Question: What is an entrepreneur and what does an entrepreneur do?
Answer: An entrepreneur is any person who starts a business enterprise with the intent on seeing it become successful and working towards that end. Actually, nearly everyone is or has been an entrepreneur in some form or another.
Question: As an entrepreneur, how would I know if I am starting the right business?
Answer: Sometimes, the right idea for a business opportunity jumps out at you and all you have to do is grab it and let it work for you. But in other cases, an entrepreneur may have to work very hard on his idea to make it work. But at any rate, you will never know if it is the right business if you don't try it.
Look at a company like Star Bucks, the coffee beverage giant that got started at Pike Place Market in Seattle, Washington. After humble beginnings, it has become one of the most well known companies in the world with locations everywhere you go.
Question: Let's say that I have what I think is a great idea but other's think that it's just a pipe dream. Should I go ahead and start a business using my ideas?
Answer: Sometimes, others may be right and your ideas do stink, but they can also be wrong. Only the entrepreneur himself can make the decision as to what business he wants to start.
There is nothing wrong with listening to those who are not afraid to tell you the truth. But remember this! Sometimes it is what other people think that you may let hold you back from success. Just because others don't like your ideas do not mean that they are bad ideas.
There are some very successful, very wealthy, individuals who started their business with their "so called" bad ideas and came out smelling like a rose.
As an entrepreneur, you have to make your own choices and take risks and whether you win or lose, you are the one who will ultimately reap the benefits or take the loss.
Question: My friends tell me that I have what it takes to start a successful business but I have my doubts. Should I start a business based on what they think?
Answer: If you start a business based on what others think, you are setting yourself up for failure, especially if you go in to it doubting yourself. That is not to say that they are wrong. They may be more right than you know.
There is a saying that goes, "others can see in you what you can not see in yourself." They may see you for what you are, a brilliant business person, but that doesn't mean a thing if you can't see it in yourself.
Take a little time and explore your ideas. Talk to others who are not personal friends. Make a list of your positive attributes, as well as what you feel are your negatives.
Ask yourself what it is that makes you think that you don't have what it takes. It is said that "some people are afraid of success." Is this you?
If your positives outweigh your negatives, your friends may be right about you. If so, then it's up to you to make the decision.
Question: With so many businesses out there, do I have a chance at succeeding?
Answer: Although thousands of business are started every day, your chances of success are just as good as anyone else's.
Question: What is the best way for an entrepreneur to succeed?
Answer: As an entrepreneur, if you do the homework, put in the time, work hard, and be honest with yourself, your business venture should prosper.
But there is no gauge. One person may start a business with one hundred percent certainty that they will succeed. And they fail. Another person may have the same confidence and become an immediate success.