Are entrepreneurs risk-takers?
It is a commonly held belief that “entrepreneurs are risk-takers.”
Consider also the statement, “gamblers are risk-takers.”
Are entrepreneurs gamblers?
Or do you believe that: “Entrepreneurs calculate risk and pass it on to those who are greedy?”
Let’s research and share views on these statements.
What is a “Risk-Taker”? To me this person understands the chances off losing and creates plans to reduce the risk. Labeling a gambler as a risk-taker is an incorrect classification. A true gambler is relying on pure chance to gain or lose with no plan or strategy to push the “chance” in their favor.
Entrepreneurs are risk-takers, but they will calculate the risk and plan accordingly to try and reduce the risk. Their actions and continual assessment help reduce or mitigate risk entirely.
Interesting “take” on risk-taking, Chris… PC
Most people, including myself, usually think of major entrepreneurs who have made it, and are overlooking the not so famous ones. My grandfather left Luxembourg in 1914 and came to the United States, because of World War 1. He left his parents and landed in New York City with a few dollars in his pocket and a small sack of clothes. He migrated to Chicago, due to a large German population, and started a corner grocery store. I am not sure how he got funding. He was an entrepreneur, due to the situation with the war.
Good example, Mark… PC
”To the average person, obtaining a steady job that provides security is the measure of success. Putting themselves at risk goes against every fiber of their being. But to an entrepreneur, risk is an aphrodisiac. It is one of the most attractive aspects of entrepreneurship. We were risk takers long before we were business men/women.An entrepreneur knows he or she has to risk something in the process to determine if there is a market for that particular idea, be it for a product or a service, “But an entrepreneur is not a gambler. At the preliminary stage, the goal of an entrepreneur is not to bet the whole farm or risk everything on the idea. The goal should be to limit losses and maximize the human and financial capital utilization so that the entrepreneur can recover quickly to fine-tune the idea or work on a new one.”
Reference:-http://knowledge.smu.edu.sg/article.cfm?articleid=1165
http://www.leadershipturn.com/entrepreneurs-are-risk-takers/
Very good, Hema, PC
Of course an Entrepreneur is a risk taker. This type of individual has an idea or product that they want to “get to market”, to produce for others to buy.
This takes vision and the willingness to face failure. This is risk taking.
Well stated, Roy… PC
Entrepreneur are definately risk takers.They know where to tap for opportunities in order to generate money.Gamblers are also risk takers.But there is a lot of difference between gamblers and Entrepreneures.Gamblers are foolish and loose their money.There is an old proverb about how fools loose thier money quickely.Where are enterpreneures are not foolish.There is lot of ris involved when it comes to money.Risk involved and money are directly propotional to each other.Entrepreneures are very smart and calculative.They take calculated risk and always haev a back-up plan then things go worng,which is not the same with gamblers.
The below given link has clear definition for entrepreneures.
http://www.quickmba.com/entre/definition/
Entrepreneurs are definitely risk takers as they have a vision of how things should be or a vision of a new product. They are driven to be successful at their vision. Unlike a gambler, who takes a risk without knowing what the outcome will be, an Entrepreneur carefully calculates all risks. They thoroughly analyze the environment and the industry to foresee any obstacles. They then develop a plan to avoid or overcome these obstacles. Although they are risk takers, the risks are calculated and they are relatively sure they will succeed or they probably wouldn’t take the chance. An Entrepreneur is very intelligent and is forward looking in order to see where a void in an industry or organization could be filled in order for the organization to be more successful. Steve Jobs is a good example of this with his ideas of I-Pods, I-phones, and Pixar movies. In order to be successful with Pixar, he had to go out on a limb to convince Disney to invest in this idea. I am not sure that he or anyone else at Pixar really knew how successful “Toy Story” would be when they first created it. Although Steve Jobs had little to do with the actually development behind the movies, he was the business mind behind getting them the investing they needed to be successful. This took risk on his part. However, I would not consider it a gamble.