Interview with an Entrepreneur

This week I needed to record my experience interviewing an entrepreneur. For another class, I also had to interview a couple people in business, so I had some different perspectives to draw from. I interviewed a woman whom I admire, who is a personal friend, and an entrepreneur. This was not her planned career path, but it sort of just happened that the circumstances were right for her to start her own business. This was not something she had studied or even thought about, so there has been a lot of learning involved in the process. What I learned in this interview process is number 1: entrepreneurs are busy people. They work hard and care about their people, and their clients. That may not be true of every entrepreneur, but for the people I spoke with, that was definitely the case. I also learned that most are willing to take the time to discuss the lessons they've learned along the way, if they don't feel you're just wasting their time. I learned that often, and entrepreneur is someone who takes advantage of being in the right place at the right time, and it's not always a planned course for their life. I also found that once a person has the experience of working for themselves, they do not have the desire to back and work for someone else. I think this helps motivate entrepreneurs to continue the process of operating other businesses. The entrepreneur I interviewed has only been a business owner for a couple years, and there is still a lot to learn. She has surrounded herself with advisors and mentors, people she can ask for advice and direction. This is something else I learned from this experience: an entrepreneur does not have to do it alone. There are many resources out there, and people who are willing to give direction if asked. I've always been afraid to start my own business, with the feeling that it's not stable and secure for a stead income. I am now coming to understand that there is risk involved, but there is definitely opportunity to create a secure and steady income, if one is willing to do some research, and find need that matched the skills and talents I have to offer.