Myth #5: Entrepreneurs are usually rich
Nope. Some entrepreneurs might become rich, but they certainly didn’t start that way. In fact, some entrepreneurs have gone bankrupt several times before they made it big. If you are looking for a quick way to get rich, then entrepreneurship might not be the route you want to pursue. Entrepreneurship is not for the rich, and it might not even result in riches, either.
Myth #6: Entrepreneurship requires huge capital
Some people have this idea that in order to start a business, you have to have a pile of cash. In order to get the pile of cash, you have to wheel and deal with angel investors, venture capitalists, and investors who ride around in chauffeured range rovers.
But the reality is most of an entrepreneur’s capital is from his/her own back pocket. A lot of times, entrepreneurs don’t get funded. They bootstrap. They adopt creative and cost-effective ways of marketing their trade. They negotiate with suppliers for a line of credit. They eat beans and chapatti at the local café (sometimes on credit). Some entrepreneurs will get lucky and get funded, but it’s not a prerequisite for the trade.
Myth #7: Entrepreneurs always take huge risks
Entrepreneurs are risk-takers according to our conventional jacked-up ideas of safety. But maybe the entrepreneur’s risk- taking is nothing more than a tilt toward the unconventional, a good idea, and dissatisfaction with the status quo.
The Entrepreneurs risks are not the reckless action of the devil- may-care upstart. They are decisions that are calculated, data-driven, dream-backed and pursued with teeth grinding determination.
Myth #8: Entrepreneurship is fun!
If we are laughing, it’s our bitter laugh. There is a true/false dichotomy to this myth. Sure, entrepreneurship is fun. We love what we are doing, and just about every other entrepreneur does. But that is more passion than fun. You need to know something: Entrepreneurship is really hard, almost unbearably so at times.
The ups and downs of entrepreneurship parallel the ups and downs of ordinary life. There are the good times and there are the bad times. The difference with entrepreneurship is that the bad times are a lot worse but with rich lessons, and the good times are a lot better and rewarding.
What other myths have you heard of? Drop a comment below.
By Eric Kinoti
CEO, Shade Systems
