My Hero's Journey: Chapter 14 (Final)

  So, my final entry!  For this “last lecture”, I’ve been instructed to share my thoughts and advice for those wanting to begin the entrepreneur journey.  I find it difficult to do that, given the small little fact that I’m not actually an entrepreneur.  So I’m going to direct this advice more to myself, and maybe I will look back on this at a latter date.

  So, you want to be an entrepreneur, eh?  I don’t have much first-hand experience to offer you, but I’ve read enough books and watched enough videos to discuss the topic, at least on a theoretical basis.  What makes an entrepreneur?  I think there are a lot of misconceptions about being an entrepreneur.  I’ve gotten into the habit of watching Shark Tank when it comes on.  It is an enjoyable practice to examine the strengths and weaknesses of each entrepreneur’s sales pitch.  What looks incredible at first glance can quickly degrade into a quibbling mess.  Even when one’s pitch has been picked to pieces, and found to be lackluster at it’s core, the entrepreneur doesn’t give up.  They’ve put years of their life into this moment, and they believe in their vision, their pitch, their business.  At times, I see this as foolish optimism - the idea isn’t very good, why push through on a foolish errand?  At other times, their belief is something to be admired.  How many of us sit on the sidelines of our own lives, content to let the moments slip through our fingers, too uninspired or lacking in hope or motivation to seize opportunities?  

  This phenomenon is incredibly fascinating.  The balance between optimism and pessimism is perhaps best illustrated in the life of these individuals.  When I ask myself, what does it take to be an entrepreneur, this is the basis of thought that I frequently return to.  It is about the balance, I believe.  Look at the temperature of the human body: 98.6 fahrenheit.  What a precise measurement!  Fall just a few measly degrees below, and you’ve got hypothermia.  Rise a little too far, and heat stroke’s your new roommate.  Being an entrepreneur is like finding your 98.6 degrees, where optimism and pessimism exist in perfect harmony, where one does not mislead the other.  

  You’ve got to have a great idea, know your market, believe in your idea, accept feedback, don’t be so optimistic that you become infatuated with an idea that’s stupid, and don’t be so pessimistic that you turn your cheek to opportunities for small and twisted roads that could become the long and hard, but ultimately worth it, road to success.  There is a reason that many entrepreneur’s fail, and I believe it comes down to finding this balance.  It is elusive, coveted, the holy grail of the business world; but it exists, there to be found for the adventurer, the explorer of the modern world: the entrepreneur.