Entrepreneur or Employee?

by 12 replies
15
Which one are you?

A lot of people getting involved in online marketing, whether it's CPA marketing, affiliate marketing, (same thing in my books) or internet marketing, (again same thing in my books), have the wrong wiring for it. The problem is they're employees who kind of want to be entrepreneurs but still want all the employee benefits.

That doesn't work.

An employee is someone who does not really want to take any risk. They want a steady pay check. They want a daily routine the is the same day in and day out. They want to work for a company for 25 to 30 years then retire on their company pension, moving to Florida and soaking up the sun. They don't really think outside the box much, and if they do, they might get promoted to a manager or some other management position. They're loyal people, dedicated to doing their job. They love following instructions and prefer there to be some kind of manual of what to do versus figuring it out on their own. If their pay fluctuated at all they'd have a heart attack. They're used to the norm and make up the majority of the general population.

People are programmed, almost from birth, to be employees. We have to go to school to learn the skills we need to be good employees. We have to go to college to get a degree which is supposed to ensure us a good job at a big company with a great retirement plan. That's what we're supposed to do. That's what society calls the "norm".

Entrepreneurs do not subscribe to this. Entrepreneurs do not need a steady pay check. They know that their income will fluctuate from day to day and month to month. They know that they don't have a daily routine. They solve problems daily. They have to come up with solutions to problems that nobody else has even encountered yet. They're pioneers in their niches normally. Trying to put an entrepreneur into a job that involved sitting in a cubicle doing repetitive is the same as throwing them into a maximum security jail!

Entrepreneurs know that life is a risk versus reward proposition. The more they risk, the higher the potential payoff. They accept that there's also the potential for a higher loss too. Entrepreneurs NEVER need a guarantee. They don't care about refund policies and this is all due to their wiring. Instead of trying to find a guide to do something, they write the guide, but it's not on paper, it's in their head. Every entrepreneur I know has also embraced failure as a stepping stone to success. You can knock down an entrepreneur, but they will get back up no matter how hard you hit them. They're relentless in their pursuit. For them it's not the end result that matters, it's the journey where the excitement lies.

So what are you?

If you're programmed as an employee and you kind of want to succeed as an entrepreneur, but always half ass it or never dive in head first, you're just going to struggle forever. I've seen a lot over the years and I've seen a lot of employees trying to be entrepreneurs. They simply can't. They're not wired for it.

The first sign of trouble, they jump ship and move on to try to find the "perfect existing solution".

There's nothing wrong with being an employee. Entrepreneurs need them to scale their businesses. But there is something very wrong with employees trying to be entrepreneurs when their internal wiring is always working against them. I'm not saying the conversion is impossible, but it's not easy to fight the way society brings us all up.

As I get older, I understand more and more that your mindset, (ie how you're wired), makes the most impact on your success or lack of. I'm starting to really focus on this now as technical stuff is easy once you learn it, but mindset is not.

What do you think?
#ad networks (cpm/cpl, display) #employee #entrepreneur
  • I found this very enjoyable to read and I have read many writings on the same topic before.

    I am definitely, 100%, always have been, an entrepreneur.

    Your description of one describes me perfectly.
    • [1] reply
    • I'm new to these forums but you see it a lot. People who have been at this game for several years but haven't made anything yet. Not surprisingly, they also never took any risks and spent any money on their business either.

      They read what other people did to make easy money and expect that to still work for them, but it never does. I don't think it has anything to do with employe/entrepreneur mentalities it simply comes down to comfort. People don't take risks so they never get ahead.

      Entrepreneur is the most overused, feel-good word there is these days. It gets tossed around way too much.
      • [ 1 ] Thanks
  • Bang on point with the risk factor mate. Risks are always involved with entrepreneurship and so are rewards. People see that there are many rewards of having their own business and jump the gun. This is one of the main reason why so many start ups fail.
    I remembered a quote I used to have on my notice board
    "Entrepreneurship is living a few years of your life as most people wont, so that you can spend the rest of your life as most people cant.'
    Loved your article.

    Thanks and Regards
    Deepak Arora
  • I think you look down on employees.

    I also think you don't have a clue what you're talking about.

    Where did you come up with that rubbish? I was an employee for 45 years, with a variety of employers, and my days were rarely routine.

    That's a joke. Over the years I've met many extremely talented and creative people who were employees. Do you think innovation is the exclusive domain of entrepreneurs??? If so, you're sadly mistaken.

    You're kidding, right?

    On one hand you look down your nose at employees. On the other, you say "there's nothing wrong with being an employee". Which is it?

    VL
  • Guess I hit a sore spot. I wasn't looking down my nose or bashing employees, they're vital in carrying out the day to day operations in businesses that entrepreneurs setup. I don't fault them for going down the normal path that is laid out before them. That's what we're all supposed to do.

    But are you trying to tell us all that employees and entrepreneurs have the SAME mindset?

    You don't think there's any difference between the two?

    That, my friend, is rubbish.

    • [2] replies
    • He's just offended because he was an employee for so long.
      • [1] reply
    • Nope. I didn't say any such thing.

      My comments were ALL addressed towards your bogus, preconceived notions about employees.

      VL
      • [1] reply
  • I hate following instructions, I hate deadlines and I hate following schedules. I enjoy putting my self to risks that's why I choose to become an Entrepreneur and I love my job.
  • How about both.

    9-5 a fat paycheck job, 5-11, I am an Entrepreneur ready to take risks

    All that is different between them is tradeoff of risk. Apart from that, they all are human have same instincts.
  • An entrepreneur first of all is an employee. He/she try all his/her best in the work. He/ she has succeed and got high position in business. He/she become entrepreneur. So before I become an entrepreneur, i should be an employee. That is way help me become a successful entrepreneur.

Next Topics on Trending Feed

  • 15

    Which one are you? A lot of people getting involved in online marketing, whether it's CPA marketing, affiliate marketing, (same thing in my books) or internet marketing, (again same thing in my books), have the wrong wiring for it. The problem is they're employees who kind of want to be entrepreneurs but still want all the employee benefits.