1) What was the biggest surprise for you in the reading? In other words, what did you read that stood out the most as different from your expectations?
Starting off at the very beginning, the opening quote surprised me me:
"Most of what you hear about entrepreneurship, says America’s leading management thinker, is all wrong. It’s not magic; it’s not mysterious; and it has nothing to do with genes. It’s a discipline and, like any discipline, it can be learned." — PETER F. DRUCKER, Innovation and Entrepreneurship
"Most of what you hear about entrepreneurship, says America’s leading management thinker, is all wrong. It’s not magic; it’s not mysterious; and it has nothing to do with genes. It’s a discipline and, like any discipline, it can be learned." — PETER F. DRUCKER, Innovation and Entrepreneurship
When I began reading, I was automatically expecting some kind of commentary on the mystery and intrigue of entrepreneurship, as other texts seem to talk about it. Instead, from the very beginning, the reading stripped entrepreneurship of the mystery and brought it back down to a realistic, attainable level. This tone continued throughout the rest of the text and was a refreshing take on entrepreneurship. I find a lot of the time, people tend to shy away from the term "entrepreneurship" because of its abstract appearance, but as a whole this reading served to make entrepreneurship a less intimidating concept.
One thing that I really identified with was the statement that entrepreneurship was a mindset. Through my exposure to entrepreneurship the two recurring lessons that consistently emerged were: 1)Entrepreneurship is a mindset & a way of thinking that turns into a way of life, and 2)Entrepreneurship and Innovation cannot and will not happen without the right people supporting you- the right team is essential.
2) Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you.
I understood the content in the sections commenting on the different entrepreneurial schools of thought, but I had questions on how exactly we might be able to use this information to improve our own entrepreneurial ventures. Is there a school of thought that is closest linked to entrepreneurial success, or are there appropriate times to focus on specific theories of entrepreneurship to point us in the right direction? When might those times be?
3) If you were able to ask two questions to the author, what would you ask? Why?
- I worked with international entrepreneurs who came from very traditional education/business culture and were generally intimidated by the idea of entrepreneurship- what is the first step that must be taken in order to "break the cycle" and start thinking/acting like an entrepreneur?
- Why do you think America is the leading edge of the entrepreneurship/innovation movement in the world/what would it take to spread this kind of progress to other parts of the world?
4) Was there anything you think the author was wrong about? Where do you disagree with what she or he said? How?
I think that the opening paragraphs commenting on how entrepreneurs were the "superheroes of business" was a bit of an exaggeration, but I can understand the need for an exaggerated hook at the beginning in order to peak interest and start the chapter off with good energy. Entrepreneurs are undoubtedly the catalysts of change, but it takes many more people and resources than just one entrepreneur to create the perfect formula for innovation and create success in their endeavors. Later on though, I definitely agree with entrepreneurs being described as "agents of change," etc., because the creativity and energy of these people we call entrepreneurs is absolutely necessary to start a movement of innovation, like we are seeing here in the United States.
I also disagree with the statement debunking the myth that entrepreneurs are doers and not thinkers. I believe they are absolutely both, but the key characteristic of an entrepreneur is someone who is a doer. There are countless people with brilliant ideas, but how many times have we come across people who have mentioned that they had brilliant ideas that other people brought to fruition because they did not act quickly enough, or maybe they did not even act at all? The difference between these undoubtedly creative people and actual entrepreneurs is that these people just thought while the entrepreneurs DID.
