasible’, possible, to do what you want to do, and be successful. I wanted to share the ‘Foundations’ I had put in place to get to the point where I embrace ‘Failure’ as it strengthens me and ensures I am ‘Fit For Purpose’ to take on the next challenge and to drive forward the next change. Basically, it is a book about being ‘Focused’ and no matter what happens, it is about putting on the ‘Face’ that says you know what you are doing because you have an ‘Absolute Commitment’ in life.
(The Absolute Commitment is your ONE goal in life)
So, the 7 Fs are:
Fantasize - Visualise YOUR success, however you define it
Feasible – Know everything is possible
Foundation – Establish the building blocks for our journey
Failure – Convert the fear to positives, and learn from mistakes
Fit For Purpose -Accept YOU CAN DO IT!
Focus – Direct every thought, every action towards YOUR success
Face – Live it, be it now!
….and I usually add an 8th one, which is Fun! – Love life!
If you can turn your ONE idea into an action, can you imagine the impact it could have not just on your life, but on the lives of all those people you will impact?
…. The Ripple Effect as it’s known.
His Holiness The Dalai Lama describes the Ripple Effect best:
“Our personal ripple effect is the power of one generating hope and change in others for a better world. Like ripples radiating across the surface of a pond when a pebble is tossed in, kindness is powerful and has far-reaching, positive ramifications that bring about a tremendous sense of joy.”
So, can you imagine, the effect of all 7 billion ideas into action – including YOURS?
And yes, I have had the honour of meeting His Holiness, AND I made him a commitment that I would support not only the Tibetan Community in Exile but all people facing injustice. Another reason for my commitment to Paying It Forward.
The True Value of Entrepreneurship
For the last 30 years I have been trying to create a new environment which is conducive to implementing and empowering more entrepreneurial actions, and especially supporting individuals and organisations to realise their ideas, especially the ones they are passionate about.
It is not a selfish ambition, it is because I know that every idea has value and benefit for humanity, for the sustainability and survival of our planet.
Our reason for helping others, and the concept for Paying It Forward is this:
If I give you one coin and you give me one coin, we each have one coin. But if you give me one idea and I give you one idea, we will both have two ideas.
There are seven billion people on this planet
If each person has the opportunity to turn just one idea each into an action
How many global challenges could we solve?
Poverty, hunger, climate change, cancers, natural resource management...
It is not the politicians that will create the solutions for the global challenges.
It will be the People!
It will be the Yous and Mes of this world.
It is not money that is the true capital in the world – It is our ideas.
It is the Human Capital that we must maximise by turning ideas into action and by valuing people!
YOU may have wonderful ideas which could solve an issue in your community or completely revolutionise the world... You may be a true visionary.
However, if you do not use that idea and turn it into an action, then I am sorry, but it is nothing more than a wasted thought!
So now for your Entrepreneurial homework!
Keep revisiting your Blank Piece of Paper, whether you have completed it or not, you will need to revisit it to keep refining it until you are absolutely sure that every detail, every word, has a meaning, and that it is your ONE purpose in life.
It is simple but you must work at searching for the answers and exploring your inner desires!
Quite scary really!
I would like you to do a POWER QUESTIONS exercise over the next days when you have time.
I am going to ask you to make a list of 100 questions – Straight off the top of your head.
Take a clean sheet of paper and list the 100 questions that intrigue you. They can be about anything that you think is important to you.
Example: How can achieve my success? How can I earn the salary I want? What is the job I really want to do? Can I spend more time with my family? Why am I addicted to coffee? …..
Do it quickly and all in one go, do not leave it halfway through and come back to it later.
This is for you only so no need to worry about spellings or tidiness unless you want to keep it for reflection purposes later.
When you have done that, go through the questions and see which ones you can group together.
Is there a common theme in your questions, or maybe several common themes?
Is there something that has surprised you?
What are most questions relating to?
Now, list the 10 most significant questions from your list of 100. (Please adjust the question if want to if it better reflects a group of questions).
Then, put them in order of importance to you by ranking them from 1-10, where 1 is the most important question.
So, now you have the ONE question that stood out above all the other questions, what was it?
How does it, or could it, relate to what you have written or are going to write on your Blank Piece of Paper?
I will leave you to think about it!
You will become a member of our Madinaut Community.
Our website and blog will keep you updated and informed with relevant guidance to support your continued development.
We will also provide you with templates, e-books and downloadables that we have created to add momentum to your quest – Meaning: You will achieve your ambitions faster, overcome any challenges, and be ready to grasp new opportunities as they appear before you.
Gandhi said, “You must be the change YOU want to see”
Madi says, “You must be the change YOU want to see – NO EXCUSES!”
Founder Madi Group www.madisharma.org
Founder Women’s Eco-nomic & Social Think Tank www.westtworld.com
Author Madi No Excuses! www.madinoexcuses.com
Entrepreneur, International Speaker, Freelance Journalist
Listed as 1 of apolitical’s 100 Most Influential People in Gender Policy in 2018
@MadiSharma1
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