The journey of an entrepreneur is riddled with bumps and challenges, tempting you to pursue easier career paths like employment; but having entrepreneurial passion could help you overcome these obstacles.
Some may believe that business decisions are done rationally, but in reality, emotions are the driving force behind many of the entrepreneur’s actions.
In fact, entrepreneurs often refer to their startups as their babies, reflecting how they feel connected with their ventures on a personal level.
This parenting relationship starts from the conception of the business idea and continues as they nurture their babies while they grow into children.
Putting your heart in what you do impacts your intention, commitment, and persistence throughout your entrepreneurial journey. But it also translates to seemingly unemotional aspects: investment decisions, introduction of new products and services, diversification into new ventures, and your company’s financial performance.
When Passion Breeds Radical Innovation
Entrepreneurs usually exhibit an extra-ordinarily high or obsessive kind of passion for business-related activities, deriving intense positive feelings from engaging in these tasks and allocating numerous hours for their business every week.
This is when the magic of radical innovation happens — when enthusiasm sparks creativity, resulting in out-of-the-box inventions that aim to fulfill their community’s needs.
When I founded Revolution Precrafted Properties, Inc. in 2015, it started with my dream to provide the general public with homes created by world-renowned architects, architects, and designers.
I envisioned the homes to be art pieces but I also needed to make them affordable, so I maximized the latest technology to keep a lid on the costs of the prefabricated structures. Our manufacturers used advanced robotics to create the products, allowing us to finish the homes in a fifth of the time it takes for a regular one.
I drew inspiration from Airbnb, which disrupted the market and challenged the norm through technology.
Going Beyond Profits
These days, many startups are anchored on social entrepreneurship, with a fervent desire to go beyond just making profits and to solve society’s problems.
I believe entrepreneurs are more likely to make moral and ethical judgments when they feel psychologically attached to the cause they are fighting for or the social problems they want to fix.
Meanwhile, there are startup founders who juggle their businesses with their responsibilities as employees in other companies.
As again, the startup is one’s baby, left to care perhaps but nevertheless constantly monitored, and fed. Those who put up businesses while being employed usually balance the two as complementary, with equally strong desires to work on things they are passionate about. This may be especially true for those who are older when they start their businesses.
So how can this passion be ignited?
Internally, individuals may develop passion when they feel confident that they are competent in doing tasks required of the business.
Externally, passion can be nurtured when they believe that they are receiving emotional support from society and government. The affirmations may come in the form of awards, citations and recognition and even financial incentives or grants for startups, from which real entrepreneurs find a great deal of meaning.
Dealing With Failure
Throughout your bumpy, even turbulent, entrepreneurial journey, your passion may not remain consistently stable, but may fluctuate over time especially in the face of challenges and uncertainties like the COVID-19 pandemic.
But it is how you react to failures that will ultimately determine your success; how persistent you are on your countless startup attempts despite setbacks.
During tough times, remember that being resilient can help you bounce back after every failure.
As intensely passionate entrepreneurs, you may have greater feelings of sorrow in times of loss or bankruptcy. You may suffer from a loss of self-esteem if you see the failure of your business as your own failure as a person.
However, you are also more likely to devote time and resources towards nurturing your businesses, giving your “babies” a higher chance of surviving and turning them into profitable companies with a life of their own versus those that are handled by less passionate leaders.
Attracting Top Talent
Being a passionate entrepreneur also has another advantage: it will help you attract competent employees.
The reality is, as startup founders, you may struggle to recruit high-quality talent when you enter the labor market, as you have to compete with bigger companies with established brand names and more financial muscle to offer rewarding salaries and benefits.
But you can compensate for this by articulating your vision and demonstrating passion for your product or service, allowing you to inspire followers and attract enthusiastic employees seeking to work with like-minded leaders.
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