Entrepreneurship Now? Yes or No Debate

Question

Thoughts from HBS Student Entrepreneurs, Recent Alumni, Faculty, and Investors

YES--Now is the Best Time to Start a Business
https://media.www.harbus.org/media/stora ... 5063.shtml

VS

NO--Being an Entrepreneur--Well, Not Just Yet...
https://media.www.harbus.org/media/stora ... 5065.shtml

pleonasm · Answer

Very interesting perspectives .. though the 'yes' is a collection of good advice and the 'No' is a very specific response from an individual.

I have to agree to the 'yes' portion here. If one can sustain as an entrepreneur in these turbulent times, success is guaranteed with the economic revival. It's certainly true that Entrepreneurship is like a roller coaster ride. It's not for everyone. It cannot be seen as an alternative career, just because IB recruiting has taken a hit at top schools. A very insightful article indeed. Thanks for posting.

AlexMBAApply · Answer

One of the best pieces of advice I ever got about entrepreneurship was from a guest speaker (a seasoned entrepreneur) when I was in school.

When someone asked when was the best time to start a business, he said "never."

He then added that there are always more excuses to NOT start a business than to start one. When you're young, you fear that you don't have enough experience (and no established backup career or resume). Or you have student loans to pay off. When you're older, you have a mortgage and family. When you have a job, you'll find ways to justify why it's better to stay employed. When you're unemployed, you have no capital or income. When the economy is bad, it's hard to get funding. When the economy is great, you're missing out on low hanging fruit (get 'em while it lasts, start business later). There are ALWAYS tons of excuses.

As such, there is never a good time to start a business. You either do it spite of the excuses or circumstances, or you don't. Ultimately, if one decides to do it, it's a leap of faith, which can be impossible for the many risk averse MBAs who like to micro-analyze things to death before taking the next step :-)

Starting your own business is always a risky thing no matter what and it's not about timing or analysis, but purely a gut call - you either do it, or you don't (and there's absolutely nothing wrong if you don't).

Starting your own business is always a risky thing no matter what and it's not about timing or analysis, but purely a gut call - you either do it, or you don't (and there's absolutely nothing wrong if you don't).

DK · Answer

Opportunity costs are always in the back of an entrepeneurs mind before they venture out on their own. Right now, these are very low.

isa · Answer

I've gotten very similar advice about starting my own business from various alums. I was also told something along the lines of "if you have an opportunity to join a startup or start your own business, make sure you do it only if you think the experience is worth it, whether it fails or it becomes the next google. The last thing you want is to regret the experience or see it as time wasted." But to go back to nink's question, I'd say yes - start your own company. If you have an idea that you think can succeed and you're willing to put your full effort behind it, do it. :-D

domtri33 · Answer

Passion is KEY!!

ozzie123 · Answer

I'm currently working in an entrepreneurial company (where the employees get a share of any project s/he done for the company). Does that count?

Entrepreneurship Now? Yes or No Debate

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