I am often puzzled when people consider entrepreneurs to be risk-takers for running their own business. They say things like “you have to be a brave person to go into business for yourself”.
Yes, it’s true, being an entrepreneur does require some acts of bravery here and there… and yes, it is not a pursuit to be taken lightly since most businesses fail in the first 2 years. But consider this:
- What do you call a person who is afraid that the company she works for might unjustifiably fire her one day more or less on a whim?
- What do you call a person who is afraid that he might be subjected to downsizing at the company where he works?
- What do you call a person who is afraid that she might be subjected to oppressive upper management making ridiculous demands on her?
- What do you call a person who is afraid that his fellow workers might take the company they all work for on strike even against his own wishes?
- What do you call a person who is afraid that despite her better than average efforts and abilities, would likely be paid the same as the mediocre or lazy colleague in the next cubicle?
- What do you call a person who is afraid that the company he works for might just go belly-up one day with no notice leaving him without any gainful employment in a blink of an eye?
- What do you call a person who is afraid that the company she works for might take the business offshore or to Mexico to take advantage of lower wages and overhead leaving her unemployed?
- What do you call a person who is afraid of losing his company pension because the company he works for has dipped into the pension fund to stave off an inevitable bankruptcy?
- What do you call a person who is afraid that her own full potential might be capped by the company she works for by the company’s failure to consider the person for advancement?
- What do you call a person who is afraid that his own creative ideas might be ignored by the company he works for in favour of the sub-par ideas of other workers?
I don’t know about you, but I call such a person a CHICKEN!.
You might also call such a person… an entrepreneur.