Can Entrepreneurship Be Taught? - Article

Question

I know we had a discussion before, but I really thought this article summed it up for me (nothing I didn't know already from talking to entrepreneurs, but it's good to hear it from other sources). Hope this helps the other GMATClubbers out there who want to be entrepreneurs (mNeo, you listening?

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https://money.cnn.com/magazines/fsb/fsb_ ... /index.htm

) https://money.cnn.com/magazines/fsb/fsb_ ... /index.htm

aviroop · Answer

On a similar vein, Glen Hubbard's pdf article that is being used for Columbia's essay # 2 talks about entrepreneurship a lot.

mNeo · Answer

This article brings up a lot of points .. although, as you said, nothing exceptionally new. An interesting read for people like us. Thanks .. and keep them coming

ps. Connections count, dude !!

aurobindo · Answer

Revealing article. Thanks.

vij101 · Answer

Nice Article ! and interesting points put in words that I was trying to frame in my essays.

kryzak · Answer

I wish I had this article a few weeks ago when I started writing my essay. But I think I'll read over it while I'm revising my essay and see if I can add anything.

mNeo · Answer

Exactly my thoughts.

kryzak · Answer

Reviving a previously dead thread...

Just had a talk with a Haas alum that's a pretty successful entrepreneur. Wow, it was like having one of those interviews where your interviewer challenges your goals at every step. Probably because he's the type of entrepreneur who believes in just "jumping in" and doing it, and that an MBA will not teach an entrepreneur anything that they can't learn by just doing it.

Nothing I haven't heard before, but it was definitely interesting to have every reason I want to get an MBA shot down in the conversation. He pretty much asked me why I don't just go and interview for a startup now, because I'll probably learn a lot more about doing startups faster and better than those MBAs. When asked about why he got an MBA, he said he did it just to "hang out" for 2 years and get away from his old job. He didn't find the MBA useful at all. Then again, he got his MBA about 10 years ago. Even though things have changed, he still believes that the current MBA education doesn't help much, other than some connections, even when I was bringing up actually helping entrepreneurs on the job, business plan competitions, and learning from past mistakes.

Anyway, now I need to go around to talk to the current MBA students at the different schools again and ask they why *they're* getting an MBA?

One gem that I did get out of the conversation is (paraphrased):

"Some people just go and jump off a cliff. Others stand at the cliff edge and wait a bit before they jump. Then there are those who needs a "push" to jump off the cliff. If an MBA gives you the confidence you need to do a startup, then it is *worth it* for you. If you don't need the confidence, then an MBA is useless."

I think that summed up my feelings about an MBA and entrepreneurship. I just don't have the confidence nor connections to go and "do it" right now, and I'm hoping an MBA is the "spark" that gets me going.

Well, at least now I won't be too nervous about an interviewer who questions my career goals and "why MBA?" I just got drilled for 30+ minutes... whew! :shock:

I like this quote from the article in the link (in the first message). I think it describes me well.

Quote:

"Some people can't be taught to be comfortable in an environment of uncertainty and risk. We have to expose people to that environment and have them make that decision."
And knowing sooner rather than later whether they've got "it" can certainly save a young person a lot of misery down the road.

I like this quote from the article in the link (in the first message). I think it describes me well.

kryzak · Answer

Alright, just talked to a current Haas student focusing on Entrepreneurship. His comments definitely made me feel better and more secure about my career choice and choosing to do an MBA. Pretty much everything the article said, except he provided examples on how it helped him, and how he's applying everything he's learning at Haas on his 2 (yes, TWO) startups that he's working on right now.

Some people are risk-takers, others prefer to watch and see if the risk-takers go "splat".

Funny how easily our confidence can be shaken during this application process. We doubt every move we make, every decision we make, and alums/students can affect our views so much...

Can Entrepreneurship Be Taught? - Article

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