Entrepreneurship is a matter of hardship. It is a matter of endurance. It is a matter of sacrifice. Running your own business is not the easy way out. These things can be heard in the words of both entrepreneurs and others alike. Yet, when it seems so difficult, why do many encourage entrepreneurship in this day and age?
It is because now is the golden age of entrepreneurship.
The negative words of many paint a grim picture over what reality is really like. Yet, here are a few reasons as to why taking your own path probably is the most ideal thing to do now more than ever.
It may have gone unnoticed by most, but in this day and age, entrepreneurship is an accepted choice of lifestyle by our society. It is encouraged and praised by the likes of the older generation who at their young age took entrepreneurship as a way out. In the past, entrepreneurship was a means of survival. It was thought of as the last option when one was not good enough for joining any other job. However, now, entrepreneurship is encouraged at the high school level around the world, and is even taught at higher education institutions.
On another side, entrepreneurship has much lower barriers to entry unlike before. With the introduction of the Internet and innovation such as 3D printers, management of logistics and prototyping is a much easier task now. By all means, entrepreneurship can even be done from the convenience of your own home. Many online platforms encourage the contribution of independent entrepreneurs and platforms like Facebook make it easier to market a product. Crowdfunding has even made it easier to raise initial capital for a business idea online, all of which can be done from your own bedroom.
The most noteworthy point is that entrepreneurship is a journey of self-fulfillment. Whereas in many jobs, an individual works towards earning to fulfilling the lower ends of Maslow's pyramid, an entrepreneur aims towards the top of that same pyramid to pursue a line of work of passion and self fulfillment.
Barriers to entry may continue to fall, but the introduction of new technology and an ever changing market makes entrepreneurship even more attractive for an individual of any generation.
The writer is the founder of Casper Foundation. He can be reached at taufiq.zaman@gmail.com