Carl J. Schramm is currently a professor at Syracuse University. Formerly he was the president of the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, where he held the position for ten years. He is co-author with Robert E. Litan of Better Capitalism: Renewing the Entrepreneurial Strength of the American Economy.
Mr. Schramm stated in the article – Straight Talk of Entrepreneurship
Characteristics of an Entrepreneur
Carl shared insight about what are the primary characteristics of an Entrepreneur. I didn’t get them all down, but these few are perhaps the most relevant.
1. They are an outsider, they ask the hard questions, and press leaders on the “why” around status quo.
2. They think in terms of disruption, and are often thought to be disruptive by the change-averse.
3. They see things differently, considering untraditional forces that others didn’t see.
4. They are often competent in a completely different field than the field they are working in.
5. They are very widely read, and know lots of facts and information that makes thinking richer.
6. They have worked in multiple places in the world.
7. They have worked in a startup.
8. They have worked in a job they didn’t like.
9. They have worked in multiple industries.
Chuck Blakeman is the founder of a Colorado based company named the Crankset Group. The company works with business owners to help them make more money in less time and get back to the passion that brought them into business in the first place. He has started five very different businesses and two no profits organizations from the ground up.
Chuck’s vision is to live well by doing good.
Both Mr. Schramm and Mr. Blakeman state that trying to focus on a formal business plan is a waste of time. By the time you are done with the plan the information is out dated and of no use. There are key points that should be focused on and they are:
· What is the product?
· Who is going to buy it?
· Why do they need it?
· How will you build it or deliver it based on what you know?
These points are key because it gives potential investors all the important information with out all the fluff. Most investors are busy and don’t have time to read a full business plan. Having this information in the beginning helps them to see if they want to read in depth. This also lets you see quickly if this will be a business worth starting or something you need to do more research and work on.
· What is the product?
· Who is going to buy it?
· Why do they need it?
· How will you build it or deliver it based on what you know?
These points are key because it gives potential investors all the important information with out all the fluff. Most investors are busy and don’t have time to read a full business plan. Having this information in the beginning helps them to see if they want to read in depth. This also lets you see quickly if this will be a business worth starting or something you need to do more research and work on.
