Entrepreneurship as a creative ability

Just after posting my list of Multiple Creative Abilities a few days ago, I received an e-mail from a librarian asking for my take on entrepreneurship. She thought I knew something about it since I wrote a column about it once upon a time and it came up when she Googled "libraries and entrepreneurship." She needs better evaluation skills.

I swore at the time I wrote the column that I would never write on the topic again since the word entrepreneur and all words derived from it are just too damn hard to spell.  But then I realized that entrepreneurship really needs to be added to my list of creative abilities. 

In my definition, entrepreneurs look for unfilled needs and opportunities within an organization or within society - and find ways to fill them. They are self-motivated and often mission driven.  Here is what I suggested in the column linked above:

... increasingly, the concepts of entrepreneurship are being used by individuals within traditional schools trying new educational approaches - ones that will keep them from becoming obsolete.  For librarians, I’d define entrepreneurship as actively searching for unfilled needs in a school and helping meet them, adding value to one’s position in the organization.

When I personally think of the term educational entrepreneurship, it is educators who seek and find opportunities, often in the for-profit world. But the term entrepreneurship education is the effort to make the students themselves more entrepreneurial: a creative skill we should be helping students master as well. The Consortium for Entrepreneurship Education offers a curriculum, conferences, and other support for teachers who are interested in teaching students to find and creative opportunities with a focus on business.

Increasingly, all jobs require self-motivation, self-assessment, and creativity, so yes, entrepreneurship seems like an ability to encourage. Entrepreneurs need courage, tenacity, innovation, and empathy.

I am still exploring why people become self-motivated and are able to create their own vocations. But I am guessing it won't be because they read the textbook from cover to cover.  

If you find out, please let me know! 

Image source: www.lifewithoutpants.com

Comments

[Robert M. Donnelly]

Anyone interested in entrepreneurship should get: Personal Brand Planning for life, available on Amazon to determine their unique skill set and persona so that they can market their entrepreneurial idea(s) more effectively.