23/09/2026
Hồng Gấm Lê
Entrepreneurs are everywhere.
Entrepreneurship comes in many flavours and is not limited to 'lone heroes' like Richard Branson and Mark Zuckerberg who grab all the news headlines.
In Western economies, one third of the working population are self-employed and can also be labelled as entrepreneurs.
Similarly, one third of the same working population works directly for an entrepreneur.
The other third working in larger enterprises probably has entrepreneurs as customers or suppliers.
Myth busting
The media often presents a skewed representation of entrepreneurship.
This module helps clarify some popular misconceptions that might have resulted from that bias.
1. Entrepreneurs are egomaniacs
Wrong! Some might be 'larger than life' and perhaps a little too intense.
However, a more accurate characterization of entrepreneurs is that they have an above average "need for achievement."
They are not satisfied with the status quo, and will search for 'a better way'.
They are more motivated to achieve improvements because of the outcome than they are motivated by the public recognition for the achievement.
2. Entrepreneurs love chaos
Wrong! Sure, some of the best opportunities are because someone has found a simple solution to a chaotic and complex situation.
But, that only means that entrepreneurs are comfortable with tackling complicated problems and will tolerate knowing that a solution is not quickly obvious.
Such a "tolerance of ambiguity" helps entrepreneurs remain calm while they take action to solve (or ignore) parts of a complex problem.
3. Entrepreneurs are lucky
Wrong. Sure, a lot of our lives are affected by events beyond our control, but entrepreneurship is not about sitting back and waiting for opportunity to fall in our lap.
The degree to which we believe we can shape our own destiny is called the "locus of control."
Entrepreneurship emphasizes controlling the resources at hand towards a shorter-term outcome instead of planning a specific longer-term goal.
With each intermediate outcome, entrepreneurs are more likely to achieve the bigger outcomes that others might perceive to be a lucky windfall.
4. Entrepreneurs are risk-takers
Wrong. They take calculated risks, much like managers do. If anything they are more proactive about challenging perceptions about why an opportunity might be risky.
5. Entrepreneurs are innovative
Maybe. But, entrepreneurs aren't always innovative. They don't perpetually come up with new ways to eat breakfast or pay their suppliers.
Most of the time they are managerial. Vice versa, your average manager will also occasionally be innovative. Being quick to seek or find new solutions is part of the entrepreneurial process, but this can also happen in a corporate setting.
6. Entrepreneurs act first, and ask questions later
Not quite. Some people think of entrepreneurs in a similar way as heroes from movies about the Wild West, who are quick to 'shoot from the hip.'
When confronted with a perceived opportunity (or risk), entrepreneurs are usually more proactive than others at 'taking a shot' to try and confirm the opportunity (or reduce the risk).
7. Competitive aggressiveness
Somewhat true.
As mentioned above (1. Entrepreneurs are egomaniacs), entrepreneurs can be driven by a need for achievement.
However, achievements are also measured in relation to others.
This can translate to an intense level of competitiveness.
The competitive nature may be expressed as competing against others, but also against one-self or against the status quo.
But, entrepreneurship also includes knowing when to stop competing, cut losses, and go play a different game before attempting to 'win at all costs.'
8. Entrepreneurs are lone-heroes
Wrong. Media stories sound better when they are about a person, but entrepreneurs never act alone.
They often form founding teams, recruit key employees, and are guided by an advisory board or board of directors.
True, entrepreneurship can enable considerable autonomy, such as which product and market to focus on.
However, this autonomy is still limited by what is legal and also limited by what other stakeholders agree to do.
9. Entrepreneurs are born, not made
This is a contentious statement since there are several cases where entrepreneurs have been successful despite any formal training in entrepreneurship.
Clearly, some people are more able than others, and might have prepared themselves to be entrepreneurs outside the formal education system.
Vice versa, training and education do not guarantee mastering an ability; they often only initiate or enhance an ability.
What is true, is that some people are born into a context (e.g., family or society) with greater resources and more abundant opportunities. I
t is also true that babies lack entrepreneurship
skills. The big question is how skills and/or attitudes are developed (formally, or informally).
10. Entrepreneurs start with a good business idea
Entrepreneurs rarely end up successfully implementing their initial idea.
Most initial ideas are far from perfect and evolve as the venture evolves.
Retrospectively, it is easy to label an idea as good or bad.
As long as it is only the initial idea, and not validated, it is impossible to determine if it is good or bad (chances are it's somewhere in between).
11. It's all about the money!
Mostly wrong. Most entrepreneurs are not primarily motivated by profit.
Most entrepreneurs launched businesses primarily to solve a problem.
Making money is a by-product to most good businesses.
References:
Blaug, M. (2000). Entrepreneurship before and after Schumpeter. Entrepreneurship: The social science view, 76-88.
Spinelli, S. & Adams, R. (2015). New Venture Creation: Entrepreneurship for the 21st Century (10th Edition) McGraw-Hill Education
Shane, S., Locke, E. A., & Collins, C. J. (2003). Entrepreneurial motivation. Human resource management review, 13(2), 257-279.
Budner, S. (1962). Intolerance of ambiguity as a personality variable. Journal of personality, 30(1), 29-50
Craig, A. R., Franklin, J. A., & Andrews, G. (1984). A scale to measure locus of control of behaviour. British Journal of Medical Psychology, 57(2), 173-180.
Hughes, M., & Morgan, R. E. (2007). Deconstructing the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation and business performance at the embryonic stage of firm growth. Industrial Marketing Management, 36(5), 651-661.
Morris, M. H., Webb, J. W., Fu, J., & Singhal, S. (2013). A Competency‐Based Perspective on Entrepreneurship Education: Conceptual and Empirical Insights. Journal of Small Business Management, 51(3), 352-369
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