Need or Choice - Which Is You?

by Guest Blogger, Lena West

The other day, I was having lunch with J.O. – who is such a phenomenal person in addition to being a member of the business cognoscenti that it’s unbelieveable.  We dined sufficiently at Gotham Grill. He on lobster risotto and me on the salmon with couscous – simply divine.

We started talking - on very basic yet thought-provoking terms - about why people become entrepreneurs.

He says there are two main reasons: need and choice.

People become entrepreneurs for various reasons and studies have shown that the closer in proximity you are to other entrepreneurs as you grow up, the more likely you are to become an entrepreneur.  I believe that I am an entrepreneur because my parents were (and still are) entrepreneurs and so were several close Aunts and Uncles.

But, some people become entrepreneurs out of necessity – for example, someone goes to another country in search of a better life and has no choice but to start a business.  This doesn’t happen so much now as it did years ago but, it DOES happen.  Or, someone does jail time and, for lack of better terminology, becomes 'unemployable'.

Then some people, like myself, become entrepreneurs based on choice and preference. I wanted to own my future. I felt that if smaller businesses could understand and use technology like big corporations did, the world would be a better place. More jobs, more equality, a stronger competitive landscape. Rah, rah, save the world.

Now, this is where it gets hairy. I am a poor employee (under most circumstances). I’ll be the first person to tell you that. I also feel in my bones as if I were *born* to be an entrepreneur.  I just can't explain it. I have the personality, talent, drive, demeanor – all (ok, almost all) the prerequisites. You must understand that this is something I feel at the core of my being. So, odd as it may be, there is another part of me that feels my being an entrepreneur is a necessity.

Need or choice...it's interesting to ponder.

Why did you do it?

Comments

[Paula Gregorowicz]

Great question. As someone making the transition from full time employee to solo biz owner, I would have to say both a need and a choice. I fall into the category of never having even known another entrepreneur (my family are all die hard work for someone else folks) yet after 16 years of corporate misery, I know I do poorly stuck in cubicles and listening to others' orders. The environment is a total non-fit for me and much of the type of work I do there is also, blah. True case of talent in the wrong environment goes nowhere.

So, for me the move is a chance to do a job I enjoy in an environment I enjoy. A choice, but also a need because deep down I know I'll go insane if I don't make the change.

[Lady Samurai]

As a small business start up coach for entrepreneurial women wanting to transform their lives and make a difference in the world, I come across women all the time whose desire to become a small business owner starts out being one thing--need, for instance, and quickly becomes the other--choice. I now think of women entrepreneurs as pren-hers by design.