Can entrepreneurship be a divine calling?
A new film suggests “Yes”.
From CNN:
Based on The Entrepreneurial Vocation, a book written by Acton Institute founder Rev. Robert Sirico, the film tells the stories of three business owners: a dairy farmer in Evart, Mich., a merchant banker in New York City and a Chinese media magnate in Hong Kong.
Couched as an exploration of the positive influences entrepreneurs have on the world around them, the film is intended as an ideological beachhead: Frustrated by the success of liberal documentarians like Michael Moore and Al Gore in steering public discourse, The Call of the Entrepreneur’s makers set out to build a countervailing mass-media platform for their own conservative views.
Ilya Bodner on December 28th, 2007 at 8:32 am
Entrepreneurial seizure, as defined by E-Myth’s Hasan Luongo, is a phrase that describes the belief that because an employee understands the technical work of a small business, he or she is qualified to run a small business that does that particular kind of work. For example, a plumber who’s been working for 20 years who decides that he no longer wants to work for someone else, and wants to go into business for himself. As anyone who runs a small business quickly finds out, there is a lot more to doing the work of a small business owner than knowing the technical details of how to do the job. Part of small business expansion is expanding business knowledge.
While previous experience in the field can be one of the greatest attributes you can have, you should never rely only on what you already know to influence your decision to start your own small business. Not only do you stand to lose your job if you quit, thinking you can run things better our way, but you may lose a lot of money and time in the process. What is truly important in deciding whether to start your own business is what you learn, or are willing to learn, in order to do it. Businesses don’t just materialize out of nowhere – they are formed by individuals with the knowledge, tools and motivation to persevere. Someone with no experience as a plumber but a lot of experience running a small business can start a successful plumbing business; however, someone with a lot of experience as a plumber and no experience as a business owner cannot necessarily start a small business on his own.
Preparations required before starting your small business or considering business expansion are things like research, legal advice, paperwork, developing a solid business plan, securing your financing and, most importantly, asking yourself if you are ready and able to run the business. Don’t think about being a plumber, think about owning a business. It’s easy to get lost in the complexity of it all, but with hard work, the right people backing you up, persistence and patience, you can apply your job experience to your business. Your experience in the field your business serves should be used to enhance your small business, not to run it.
Begin by searching the web for a professional mentoring service via google or yahoo. Start out by searching for “strong business credit” (just like that in quotes) to see what is out there.
Sincerely,
Ilya Bodner
Initial Underwriting Group