The Only Two Paths Available to an Entrepreneur
In today’s entrepreneurial climate, it’s easy to feel unsure and get distracted by what others are doing. The emotional rollercoaster of choosing and planning a business, coupled with the online showcase of success stories and other people’s work, is a breeding place for confusion and insecurity.
In this often-turbulent environment, you can take solace in the fact that there are only two paths that an entrepreneur has to choose from. Understanding this fundamental insight will help you to make a decision on which path is right for you, and remain steadfast.
The Two Motives
Underlying the two paths are two core human desires, and interestingly enough, the origin of the very word “entrepreneur” illuminates this. The word “entrepreneur” comes from the French word entreprende, which means “to undertake.” In turn, the French word entreprende originates from the Sanskrit word “antrah prerna”. It’s said that when the French reached India in the 1600s, they were fascinated by the independent and free-thinking nature of the monks. When the monks were asked to explain this, they responded by saying “antrah prerna” (antrah- entre, prerna- preneur). In the ancient Indian language of Sanskrit, antrah prerna means “inner-inspiration”.
Two originations of the word with very different meanings:
- Inner inspiration- a definition that is internally motivated.
- Undertaking- a definition that is externally focused.
Two fundamentally different motives that point an entrepreneur towards two different paths.
So what is your motive? Why are you starting a business?
Is it because you have a strong inner desire to thrive?
Or is it because you have a strong outer desire to succeed?
The Two Paths
Your choice decides which path you go on.
If it’s more important for you to thrive internally, you choose an entrepreneurial path with a personal meaning that goes beyond just profiting from the business.
If it’s more important for you to succeed externally, you have to choose a path that has the likelihood of the greatest financial success.
Here’s what the two paths look like in more detail:
If you take the path to thrive internally, the goal is to turn your inner-inspiration into a financially sustainable endeavor — to make money from work that fulfills you. You may make a lot of money, or you may make less money. You may be a freelancer, or you may build the next Apple. Any accolades and achievements are icing on the cake, as you already enjoy each day. Fundamentally, the process gives you joy. If you have a strong internal desire to thrive, you would say: “I am engaged with my work because it naturally energizes me and I get a sense of greater meaning from it. I want my spirit and life to thrive. My financial ambition has flexibility in relation to my personal satisfaction.”
On the other hand, if you take the path to succeed externally, the goal is to undertake a financially lucrative opportunity and turn it into the most profitable business. Your focus is on profits and business growth. The pleasure is in getting to the destination. You enjoy the adventure of the journey because it’s taking you one step closer to your destination. If you have a strong external desire to succeed, you would say: “I will do what it takes to reach my destination. My business success is my only goal right now, and everything else needs to support that goal. Success is the ultimate survival. I am here to win.”
So which path feels right to you? Your choice will become clearer the better you understand yourself.
What’s The Big Deal?
But why do you have to choose?
You have to choose because there is one truth about starting a business which you cannot escape from: You have to do what it takes.
What does that mean? I don’t know. When starting a business, no entrepreneur knows what it will take to sustain their business. And that’s the point. To get through this uncertain and challenging path, it’s integral to choose the motive that will act as your source of renewable energy. The motive that will keep you going and going when you don’t have the answers. You can’t fake it.
Steve Jobs said it beautifully at the D5 conference in 2007:
“People say you have to have a lot of passion for what you are doing, and it’s totally true, and the reason is, because it’s so hard, that if you don’t, any rational person would give up. It’s really hard, and you have to do it over a sustained period of time, so if you don’t love it, if you’re not having fun doing it, if you don’t really love it, you’re going to give up. And that’s what happens to most people actually. If you really look at the ones that ended up being successful in the eyes of society and the ones that didn’t. Often times the ones that are successful loved what they did so they could persevere when it got really tough. And the ones that didn’t love it, quit, because they are sane.”
For Steve Jobs, his motive was clear. He may have built the world’s most valuable company, but that wasn’t his goal. For him, the internal desire to thrive was strong. He was the poster child for passion that instigated so many of us to think differently, and dream bigger.
The Sneaky Third Path
So why are these two distinct paths not so evident when you look around?
Because people get lucky. More specifically, people experience market luck. When starting a business, every entrepreneur is hopeful that the market will want the product or service that is offered. But this is just an educated guess that all of us make. For the lucky few, the universe smiles and a 3rd path emerges. The entrepreneur has stumbled upon a real market void, and as Marc Andreesen would say, “The market pulls the product out of the startup.” Yes, there is still the skill and effort required to transform the opportunity into a profitable, growing business. But it requires a different type of mental fortitude and persistence to fight for survival than to manage the stress of a growing business.
This third path attracts a lot of attention as many times these are the biggest successes. But of course, this third path is not in our control. What is in our control, is our motive that either fuels us forward, or doesn’t.
Know Thyself, And Remain Steadfast
Thankfully, our two core human desires dictate the two fundamental paths available to us as entrepreneurs. We want to thrive and be inspired, and at the same time, we also desire to be successful and significant. At this point in your life, decide which motive is stronger in you, and own your path. There is no middle option. Love the process or be obsessed with the destination. Teeter the line, and you’re likely to end up in the graveyard of worn-out entrepreneurs. Whether your efforts result in “success or failure”, it’s better to hang your gloves knowing that you tried your best this time around. Having experienced the first round, you’re better equipped to handle the next one, knowing that you can trust yourself to push through.
It’s Your Turn.
Thinking about starting a business? Here’s how veteran entrepreneurs choose which of their business ideas to pursue. Click here to find out.
