Entrepreneurship

All throughout the morning I kept thinking about "entrepreneurship". I got stuck at the very definition of it. I am not sure whom actually we call as entrepreneur. Can I term a Grocery shopper as an entrepreneur? If not, why? Well I asked somebody about it and was really happy to get a very satisfying answer form him. It goes like this!

If somebody has done something remarkable for the society & economy, then he is an entrepreneur in true sense! That's absolutely correct. As per him, Captain Gopinath is an entrepreneur who belongs to highest category. He brought the concept of low frill carrier to India. This has changed the way the Indian Middle class perceives the air travel. Really, that’s something remarkable. How about Naresh Goyal! Well I don’t consider him doing something as remarkable as Gopinath. He is an entrepreneur , no doubt about it. But probably he doesn’t belong to captain Gopinath’s category for sure. I would say captain Gopinath is an entrepreneur of “Gazzles” category.

Now coming back to a grocery shopper, he is again an entrepreneur. But point is where does he go from here? Does he have any motivation or plan to serve the society in a bigger way? Probably not. In that case he belongs to the lowest possible category of entrepreneurship which in other words can be termed as “job substitution”.

Secondly, I believe, Entrepreneurship is just another mindset. If I am happy with my grocery shop, then I mayn't think of doing something else. But If I have a burning passion for doing something great for the society, then my thought pattern may change. I think that's what happens with the entrepreneurs.

Argentina showed the way

I believe every event in life provides ample of opportunities to learn. Football is no different for me. I enjoy the game provided the players show exceptional skills (the way Argentina showed against Serbia & Montenegro). Though I am not an ardent follower of the game, yet I get inspired whenever I see such a skillful game.

About the facts of the match, Argentina won the league match against Serbia-Montenegro by 6-0. More than the facts, it was important to observe the discipline showed by every team member. They make you realize the essence of a team game. As a team you can do better. If you look at the second goal, it was a mere reflection of team effort. Have you ever seen a goal being scored through 24 continuous passes? It looks stupendous, isn’t it? It also conveyed the message that they have trust on other team mates. They know that anybody and everybody in team are capable. It’s not just me who can take ball all alone and score!!!

Learning: Apart from self discipline and fun at work, you also need to have a great deal of trust on other team members to win a battle.

Proceed if you think RISK is worth taking

Mumbai, the financial capital of India doesn’t seem to take rest at any point of the day. I think CITIBANK has taken inspiration from Mumbai and follow a tag line “The Citi Never Sleeps”.

Ask yourself this question!!! How many times do you think before going to MG Road? You may be thinking about Traffic, Parking etc etc. Same thing if asked to a Mumbaite, he will just jump into it and get ready to go. Can you see the difference? It is about the attitude of people and risk taking ability. “Proceed if you think risk is worth taking”. Now let us analyse it.

A Mumbaite believes that if risk is worth taking, then let me go ahead. In the above case, he believes that by going to MG Road, he can enjoy his evening. So no matter what the traffic situation may be, he will give a try.

Remember, your Personal life is no different from your Professional life as far as attitude is concerned. Now you can understand why CEOs often play golf with each other.

In one sense every new venture starts in the same way. You must have heard about the way Microsoft, Infosys started. If you think through, then you will find a very common element in all these entrepreneurs who start the ventures. They are NEVER Risk Averse in life. I am sure Bill Gates and Narayan Murty must be of “Mumbaite” type. They must have taken enormous risks without thinking about the road blocks. That's what makes them different.

When you take risk, either you prosper or perish. The point is how do you approach. The risk takers often think "If I succeed in my venture, then...". A Risk Averse person would think "If I fail in my venture, then....". This makes the whole difference. You can’t succeed unless you feel itin your heart. I think the same attitude prevails in Mumbaites and that’s what makes Mumbai as a city so different from others.