Leadership Turn

Entrepreneurs Are Risk Takers

by Denise Grier on March 20th, 2007

There are many characteristics that define an entrepreneur. Ambition would be at the top of my list, with perseverance running a close second. But the one common denominator shared by entrepreneurs is the capacity to take risk. In fact, dictionary.com defines an entrepreneur as: “a person who organizes and manages any enterprise, esp. a business, usually with considerable initiative and risk.”

To the average person, obtaining a steady job that provides security is the measure of success. Putting themselves at risk goes against every fiber of their being. But to an entrepreneur, risk is an aphrodisiac. It is one of the most attractive aspects of entrepreneurship. We were risk takers long before we were business men/women.

Billy over at Organic Leadership takes it one step further with his post about The Power of Vulnerability. Having the guts to put ourselves out there, to be vulnerable, to take the risks that others cringe away from in fear, is what sets us apart as entrepreneurs. We were the kids who raised their hand in class first, who jumped off the cliff into the deep water first. We were the teenagers who either drove too fast and drank too much, or on the other end of the spectrum, were the captain of the debate team, the class president.

Today we are the people who jump out of airplanes. We are the leaders of corporations and countries. We are the men/women who shed the skin of mediocrity and become the movers and shakers who make things happen. Because we aren’t afraid to take risks. Vulnerability doesn’t scare us. And the satisfaction that comes from the success we achieve as entrepreneurs is the greatest high in the world.

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POSTED IN: Entrepreneurship