Every challenge provides an opportunity

There is a famous quote by Steve Jobs that typifies entrepreneurship in a very succinct manner: Stay Hungry, Stay Foolish.

An entrepreneur could be a professional, environmentalist, engineer, artist, educator, doctor, sportsperson, homemaker, businessman, etc. In fact, many entrepreneurs have emerged due to different needs arising in their own lives.

For instance, Dhirubhai Ambani started his entrepreneurial journey as a small trader at a port in Yemen before he could launch Reliance industry in 1966. His journey involved acquiring business talents and entrepreneurial skills.

Another example is that of Ardeshir Godrej. He studied law but did not find success as a lawyer. However, he was someone who saw an opportunity where others saw problems. One morning he read in a newspaper that burglary rates in Bombay were going up and that locks weren’t doing their job as they needed to. He started his research on lock making and started his venture because he saw a business opportunity. Rest, as they say, is history.

Becoming an entrepreneur is like rowing a boat against the tide without receiving any prior training. It is exciting, scary, overwhelming and may seem completely impossible at times. However, that is where the mettle of an entrepreneur is tested.

The society around may either overlook such adventurous people, question or be pessimistic about such efforts. So, as an entrepreneur, one must be brave, stay motivated, stay hungry and at times, stay foolish, too. Entrepreneurs live for that ecstatic feeling they get after completing even a small milestone in their long journey. Here are a few basic traits essential for an aspiring entrepreneur:

Dealing with failure: Today, a lot of students are becoming entrepreneurs for all the wrong reasons. They are overwhelmed by the unicorn startups of the world and feel that they can create something similar. However, nine out of ten startups fail. To achieve success, the entrepreneur should be ready to face a mountain of failures. An entrepreneur also needs to handle failure well and use that as learning to improve future actions. Setbacks are common, but the ability to dust yourself and bounce back is a critical part of a successful entrepreneur.

Basic training: Successful personalities and dropouts like Steve Jobs, Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg reflect their zeal towards their goals in life. Doubtlessly, higher education or training in a specific industry is an added advantage during an entrepreneurial journey, but there is
no guarantee that education would promise an efficient entrepreneurial experience.

India has seen a shift of students moving from engineering streams to entrepreneurship programmes. Universities in the UK and USA have also focused on entrepreneurship programmes. However, an academic programme in entrepreneurship or a related subject is not a prerequisite for success.

But learning on the job or on ground has a wide possibility of ingraining deep entrepreneurial skills and experience. Joining successful entrepreneurial ventures as a working or investing partner helps in comprehensive understanding of different aspects of running a business. A job is a training ground and one needs to be an observer as well as a discoverer.

Eventually, it can lead one not just to create products, services or companies but also new sectors and industries.

Discipline: Self-discipline is undeniably the most essential trait that one needs to embed in one’s life as it impacts everything from daily tasks to employee culture in a company.

So, to become an entrepreneur, one needs to be passionate about one’s idea and should relentlessly work towards it. It is important to learn invaluable lessons from failures, for they can only help in refining one’s approach and achieving one’s dreams.

(The authors are with Caredose, New Delhi)