Mindset is Everything in an Entrepreneurial Career
It is hard to believe that I have been researching and teaching entrepreneurship at the university level for ten years now. And what gets me the most about teaching entrepreneurship is that some people, even students, still do not view entrepreneurship as a career. Entrepreneurship is a career, just like any other potential career. An important facet of this is developing an entrepreneurial mindset, and maintaining an almost delusional optimism that - you as an individual can create value for others, and also capture it. Yes, people are willing to pay to you for what you know. You can create an entrepreneurial career by sharing you knowledge with others.
Entrepreneurship is a career.
Entrepreneurship is all about challenging assumptions. And I want to challenge you to think about the assumptions you have about careers. I tell this to my students all the time, you can create your own job! Stop relying on someone else to provide that for you. Take ownership of your own life, and put your knowledge to work for you. We are all experts is some kind of knowledge, and with the advent of the internet, people are more likely to pay you to help them understand something they do not know.
I recently read Entrepreneurial You by Dorie Clark, and must say I am just such a fan of this book. Clark provokes readers by asking: “How can you create a long-term, sustainable business that rewards you emotionally, intellectually, and financially?” Clark highlights how the global economy is prioritizing innovation and information, which has resulted in new entrepreneurial career opportunities for people who can manage the work when ever and work where ever lifestyle. The world of work has changed drastically.
Clark then provides a blueprint for the solo entrepreneur to make money from side projects and ideas. Solo entrepreneurs represent about one third of all business activity in the United States. Moreover, not all entrepreneurship has to be linked to a revolutionary innovation or purple unicorn start-ups. Instead, the reality is most businesses are small, reproducer firms, providing value in novel ways that create value for the consumer, and created by solo entrepreneurs.
The world of work has changed
Heck, I am a solo entrepreneur. I am an Assistant Professor at University of South Florida, but I am also the sole owner of DMH Group, LLC (a disembodied entity to manage all the side projects I have going that I receive revenue from, beyond my full-time job). I spend most of my time blogging and disseminating information here on this site from my research and paid speaking gigs. Blogging is one of the most lucrative forms of solo entrepreneurship, if done correctly. I use my space here specifically to inform, but there are several ways you can use blogs to generate revenue. It is easily one of the most used platforms for millennial solo entrepreneurs, look at people like Alex Wolf, founder or Boss Babe here as an exemplar.
Millennials are revolutionizing the way we view jobs, and business by challenging assumptions of traditional labor market roles. The global population is growing, but jobs are not. And no job is secure, therefore having multiple revenue streams is important. This is why the side hustle has become more prevalent, and illustrates that generating additional revenue from multiple sources helps entrepreneurs capture value when they are under employed or unemployed. Do not expect the labor market to create your job, create your own job, and embark on an entrepreneurial career. Because as soon as you get bored of your job, you can change it. Start thinking like an entrepreneur, diversify your revenue streams.
