Interview with an Entrepreneur - Essay Example

Interview with an Entrepreneur Table of Contents Table of Contents 2 Interview Schedule and Rationale 3 Interview Summary 3 Reflective Discussion 8 References 11 Interview Schedule and Rationale As will be evident from the current report, the interview that has been outlined herein is scheduled in a fashion that helps unravel the psyche of an individual who has moved from employment to self employment in a bid to put his entrepreneurial skills to practical test. The report is centred on the personal experiences that that are generally gathered when one aspires to become an entrepreneur, and hence the rationale is strictly based on the individual’s views towards the different aspects associated with entrepreneurship. The interview, as will be revealed under the heading of Interview Summary, has been scheduled to focus on eight particular issues that had been of substantial importance during one’s migration from being employed to being an independent individual with high hopes of becoming a successful entrepreneur. The interview starts with the factors that inspire a person to be self employed. Next, light has been shed on the changes that take place in his life since he had opted to be self employed and the measures adopted by him to cope with those changes. Subsequently, questions were aimed at understanding his opinions on skill requirements and other aesthetic aspects associated with entrepreneurship. The basis of this interview is to try and substantiate an individual’s decision of gauging the comparatively riskier waters of entrepreneurship by sacrificing the sense of security that employment confers. Interview Summary The following is the excerpt of the interview: Question 1: What has changed in your life since you moved from employment to self employment? Life has turned to a new leaf since I have moved from employment to self employment. Previously job responsibilities were routine based tasks which had comparatively lower responsibilities. Self employment has imposed greater responsibilities and there is no limit with regards to the volume of work. After moving to the role of an entrepreneur I have also started devoting fewer times to my family and friends. The best part however is that I welcome this change. On the professional front entrepreneurship has provided me with lots of freedom to explore and try out new ideas which is quite different from a routine job where there is less room for exploring new ideas. Question 2: How have you coped with the changes? Certain changes have come as a pleasant experience like added responsibilities, work pressure etc. It was difficult in the very beginning since the entire gamut of the business fell upon my shoulders. Family and personal life has of late taken a beating as I have been unable to devote time to my family. On this occasion I would sincerely thank my wife, my children and my friends who have been supporting me in my new initiative. The biggest motivator for coping with the changes has come in the form of the feeling of being an entrepreneur. The challenges posed by entrepreneurship have been the greatest motivator that has helped me to cope with the changes of life. Question 3: What initiated you to move from employment to self employment? The urge towards being an entrepreneur started during my college days when I was enrolled for an MBA program. I was quite fascinated by the aspects of being an entrepreneur. Moreover, I have been a person who loves taking challenges and exploring new ventures. Entrepreneurship offers both challenges and opportunities which have fascinated me towards starting up a new venture entirely on my own. Self employment also offers greater opportunities to showcase my talent. Being a normal employee ensures limited responsibilities and also offers fewer challenges. Working as an employee implies performing a routine job whereas it a completely new experience each day when you are an entrepreneur. In this case a person has to manage the entire show rather than just being a part of it. This is the most exciting part that has driven me from employment to self employment. Question 4: What are the most important skills needed for being a successful entrepreneur? There are numerous skills that are required for being an entrepreneur but I believe that vision and ability to take challenges are the main skills that are required for a person to become a successful entrepreneur. The person must foresee a clear vision as regards to the goals and objectives of the new venture are concerned. I also believe that leaving a job and starting a new venture also requires firm faith and courage on the part of a person as the initial years are quite challenging. A person needs to have firm faith in his/her abilities to overcome the initial barriers. Apart from this an entrepreneur should also have the ability to grab the opportunities as they appear. Market timing is important for any business as there are numerous competitors waiting to grab any opportunity thrown by the market. He/she should have extensive knowledge of the industry so that he/she is well aware of the market dynamics. The person should also act like a motivator to the employees. He/she should act in a manner that sets trends and examples for others to imbibe in their day to day life. The responsibility of an individual