Is "entrepreneur" the most over used word of the 21st Century

I think I'm having a friday afternoon cynical moment.

It seems everywhere I turn, I see online adverts for entrepreneur workshops, seminars, courses promoted by current dragons, ex dragons, business people you've heard of, biz people you havent. In fact everyone seems to be doing it.

There seems to be a new business model in town which is too get as many fresh faced starry eyed people into a hall, take a few quid off them, and then subject them to common sense and the obvious.

Or am I being too harsh? I have been to one of these seminars, and to be honest, very good, great speaker, interesting, but did I learn anything that I could introduce to my own business? Nope. Other than applying labels to things I was already doing, most of it seemed to be common sense.

Now I hear you can do entrepreneur degree's!! Holy moly, an entrepreneur factory, just what we need.

What happened to spark of an idea, flogging teaspoons out the back of a van before going onto open a chain of hardware shops.

Do we need to be preprogrammed to succeed? Or are too many Dragons Den dreamers rushing out to absorb "entrepreneur juice" in the hope it will rub off?

Can you actually teach entrepreneurism? Or is it the painful lessons of life and the workplace that give you the platform to build on?

Or is it maybe the internet that has given rise to instant start ups, where impulse overtakes research? Is that idea as good as you really think?

If I make my millions online, I'll let you know, if I fail, I'll keep quiet and book into another seminar...

Wonder if Branson or Sugar went to a entrepreneur seminar...

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cheers Steve
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Yup, lots of those here across the pond as well.

Most of them that I've seen seem to concentrate on the end results, rather than the process of getting those end results with leading statements like:

"How would you like to make up to $4300 per day while working from your home part time on the web?"

They then proceed to tell you about how much easier your life would be if you had that sort of income, that you could have enough money to take care of your family, friends, etc - and usually go very light on the actual "how".


I've always thought: if they are truly making so much money with their own program, why are they living the hard life of being on the road doing seminars...instead of being retired.

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Exactly!!!

Some of the TV celeb ones, who we know run multimillion dollar empires, do tend to give the "we want to put something back" standard tagline.

In which case, then don't charge anything

...and how many times do you hear versions of that line "have you imagined yourself driving a sportscar and earning 10 million sheckels a year.... well send me $99 and I'll send you Steves receipe to instant business success...download my ebook for the gullible today"

Mind you, we went on a sales training day a few years ago, and although not bad, I'd be more impressed if the selfstyled sales consultant ran a seminar from our office, and showed us his practical skills live, by making a couple of sales

Instead he trundled off home in his 5 year old ford....

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cheers Steve
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Perhaps he likes his trusty 5 year old Ford to head back to his country mansion.

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Maybe it's just really hard to get people to fork over money to be told "actually, your life is crap, you have no potential, and there's nothing you, I, or anyone else can do about it. Go work a factory line or something - you'll be on the bottom rung for the rest of your natural life because let's face it, somebody has to be."

Truth rarely sells. Dreams sell.

Also why am I this depressed and cynical on a Saturday morning?

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Wow Mary, who got out of the wrong side of bed?

...and I thought I was cynical.

Although you're probarbly right

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cheers Steve
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No idea mate - it's a beautiful day, the sun is shining, the birds are singing, I'm sitting in the cool shade by an open patio door, relaxing online and discussing such weighty issues as what colour I'm going to paint my nails for the wedding... then I suddenly got all Eeyore.

Think I'll go kick Himself out of bed and see about Going Out and Doing Stuff.

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In answer to the question "Can you actually teach entrepreneurism?"
This is a variation of "are entrepreneurs born or made."

Both are misleading.

Briefly, the research suggests two dominant factors:

a) Opportunity (of which the greatest inhibitor is access to capital).

b) Motivation. Lots of research into this (intrinsic, extrinsic etc).

Teach it? Competencies, such as an MBA, will lead you in the right direction. But a) and b) are more significant determinants.

p.s. a business is defined as one that employs people (therefore not just a computer and broadband connection - a hobby)

I dont like the word entrepeneur, what does it really mean, I sell shoes and shoe laces I am now an entrepeneur.

My wife keeps saying to "You are an internet entrepenuer" for some reason it makes me squirm a little.

I see myself as a business man trying to make a few quid, learn a few things along the way and meet some kool people whilst I am at it.

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I rarely feel able to think of myself as a business. I know that by most yardsticks I am one - I am registered with HMRC, I keep my books and pay relevant taxes, I have a separate business address and phone number, I invoice my customers and have business insurance... but really I'm just trying to make a living for myself. I don't think it'll ever lead to me managing my Virtual Assistant empire from the deck of my yacht, you know?

I disagree with the definition of "business" as "one that employs people". According to that definition, I would have been a business while I was still working PAYE - because my personal assistants are employed directly by me and I have to take care of their holiday/sickness/maternity pay as well as being immediately and solely responsible for their training, health and safety, etc. That definitely counts me as an employer, but I feel that a business should be one that earns money rather than just dispensing it.

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