Entrepreneurs develop, design, produce, market, and eventually sell businesses with the end goal of financial profit. They own and operate everything from small shoe stores to tech startups. There are entrepreneurs behind every business in the country, no matter what the size and scope (think Coca Cola, Microsoft, Facebook, Amazon, McDonald's etc).
Owning your own business can be extremely rewarding and fulfilling. However, being an entrepreneur also means undertaking a lot of risk and initiative, and inevitably comes with a fair amount of stress and angst. Business owners are most likely to be the first ones at the office and the last to leave, and often put in extra hours in the evening along with forfeiting many of their weekends and holidays to make sure things are running as smoothly as possible.
Entrepreneurship demands having initiative and a strong determination to succeed. It also requires an immense amount of confidence, tenacity and independence. This may mean making hundreds of cold calls and writing email after email in order to find investors or clients. It may mean learning how to generate social media buzz through online marketing campaigns. Or it may mean negotiating with manufacturers to determine production costs for a product.
There are various types of entrepreneurs:
A business entrepreneur is someone who has an idea or product for the business world. It is usually a new or different idea, something that has not been seen before, or something that provides a new twist or improvement for an existing sector.
A social entrepreneur is someone who has innovative ideas for social change, or new solutions to social problems, and dedicates their time to bringing these ideas to fruition. This might include issues of inequality or poverty; an example would be to create a new charity to address these issues.
A serial entrepreneur refers to someone who has a lot of ideas and constantly starts up new companies or enterprises to implement these ideas. Generally a serial entrepreneur will have had good success or successes with previous ventures, allowing him/her to start up new ventures.
A lifestyle entrepreneur refers to someone who starts up their idea or venture based on a sport, hobby or pastime they are passionate about. For this type of venture, usually large start-up costs are required. Often people who have been successful in the business world and have some of their own money to invest might make this transition.