increases while running an organization entirely on your own as personal assets and money are at stake. Last but not the least a person willing to be an entrepreneur must also display effective leadership traits so as to drive the company towards success. Question 5: What according to you is the definition of success? Success has varying definitions and differs from person to person and situations. Personally speaking I define success as the achievement of aims and ambitions nurtured by an individual. These aims and ambitions differ across individuals. For me my aims have been to become a successful entrepreneur in the global space. I have always aimed to make it big and make myself known to the entire world as a business leader. Entrepreneurship has provided me the platform where I could achieve my ambitions and make myself known to the entire world. A small beginning has already been made and is generating fruitful results. I believe that sincere dedication and God’s grace would help me achieve my ambitions. Question 6: Entrepreneurship is associated with numerous risks and uncertainties, how do you plan to take care of these aspects? It is true that entrepreneurship has considerable amounts of risks associated with it. This is because in entrepreneurship the person in charge is responsible for running and managing the entire show. The entire gamut of responsibility falls on the entrepreneur’s shoulders. Moreover the initial years are quite challenging which requires considerable will power on the part of the entrepreneur to overcome these barriers. The business markets are highly turbulent in nature which requires fast decision making on the part of the individual managing the organization. In addition personal risks and assets are at stake when you run an organization entirely on your own. Ego problems may also arise as the responsibility of an individual increases and his venture starts making initial success. From my personal experience I believe that strong will power, vision, perseverance and desire to succeed constitute the best traits that can be used to overcome the numerous risks and uncertainties associated with an entrepreneur. Question 7: What the sources of your ideas? As stated before my initial ideas of being an entrepreneur arose during my stint at the MBA program. My Alma-Mater was the place where the seeds of entrepreneurship were sown inside my mind. Thereafter during my experience as an employee I gained considerable knowledge about the business dynamics. This is one area for which I am indebted to my previous organizations as they provided me with immense exposure to business skills which I have incorporated as an entrepreneur. I sincerely believe that practical exposure to business is one aspect which cannot be learnt and imbibed in a B-School as one needs to have hands on practical experience in dealing with real life business problems. Question 8: Who is your greatest inspiration? Well I have been greatly influenced by many business leaders like Bill Gates, Steve Jobs and Larry Page. But my greatest inspiration arose from MR. N.R Narayana Murthy, the founder and chief mentor of Infosys Technologies in India. He has been responsible for creating a software behemoth out of scratch. In spite of being a successful business leader he is generally down to earth which shows his skills as a successful business leader. He has been responsible for creating a firm that constitutes one of the most powerful brands in software technology. During times of turmoil I just sit back and go through his success story which inspires me to face the challenges. Question 10: Do you have any message for the aspiring entrepreneurs. Just aim big and have faith in your abilities. This is the only message from my side to the aspiring entrepreneurs. Never underestimate yourself and do not get carried away by the initial challenges and hick ups. Just have faith in your abilities and have a clear goal in front of you. Problems are a part and parcel of day to day life. A leader can only be successful only when they have faced challenges. This is the distinction that truly differentiates a leader from a normal human being. So do not get carried away by challenges have a clear goal and considerable faith in yourself and you will be among the stars. Reflective Discussion From the interview showcased in the preceding section, it is strongly evident that individuals who are ready to accept the challenges and particularly the high levels of personal risks associated with entrepreneurship can go on to start their own business ventures. This sets them apart from intrapreneurs, who, as said by Gifford Pinchot, “share many of the personality traits as classic entrepreneurs but take less personal risk” (Gitman & McDaniel, 2008, p.129). Owing to the fact that intrapreneurs apply their vision, creativity as well as risk taking abilities within larger organisations and in turn bring about its developments, it is quite understandable that they might do the same in companies that are their own. However, a major limiting factor that bars potential intrapreneurs from embarking on their own ventures is their ability to take the additional risks that should necessarily be taken while starting a new company. However, it is a point worth noting that not every organisation can afford to enthuse and nurture intrapreneurs. Organisations