Are entrepreneurs born or made?

Are entrepreneurs born or made?

 

In my experience, it’s the latter.

 

For some reason, I always demanded to watch Dragon’s Den with my grandparents when I went to stay every Monday night as a child. They bought me Duncan Bannatyne’s autobiography as a Christmas present, which I still keep on my shelf.

 

I launched my first “business” called the Shiny Stuff Club when I was 5 years old with my grandparents. I was basically a magpie looking for shiny things to collect.

 

Although I didn’t become a millionaire from this particular business venture, the entrepreneurial spirit remained as I grew up. 

 

I had a comics business, Watson Comicz, at primary school, and even set up a website for it, taking the copy from the websites of the companies my parents worked for, and changing it to be about comics. 

 

This particular quote from the website still makes me laugh: “As part of Watson Comicz, we have one of the strongest balance sheets in the comic industry. It means you will benefit from prices and purchasing.”

 

In Year 7, I borrowed £2 and bought supplies for a coffee shop outside my house in the mornings, to catch busy commuters on their way into central London. 

 

In Year 8, I took advantage of the fidget spinner craze to sell custom fidget spinners to my school mates.

 

My point is, without ever watching Dragon’s Den or reading Duncan Bannatyne’s book, I doubt I would be running my podcast, my events company or even be at a business school.

 

Entrepreneurs are most definitely made.