There Are Two Species Of Entrepreneurs — Which One Are You?
Forbes Coaches Council
Kristina Mänd-Lakhiani Forbes Councils Member
Transformational speaker, serial entrepreneur, everyday-life philosopher, woman on a journey of spiritual growth. Co-founder of Mindvalley.
More and more people are starting their own business. According to the government’s Small Business Administration Office of Advocacy 2019 report, the number of small businesses has been growing steadily for the past 20 years. Global Entrepreneurship Monitor found that 12.6% of adults across the globe are in the early stages of entrepreneurial ventures, whereas 8.5% have already established an entrepreneurial business.
In the United States in particular, this number is even higher: 15.6% of Americans were in the process of starting a business last year, up from 11% in 2001. However, an interesting fact is that despite the rise in total number of small businesses, the number of “employer firms” (businesses that employ one or more people other than the owner) has stayed the same, at around 19% in the U.S. This means that 81% of all small businesses in the U.S do not employ people. Isn’t that a curious observation?
The simple fact is not all entrepreneurs are the same. I came to this realization the hard way. I was in a rocky and painful business partnership for six years, and it took me three years of doubts, fears and worries to part ways with my first business partner. When we finally split, I wondered what could have gone wrong and came to a simple conclusion: We were two entirely different species of entrepreneur.
The way I see it, there are two types of entrepreneurs: investors and freelancers. The distinction lies in their mentality, not the organizational structure of their businesses. There are self-employed entrepreneurs who just want freedom (freelancers), and then there are entrepreneurs who want to solve a problem, build a business and leave a legacy (investors).
I have seen entrepreneur investors who were just starting up in their bedrooms, but in their minds, they were setting up to build a legacy. And I’ve worked with entrepreneur freelancers who treated their companies and employees purely as sources of personal wealth.
The Difference That Makes The Difference
The main difference between these two types of entrepreneurs is patience. Are you in business for instant gratification, or are you willing to wait longer for a bigger and more sustainable profit? It’s like the famous “marshmallow test” that Stanford psychologist Walter Mischel first introduced in the 1960s — are you willing to wait a bit longer to get two marshmallows rather than one immediately?
That simple difference in mentality translates into every business decision.
