Lisa Song Sutton
It’s a Question With a Million Answers: How to Become an Entrepreneur
How to become an entrepreneur
This question has so many facets to it and answers. I like to remind people that it’s taken me 10 years to become an overnight success. There are many famous entrepreneurs we can learn from and both male and female entrepreneurs to be inspired by. One of my favorite famous entrepreneur quotes is
"Hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard." Tim Notke, high school basketball coach.
There's a lot to be learned from just these few words.
I started my career in law and would have never guessed that I would turn into an entrepreneur and grow to own a diversified business portfolio.
Entrepreneur Ideas
How to fund your idea(s)
Entrepreneur ideas are everywhere and are truly a dime a dozen, but if you hear of a good idea that sparks interest in you, don’t let it go. And remember, you don’t need fancy investors to start a company. You don’t have to wait until you have $100K in the bank. I was able to bootstrap my companies. I used the earnings from my day job at the law firm to fund my first company.
"I used the profit from my first company to fund my second company, and have replicated that model many times over." Lisa Song Sutton
What is the definition of an entrepreneur?
Adapt
Pivot
Diversify
The truth is, you can’t plan for everything. Every successful entrepreneur I know has had to adapt and pivot. You must have an overall objective or goal and then adapt along the way. I always wanted to have multiple streams of revenue coming in from different sources. Sometimes that’s the definition of an entrepreneur.
The thought of having one job or just one source of income stressed me out. There’s an adage that says the average millionaire has 7 seven streams of income. I do believe this is true, I have seen it implemented not only personally, but also among many friends, colleagues and mentors. These various streams can be a mix of passive and active. You as an entrepreneur, have control over how risk adverse you are.
Entrepreneurial Spirit
Community
& Team Work
Every successful entrepreneur or female entrepreneur or famous entrepreneur I know cares about more than just themselves. They care about their teams, they care about their communities. If you lead with an abundance mentality, there is a very high likelihood that you’ll grow quicker and scale faster than those who adhere to a scarcity mentality.
There truly is enough business to go around. Work hard to differentiate yourself and take personal responsibility for the successes and the setbacks.