What Makes You An Entrepreneur
By: Chiara Chianese
Tags: Entrepreneur, Motivation, Startup, Entrepreneurship, Startup Life

I was at a dinner at a friend’s house, when someone said referring to a person we know from school: “Well, she’s not really an entrepreneur, because she doesn’t live off her startup…”

Hearing that kind of touched my feelings. I founded a startup, and work on it every day, after work. Yes, I work full-time in a company, because my startup does not makes money yet. So the question came spontaneously “Shall I stop considering myself an entrepreneur?”

The term entrepreneur

So in order to answer that question, I went back to the origin of the term entrepreneur. I googled the etymology and found this on Investopedia:

Basically, according to the etymology of the word entrepreneur the essence of one is to be someone who undertakes something and who is keen to start an adventure. When I read this, I totally relate. I’m sure you do too!

But to be more scientific, I also went to check up the definition of the word Entrepreneur, because I felt that just relying on the etymology would have been too archaic. Always on Investopedia, I read:

This definition is simple and pretty accurate. But as I keep reading, I come across this:

And here is the issue. Because of this common association that we all have been fed with about what an entrepreneur is, we have a hard time believing we can actually be one, because we are not experiencing instant money, game and growth and we are probably facing a lot of challenges (to use an euphemism!). If that’s the definition of what an entrepreneur is, then yes, we are failing at it. Greatly.

Except, we are not.

Figuring out how to do things and how to move forward makes you an entrepreneur.

I believe it is high time we changed the definition of what an entrepreneur is, because entrepreneurs need it.

Being an entrepreneur means so many things, and I think that is pretty much related to the stage you are in. If you are at the very beginning, there are tons of things you must figure out and the learning curve can be very long and painful. If you are just starting, there are tons of things you will have to do that you don’t want to because you do not have enough resources yet. What mostly demotivates entrepreneurs is the mistake of comparing their backstage with the front-stage of some profitable business owner who’s probably been through hell herself. Because that’s a fact: every entrepreneur has gone through tough times, overwhelm, panic and “I quit” moments before they finally ‘made it”.

Your full-time job can be an asset

Many founders of now well-known companies started their business on the side, for the simple reason that they could not afford a living otherwise. Not every entrepreneur is born rich or willing to crash on some friend’s couch, so not every entrepreneur can instantly decide to quit their job and start their “experiment” full-time. That’s the case of Sabeer Bhatia and Jack Smith, founders of Hotmail, who were both working full-time when they started and spent all of the time on weekends and evening building their product. It’s not a sin to have a job to pay your bills.

When working on your business, you need clarity

Actually, having job while working on your startup can definitely have a positive impact on your initial growth. A job provides you with financial stability which is crucial for you to think clearly. If you decide to focus completely to your startup, but have a very short runaway, you might find yourself making important choices for the wrong reason, aka the fear of being broke.

You are not less of entrepreneur if you still haven’t quit your job

When you are working on your business, you don’t want to feel the pressure of being broke, because that will take you out of focus. When working on your business, you need clarity and make the important decisions because you have thought things through, not because your landlord will soon kick you out of your flat. If you have a job that gives you peace of mind from a financial standpoint, it is smart to keep it until your business starts paying for itself.

You are not less of entrepreneur for being prudent or for not taking all the risk from day one. You are not less of entrepreneur if you still haven’t quit your job and you are not making millions after a couple of years. You are not less of entrepreneur if you are struggling or feel demotivated.

So, what makes you an entrepreneur?

If you have an idea and you work relentlessly to make it happen, you are an entrepreneur. If you dedicate the free time you dispose of — it can be an hour a day or a week — to your business, you still are an entrepreur. If you decide to navigate overwhelm because things aren’t working out so far, you still are an entrepreneur. If you are willing to figure out the resources you need — not only the money but also less tangible ones like connections, motivation, lessons learnt, experience — you still are an entrepreneur. If you are willing to move forward in order to serve your people, heck yeah, you are an entrepreneur.

Just stop trying to fit in one definition and comparing yourself to others’ people journey. Start making the most out of where you are right now, instead.