People think entrepreneurs are risk-loving. Really what you find is successful entrepreneurs hate risk, because the founding of the enterprise is already so risky that what they do is take their early resources, the small amounts of capital that they have, whatever assets they have, and they deploy those resources systematically, eliminating the largest risk first, the second-largest risk, and so on, and so on.
Jason Yip
on 09 Jan 09I think the start of that paragraph is also quite important:
But I am very optimistic. I’m generally a very happy person. My wife says, “If Jeff is unhappy, wait three minutes.” I believe that optimism is an essential quality for doing anything hard—entrepreneurial endeavors or anything else. That doesn’t mean that you’re blind or unrealistic, it means that you keep focused on eliminating your risks, modifying your strategy, until it is a strategy about which you can be genuinely optimistic. People think entrepreneurs are risk-loving….
Jay Owen
on 09 Jan 09This is right on point with my thoughts about small business and entrepreneurship.
I often hear people talking about starting new business – needing lots of capital, shirts, coffee cups, lapel pins, fancy offices, big staff, etc. j. All of that capital, credit, and stuff is often what gets people in trouble and why so many fail so quickly.
Keeping overhead low whenever possible and making due with what we have can often lead to great success down the road. Constraints really can bread creativity and success.
Nivi
on 09 Jan 09“Successful innovators are conservative. They have to be. They are not ‘risk-focused’; they are ‘opportunity-focused.’” – Peter Drucker
Apolinaras "Apollo" Sinkevicius
on 09 Jan 09I always say that successful entrepreneurs are like mountain climbers – prepare, assess risk, execute, mitigate new risk. Those who just talk about risk and how being entrepreneur is like “jumping out of the plane”, well those are reckless faux-leaders who need to be avoided like plague.
ratchetcat
on 09 Jan 09The emphasis on cheap, quick experimentation immediately stands out in that Inc article.
Keep the experiments cheap, carefully monitor the results, take advantage of the successes. That’s good risk management.
MIchal
on 10 Jan 09I agree opportunity seekers, risk eliminators…
a tech entrepreneur
on 10 Jan 09Great quote.
I started my business not because I am a risk taker. Most people that know me would probably say that I “look before I leap”. I started a company for the control. I believe that my future is more likely to be interesting if I’m leading the way. If taking risks means ceding control, then being entrepreneurial is the opposite of that.
George Glass
on 11 Jan 09Fuck that! If you want to do something great than you gotta be risky. You got to walk in a room and put your balls on the table and not care how hairy they are. You can’t be an anal little computer geek and expect to succeed or people to take you seriously or to ever get that hot chick you want. RISK RISK RISK or no reward…losers!
Jacob
on 12 Jan 09I take it that lil’ Georgie here has watched “Wanted” one too many times…
Unsuccessful troll is unsuccessful.
;)
Oh, and George, if you put your balls on the 37Signals table, they’re gonna get smashed.
JeffreyR
on 12 Jan 09I would think if you are prepared to jump out of plane you would be pretty risk averse.
This discussion is closed.