FROM EMPLOYEE TO ENTREPRENEURIAL MINDSET*

BY

UDUAK O. UDOM udom2001udy@yahoo.com

0805-494 -0589

*A Paper Presented at the Planning For Retirement workshop organized by African Entrepreneurial Development Initiatives held at Chancellery Hotel and Suits, Abuja

SOME THOUGHTSThere is an entrepreneurial spirit in every one of us. All that is missing is the spark

Tony Manny

One realizes the full importance of time when only there is little of it left. Every man’s greatest capital asset is his unexpired years of production life’

P. W. Litchfield

Retirement is the debt you owe to your employer, either the employer will ask you to pay before the due time (retrenchment/downsizing), or you decided to pay before the due time (resignation) or you pay at the appropriate time (retirement).

Need for entrepreneurial mindset

– No job security– Downsizing– Unstable economy– Independence-financial, time– Globalization

WAYS TO VIEW YOUR WORK

Work as temporary

It can end any time without warning, be mentally prepared to either look for another job or be an entrepreneur

• View work as a seminar

Changes require that you have to learn. View work in terms of what you are to learn, be ready and eager to learn

• View work as an adventure

Power plays, ambition, betrayers, rewards, etc.,• Get satisfaction from the work. You may not be appreciated in your work place.

Then get satisfaction from the work itself

(Bolles,2004)

Two concepts

• Entrepreneurship

• Mindset

» What do they mean?

entrepreneur• Someone who establishes an enterprise

• A person who has possession of an enterprise, or venture, and assumes significant accountability for the inherent risks and the outcome. It is an ambitious leader who combines land, labour, and capital to create and market new goods or service

entrepreneurship

• ‘The firm commitment to create something with intrinsic value which will satisfy a real need in the market. It is a continual process using innovative ideas combined with knowledge, leadership, and ability to bear the risks involved to mix resources in an enterprise which will create and distribute consistent value to individuals, groups, and the community at large’ ( de Klerk and Kruger, sourced online 2009)

Entrepreneurship continued

• It is a process of creating something new with value by devoting the necessary time and effort, assuming the accompanying financial, psychic, and social risk, and receiving the resulting rewards of monetary and personal satisfaction and independence. (www.sbaer.uca.edu/publications/entrepreneurship/pdf/11.pdf)

These definitions involvecreation process- creating something new which has value require devotion to necessary time and effortassuming necessary risk( financial, psychological, and social)the rewards- finance, independence, satisfaction

mindset

Two Types• Fixed mindset -none learning, narrow,

constraining and limiting

• Growing mindset- expanding, positive, empowering, curious, interested in learning

an entrepreneur requires a growing mindset to succeed

Entrepreneurial mindset

• An entrepreneurial mindset is a way to think like an entrepreneur passionately seeking new opportunities and executing them

• You must develop a passion for learning and acquiring new skills that will help you to succeed (R Onebamoi, sourced online 2009)

Way of acquiring entrepreneurial skills

• Apprenticeship• Mentors• Network with like minded people• Reading of books and journals: they will give you new

ideas and develop new skills• Listen to audio books ( cds and cassettes)• Attend short courses and seminars• Internet search

employee and entrepreneur’s mindsets*

• Employee• Security• Steady pay cheque• Dependence• Obeys some else rules• Fit into the culture of the

organization• Complains about the problem

of the world/organisation• Be an employee

• Entrepreneur• Freedom• Desire to create wealth• Independence• Make your own rules• Determine your culture

• Make difference in the world

• Be entrepreneur

*Adapted R.T. Kiyosaki, 2005

Entrepreneurial Behaviours

• Taking initiatives to make things happen

• Opportunity seeking and grasping

• Solving problems creatively

• Managing autonomously

• Taking responsibility for, and ownership of things

Networking effectively to a manage interdependence

• Putting things together creatively

• Using judgement to take calculated risk

Entrepreneurial attributes

• Achievement orientation and ambition

• Self confidence and self belief

• Perseverance

• High internal locus of control (autonomy)

• Preference for learning by doing

• Hardworking

• Determination

• Creativity

Entrepreneurial skills

• Creative problem solving• Persuading• Negotiating• Selling• Proposing• Holistically managing business/projects/situations• Strategic thinking• Intuitive decision making under uncertainty• networking

(Allan Gibb, 2007)

Secrets of entrepreneurial success

• Clarity –be clear about who you are and what you want• Competence-develop competence and be good at what you want to

do• Constraints -what are you constraints and limiting factor• Creativity- be innovative• Concentrate- be singe minded on what you want to do. Focus brings

power• Courage – have the courage• Continuous action- take action

(Brian Tracy 2007)

Important considerations

• Attitude

• Get experience

• Be optimistic as well as brutal honest with yourself

• How are you spending your money.-know what you are spending money on

• Start a business to practice on

Continued

• Be willing to ask for help

• Find a mentor- it can be through books

• Join entrepreneurial network(Kiyosaki,2005)

Create your future

• ‘The only way to get the future is to create it’

• Everything is created twice-– the first creation- which is in the mind

– the second creation- which is the physical cration

The entrepreneurial mindset enables you to create the business of your dreams in your mind before the physical creation

Develop opportunity sensing perception (OSP)

• Develop hunger and passion • Get out and look for available opportunities• Develop curiosity-use your curiosity to fire your

imagination and propel yourself into action– Be curios about what lies around you and then begin

to see what others do not see– Be willing to cast a wide net– Learn to visualize opportunities

(Tarkenton, F. with Wes Smith (1997)

Thank you for listening

References

• Akinboboye, M, (2009) Strategic Thinking and Change Management, Business Day,12th March.

• Bolles, R.N (2004) What Colour is your Parachute: A Practical Manual for Job hunters and Career Changes. California: Ten Speed Press

• Dweck, Carol S (2008) Mindset-the new Psychology of success: How We Can Learn to Fulfill Our Potential. NewYork: Random House

• Gibb, Allan (2007) Enterprise in Education: educating Tomorrow Entrepreneurs ( accessed online)

• Hisrich, R. D.; M. P. Peters; and D. A. Shepherd. Definitions of Enterprise; (www.sbaer.uca.edu/publications/entrepreneurship/pdf/11.pdf)

• Manny, T. The Spirit of Enterprise, (sourced online)• Kiyosaki, R. T. with Sharon L. Lichter (20050 Before You Quit Your

Job: 10 Real Life Lessons Every Entrepreneur Know About Building A Multi-million Dollar Business. New York: Warner Books

• Onebamoi, Richard, 5 ways to develop an Entrepreneurial minset (http://www.potential2success.com

• Kiyosaki, R. T. with Sharon L. Lichter (20050 Before You Quit Your Job: 10 Real Life Lessons Every Entrepreneur Know About Building A Multi-million Dollar Business. New York: Warner Books

• Onebamoi, Richard, 5 ways to develop an Entrepreneurial minset (http://www.potential2success.com

• Tarkenton, F. with Wes Smith (1997)What losing Taught Me About Winning: The Ultimate Guide for Success in Small and home Based Businesses. New York;Simon and Schuster

• Tracy, Brian (2007) The Way to Wealth : The Journey Begins –success Strategies of the Wealthy Entrepreneur. Madison: Entrepreneur Press