themselves have to be significantly strong so that the financial impacts of the mistakes committed by intrapreneurs can be counterbalanced. This part of the discussion was undertaken to help create an idea about the multitude of obstacles that an entrepreneur should be ready to face before starting his journey. Having said this, it is time to explain why an individual who is ‘safely’ employed should feel like being self employed. As has been revealed by the interview recorded in this report, the interviewee was fascinated by the aspects of being an entrepreneur and was comfortable with the fact that it offers opportunities as well as challenges. It was rather interesting to find know that the said individual was averse to the idea of being just another employee because it offers limited responsibilities and fewer challenges, and it also implies that a routine job, which is devoid of fresh experiences, has to be performed. According to him, an entrepreneur has the chance of enriching himself every now and then because each day brings with it a set of new challenges as well as experiences. Reportedly, the reason that is most commonly cited by successful entrepreneurs in an attempt to justify their decision of doing business independently “is the challenge of building a business, followed by the desire to control their own destiny” (Gitman & McDaniel, 2008, p.129). However, the question remains whether this group of people are ‘brave hearts’ who have created their own destiny or they are ‘destiny’s children’ who were born to create a niche for themselves in the big bad world of business. The most plausible answer to this question might be – entrepreneurs are a blend of both, albeit in undefined proportions. While it is a fact that an entrepreneur must be brave enough to face and accept the challenges, it is also true that not every such person ends up being an entrepreneur, and for that matter, a successful one. Other reasons that motivate aspiring entrepreneurs consist of “financial independence and frustration working for someone else” (Gitman & McDaniel, 2008, p.129) – factors that have been testified by the interviewee in this report. Moreover, it has been observed that personal job satisfaction and the urge to create a desired lifestyle do also act as potential stimulants for individuals who intend to become entrepreneurs. By now it must be very much clear that entrepreneurs are highly ambitious and independent people. Apart from being competitive, these self-confident individuals who love to take risks are driven by a strong necessity for achievement. It is important to mention in this context that “they are individualists and self-starters who prefer to lead rather than follow” (Gitman & McDaniel, 2008, p.130). While Levitt (1983) has argued that the rising impacts of the extended opportunities offered by international markets may amount to a self nourishing virtuous cycle that obscures the differences “between the drivers of growth and expansion”, various other scholars like Shapero (1984) has recognised the existence of such factors; however, it needs a mention that “they attributed them mainly to the entrepreneur’s intrinsic need for a combination of achievement and accomplishments” (Dana, 2006, p.224). These scholarly opinions point at the simple fact that although opportunities may be abundant in the business environment, it is the entrepreneurs that need to be self motivated in order to identify them and channelize their creativity and other characteristic traits in a way that will help them reap desired financial benefits out of the same. Talking from an alternate perspective, it may also be said that entrepreneurs are necessitated to be “motivated innately, or intrinsically, to learn more as a natural part of their own entrepreneurial make-up and need for personal growth and achievement (that is, following their own natural journey of ‘personal discovery’)” (Dana, 2006, p.224). It is becoming increasingly clear that entrepreneurship, although perceived differently by different people, is actually centred on certain fundamental principles, which are recognised as well as appreciated by entrepreneurs across the world. Coming back to the central premise of the current interview-based research, it has to be mentioned that “for many the career path has become the Holy Grail pursued at the expense of everything else”; however, it remains a fact that “rarely does this pursuit yield the fulfilment sought” (Storm, 2007, p.6). This upsets the stock of creative employees who in turn decide to start their own ventures in order to realise the true worth of their capabilities and at the same time enjoy a sense of dignity that employment cannot possibly offer against the backdrop of the contemporary business scenario which is plagued with mechanical rat race that drains employees emotionally. Finally, it may be said that entrepreneurship befits only those people who are a cut above the rest in terms of creativity, risk taking ability and of course, leadership quality. References Dana, P. L. (ed.) 2006. Handbook of Research on International Entrepreneurship. Edward Elgar Publishing. Gitman, J. L. & McDaniel, C. 2008. The Future of Business: The Essentials. 4th ed. Cengage Learning. Storm, L. M. 2007. Transitioning from Employee to Entrepreneur: A Road Map for Aspiring Entrepreneurs. Marvin L. Storm. Read More