SHY Entrepreneur.com

Tag: Youth Entrepreneur

  • Finding a Purpose with Donald Miller’s Hero on a Mission: A Path to a Meaningful Life

    I just finished going though Donald Miller’s new book Hero on a Mission: A Path to a Meaningful Life. I was exposed to the book while listening to the radio. Dave Ramsey had Donald on his show and gave him a short interview discussing the book. The hook that got me interested was when Donald said something like the following (I am paraphrasing):

    Many people feel like they are sitting in the movie theater of their life watching a blank screen. The story of their childhood is over, the story of their college years are over, the story of finding love and having kids are over and now they don’t have a story to live into.

    If you would like to hear the interview here is the link: https://youtu.be/W58tn7-agOE it is 41 min 30 seconds into the show. As Donald says he is attempting to take what Viktor Frankl discusses in his work Man’s Search for Meaning and distill it down to something less esoteric. He discusses logo therapy and provides actionable steps to move his readers along.

    Having spent a good deal of time trying to nail down mission statements and organizational focus I can really appreciate the angle he is taking. If you have ever written a personal mission statement or tried to identify a direction for a company you know how surprisingly difficult it can be to put this into words. I believe the tools Donald provides will be a great help for anyone that has wrestled with this.

    Re-framing the idea to read as a story is amazing. As an engineer in my early years I hated the idea of marketing. I still hate the idea of playing into people’s emotions but I have come to appreciate that separating people from emotion is not possible. Decisions are made on emotion not logic. I don’t care who you are you can never fully separate yourself from emotion to the point that a purely objective decision is made.

    So, if you are having trouble finding meaning in your day to day or can’t quite nail down your personal mission give this book a go.

  • Youth Entrepreneur

    Entrepreneurship is in many ways a mindset and often times can be identified at a young age. Entrepreneurs in their youth exhibit many of the traits found in their later years. Inventive problem solving, challenging the norm, and an ability to adapt are all signs of an entrepreneur.

    If this can be identified and nurtured early on, the dividends will be significant. As we are exposed to business and the world around us, we become more and more accustomed to how things operate. This can desensitize us into thinking the way we have always done something is the only way it can be done. A young mind has a significant advantage in that the slate can be clean of false assumptions, which are often the only barriers to change.

    Problem solving can mean any number or things, but most often it is simply getting things done. The single biggest trait that I have personally witnessed among successful individuals is their ability to get things accomplished. There is no blaming of others or waiting for certain circumstances–rather, there are only two questions to ask: What is in the way, and how do we put it behind us?

    Often underlining assumptions are the reason a project is not moving forward, and challenging such assumptions is a trait common to entrepreneurs. Not taking what is handed to you at face value can many times open up doors that are commonly missed. Challenging assumptions is an integral part of being an entrepreneur.

    If  it is not natural for you to go against the grain, don’t worry–there is still hope. Like anything else, viewing the world through a lens of entrepreneurship can be developed. Learning how to become an entrepreneur and developing successful habits is not difficult–it simply requires a little persistence.

    There is a popular quote that says: “the only constant is change”–with that, it is not a surprise that success is often accompanied with adaptation. Individuals with the ability to see and react to change possess a skill many lack. If someone you know embodies any of what was stated above, it is quite possible you have an entrepreneur on your hands.