In the 15th century the word entrepreneur was born, by the mid-1800’s the meaning was given to ‘business managers’ and slowly evolved from there. When you think of an entrepreneur the image of a hustler comes to mind. It conjures the image of a man or woman willing to put everything on the line and make his or her footprint in the world of business. Being an entrepreneur has become more and more common over the last few years due to economic turmoil. Now the idea of being an entrepreneur is more appealing and more accessible. Sow what will the future of the entrepreneur actually be?
Entrepreneurs take a lot on their shoulders when trying to get a business off the ground. Tron Jordheim of StorageMart believes that the future of the entrepreneur is all about learning to wear different hats more effectively. “The new entrepreneur needs to not only master the crafting of the unique selling proposition of the service or product; they also need to be a master of social engagement and marketing, communication, technology and socially responsible enterprise. In learning how to create unique sales opportunities, they will be able to create a fan base and a community built around the problem or the solution or the opportunity the new venture addresses. In learning socially responsible enterprise, entrepreneurs will be able to define the social purpose of the project. In mastering communication technology they will learn how to use publicity and communications tools deftly. And, importantly, in learning and being open to new technology, an entrepreneur must ask themselves how does their use of current and coming technologies will boost the project and make it scalable, profitable and global.
The way in which the term entrepreneur will change may just be the definition of what it means to be an entrepreneur in the first place. Michael Price of Priceless Media Group says that the future of being an entrepreneur is a gray area. “The future of the entrepreneur will become more and more of a gray area. As an example, two generations ago you would only be considered an entrepreneur if you were unemployed and your sole focus was on building your business. Nowadays, these lines are becoming more blurred as entrepreneurship is becoming more widespread. However, most entrepreneurs still have day jobs. I also believe that risking money will no longer be the only risk associated with the idea of entrepreneurship. I believe risking time will become a part of the “risk” equation as well. Why? Because the barrier to entry for entrepreneurs has narrowed tremendously so financial investment is no longer as big of a risk as it used to be. This is especially true for people like app developers, writers, artists, bloggers, and vloggers. These people risk a tremendous amount of time building a business, and since time can't be regained I'd venture to say time is a greater risk now than money especially considering that many of
the new entrepreneurial endeavors previously mentioned can take 1 – 5 years to earn a livable wage.”
Another question to ask when it comes to examining entrepreneurs in the future comes from taking a look at the past and looking at the evolution of the entrepreneur up to current times; says Richard Houston of Referrals Market. “To answer your question, it seems that we must first examine history because entrepreneurship has already undergone a huge transition. From the discovery of fire, the wheel, the lever and the ability to form solid metal objects, and then the industrial revolution, some discoveries and inventions required huge capital investment and others required none at all. For those ideas that required huge capital investment, entrepreneurs had to be very good at salesmanship as well as great innovators. Thanks to the internet, today's entrepreneur only needs a library card to gain access to a computer and the internet and a credit card to buy a domain and set up a brand new business online. So therefore, almost anyone can be an entrepreneur because access to the marketplace is much easier and cheaper than ever before. And as our world becomes increasingly more complex, every little niche becomes a potential opportunity. For example, within the last year or so, hundreds of thousands of apps have been developed. In other words, the exploitation of one opportunity spawns many new opportunities. Given the current trend, it would appear that almost anyone can be an entrepreneur, and unlike tens of thousands of years ago, today's flow of information is light years faster and more complete enabling everyone to stumble upon a niche opportunity. Thus, more potential opportunities and more potential entrepreneurs to find them and exploit them.”
The future of entrepreneurism looks bright. In current times we have technology which helps you start a business and get things off the ground without the efforts of an entire team. Anyone can be an entrepreneur when it gets right down to it. What the future holds for the role of entrepreneur is uncertain but one true fact remains – entrepreneur ship and whatever goes along with it is here to stay and flourish.