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 The Entrepreneurial Edge

This post is all about ways to empower yourself and take advantage of your capacity for entrepreneurship, whether you want to be an entrepreneur or not. In fact, most people don’t consciously become entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurship is in our genes, it’s in our company culture and it defines the way we live and work. Our innate propensity for entrepreneurship has a direct influence on our innovations, creativity and leadership skills.

The story of Apple’s founding is one of the most powerful examples of how spontaneous innovations and creativity can turn a risky and unpredictable job into a thriving business. The late Steve Jobs, co-founder and CEO of Apple Computer, was a college dropout who had spent only six months in classes during his time in Reed College. In interviews Jobs revealed that from an early age he had been interested in technology and electronics, especially computers. But due to his family’s financial instability, he was forced to drop out from school and started working at Atari before becoming a college dropout.

Distraction from school, financial instability and lack of confidence in his skills did not get the better of Jobs. In fact, it fueled him and taught him to be more resourceful and do things for himself. To make ends meet, he started selling homemade blue boxes (an illegal device to fool the telephone system) and had his friend Steve Wozniak craft them so that they wouldn’t blow out all the time. The two, Jobs and Wozniak, founded Apple together later on.

Unfortunately, you won’t learn any of these essential things in college, but it is still important for businesses to help students develop their entrepreneurial edge. In fact, many companies have programs aimed at nurturing innovative ideas through initiatives such as contests and volunteer campaigns. Recent studies show that innovation is the key to achieving sustainable competitive advantage in today’s business world. Organizations with a high level of creativity and innovation can be twice as successful compared to those who don’t have this edge.

The dilemma of how businesses can encourage individual entrepreneurship without harming the larger whole is one that has occupied managers for decades. But if you were to look at how the company was established and how innovative it has been over the years, you would see that Apple’s culture is one of independence and creativity.

Marissa Mayer, in an interview with Wired magazine, said that having a culture of entrepreneurship within Yahoo! allows their employees to pursue business opportunities independently, even if they do not align with the greater good of the organization. This is an example of a company that encourages individual entrepreneurship and creativity at all levels.

One way to foster this environment is through corporate policies that provide flexibility and freedom in career development because empowering individuals puts them in control of their own careers; One resourceful individual can make all the difference. For example, small companies and startups typically have more flexibility when it comes to career growth, as employees are often promoted based on their contributions as well as their potential.

As a college dropout or someone who has decided to pursue entrepreneurship or self-employment, you may feel like you are missing out on the corporate infrastructure that provides stability and security in your career. Despite working independently, your entrepreneurial edge will give you the tools you need to create new opportunities and achieve success.

Studies show that having a mentor or someone to look up to will help motivate us and make us feel less hopeless about our jobs. Mentoring is all about helping others grow and develop faster than they would otherwise be able in their careers or businesses. Mentoring is the biggest and most powerful form of networking, and it helps you grow your network by expanding your contacts and building relationships.

Your entrepreneurial edge gives you the ability to think creatively and be an innovator at all times. You will perhaps even come up with innovative ways to connect with mentors that other people wouldn’t think of.

Mentors can come in all shapes, sizes, genders and ages; they do not necessarily have to be people who are much older than you or even in the same industry as you, as long as they share your ideas about business goals and a vision for the future. If you don’t have a mentor, you can always look for someone who looks up to you.

You might not be able to find a mentor right away, but don’t be discouraged. As the saying goes, "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." When you work hard on your business and constantly strive to achieve success, both personally and professionally, your entrepreneurial edge will help you meet new people and find connections that can inspire and propel your career forward.

If you are looking to conduct self-assessments regarding leadership skills and individual entrepreneurship, many websites offer free assessment tools that are easy to use as well as provide useful insights into different areas of leadership.

One is the free tool, LEADERSHIP QUIZ QUOTIENT (LQQ) developed by I N H I G H M A X P R O S S .

This tool analyzes eight common leadership attributes and provides an individual score to represent your individual strengths. This score will help you see if your leadership styles and talents are well-suited for leadership or are in need of some adjustments. You can find out if certain behaviors or attributes hinder your progress along your career or business path by taking this assessment.

The other tool is the The Leadership Inventory , developed by Leadership IQ which allows you to test yourself on different aspects of leadership. You can choose to take the test online or download the assessment for a fee.

Your entrepreneurial edge will help you be innovative and creative, think outside the box and achieve success in your professional life. You don’t have to go to school to learn how to be a great leader; practice leadership skills by implementing new ideas at work, learning how to be a mentor, networking and communicating with people you admire and keeping an entrepreneurial edge.

A stronger entrepreneurial edge will help you think outside the box. By keeping an entrepreneurial edge, you will be able to do everything better and faster.

Don’t wait for things to happen, get out there and make them happen!

Your entrepreneurial edge is highly important; it determines how people perceive leadership skills and how you connect with others. Try to avoid over-thinking things or giving too much importance to other people’s opinions and never let others define your goals and dreams.

Learn from your experiences, show gratitude for all that you have achieved in life and help others along the way by sharing what you have learned from your past endeavors as this is one of the best ways of developing your individual entrepreneurship.

Conclusion:

In today's world the corporate ladder is replaced by a jungle gym – no longer must we climb to achieve success - Janet K. Shim

A career doesn't have to be a straight line progression. Learning how to embrace new roles with enthusiasm and purpose—and how to turn your varied experiences into a strategic advantage—this is what will help you remain successful in any career path you choose., Chapter 8

Author: Joe Reddington

About the Author: Joe Reddington is an experienced writer, who has written for various blogs and websites around the world including Career Expert , WorknHire and others. He writes professionally about job search, recruitment & HR. Contact him via Twitter or LinkedIn . His website is http://www.