Entrepreneurial disconnect - 7 things that are noticeable

During the week of GEW2018, I reflected on entrepreneurship. I thought of the entrepreneurs and how they interacted with the following:

• Technical Assistance
• Access to Finance/Investment/Grants Funding
• Information made available via research
• Laws governing ages of entrepreneurship
• Business education 
• Statutory commitments 
• and a whole lot of other factors that we encounter in business 

We are failing our entrepreneurs! There seems to be a disconnect that only serves to frustrate the entrepreneurs. Dreams become disillusions. Information is fragmented and impractical. We follow the instruction blindly of start small and grow it. Has no one ever sought to grow the business at the size that it should be from the outset? With access to greater planning tools and an environment where there are greater information stores, something is wrong. We are operating with archaic strategies to new world problems. We have not adapted to the necessary changes. 

Much of the information that we have is outdated before it even sees the light of day. Our observation tells us so, but because our new found information has not yet been published it isn't accepted as mainstream. What do I mean?

1. With greater education being made available, why has the age at which a person can get into business still 18? What programs do we need to put in place to harness the creative abilities of those who have business ideas but have not yet attained that age? 
2. Why are they still being told to check out their close friends and family when they can see that those same people are struggling within the same environment they are? 
3. Recently, I said the friends that you currently have will change should you embark on the path of entrepreneurship and they are not of like mind. Your friends will become those with whom you do business. This is not to say that you won't have your old friends, but that the friendships will evolve. You will move towards the direction of your most dominant thoughts and as your needs and priorities change so will your friends. As an entrepreneur, there is no blank cheque waiting to be picked up by you. Hard work and discipline is required. If you happen to experience the early success you have to be even more discerning as to who your true friends, those who will be back to back with you in tough times and good, are going to be. 
4. Teaching young people to prioritize needs to be taught in the home setting, it will not happen in school. What is the mentality of those who surround you? What are your goals? Have you carefully defined these goals for your business and personal?  
5. Are you proactive/reactive? Do you plan ahead or face situations as they crop up? How do those approaches work for you and which gives the better results? 
6. The financial houses are still looking for traditional collateral despite the fact that their market no longer possesses these traits. Many entrepreneurs are renters, not owners. No one is really placing an emphasis on valuing intellectual property [I.P.]. Actually, within our markets we have accountants, not a lot of professionals are qualified in valuing a business and many with these skills tend to come from overseas. 
7. Some start ups can make money quickly, and if there is no plan in place can suffer from having excess cash that is not productive. The result is that they flourish like match heads, burning suddently bright and then vanishing as quickly as they appeared. They are no real instruments for making your excess cash productive without their being exorbitant. 

We need to stop giving entrepreneurship lip service and really put systems in place that give businesses in this area the opportunity to grow and flourish. One does not need to live in a metropolitan country in order to experience success that can be massive. 

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