Oxford dictionary defines entrepreneurship as the act of starting a business or businesses; the business founder(s), also known as entrepreneur(s) takes on the financial risks in the hope of profit. On the other hand, an employee is a person employed at somebody else's business, not as likely to work overtime and bears little to none of that business's financial risk.
While entrepreneurs and employees have different roles within the business world, there is not a clear dividing line between the two. Some entrepreneurs were former full-time employees themselves, vice versa, some employees have had prior experience with starting ventures. I believe that entrepreneurs and employees offer plenty of transferrable knowledge to the table. One of my favorite YouTube Vloggers, Silicon Valley Girl, has a couple of videos on entrepreneurship that offer lessons applicable to corporate office careers.
Before I divulge into the main topic of this post, I admit that there are other YouTube Vloggers who are not only as, if not more than, outstanding as Silicon Valley Girl. I picked Silicon Valley Girl not only because she is an entrepreneur herself, it is also because I like how her videos make concepts such as productivity hacks, goal-setting and work habits very digestible.
Lesson number one - completion is more important than perfection
In the entrepreneurship world, it means to start selling your product as soon as you have an idea, you can always enhance the product on the way. It is recommended that you don't wait to sell until your product is "perfect", because by waiting too long, there is a greater chance that your product will become obsolete in the market.
On the other hand, if you are a corporate office employee, instead of worrying about whether your efforts in a project will deliver a favorable result, you can focus more on meeting deadlines and getting the work done. For example, if you are making an Excel sheet about company cash flows, prioritize inputting all data values into the excel sheet, then worry about formatting later if you have extra time. In that way, you can get things completed ahead of time since perfection is secondary.
Lesson number two - learn to love your problems
Whether it is in entrepreneurship or at a company, it is very easy to get bogged down by the smallest stuff, such as a demanding client or a jammed printer. Instead of spending hours moping about why life is a little too difficult, try to see your problems as windows of opportunity. Maybe it’s time for a project initiative to solve problems in a certain category. In essence, you’ll never know what such opportunities hold.
Lesson number three - embrace competition
Competition is not just good for businesses, it’s also good for personal professional growth. This is because the presence of competition indicates the value in whatever is being sought after. Use competition as an opportunity to learn more about what is the object of competition, for example, a promotion or a client. It also helps to do some research on your competitors. By doing so, you will be prepared for the competition and any future challenges.
Lesson number four - block out any white noise
Keep the helpful advice and constructive criticism, because those are helpful for improvement and corrections. What I mean by white noise is the Debbie downers who leave comments that can hurt your motivation to achieve your goals. You don’t need any of that. Life is too short for self-doubt and negativity. By filtering out the white noise, you can keep your sight on your goals and move forward.
Lesson number five - learn to reset to zero
In terms of entrepreneurship, that means investing small to moderate amounts of money in the initial stages of a startup to achieve sustainable growth. In the corporate office world, that means taking the time to learn the fundamentals of your job, especially if you’re starting a position in a company within a new industry. You are not expected nor need to go after the biggest or most difficult project ever right in the beginning. Get to know the more experienced employees in your company, they likely come from all walks of life but since they’ve been in the industry longer, they will give you hints on how to approach certain problems. By resetting to zero when needed, you will be ready to gain momentum later in your career.
By suggesting ways to apply entrepreneurship lessons into a regular office setting, I hope you all try to give an entrepreneurial take on your jobs and careers. It is nice to learn about theory, but it is also exciting to learn more through the application. Having an employee's mindset does get work done and keep a steady paycheck. It is a stable mindset to have but it is not conducive to career expansion. By incorporating a slightly more entrepreneurial outlook into your job, you are more likely to take your career to new heights.
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