Kansas City has been named one of the top five cities, globally, for entrepreneurs. So it's no surprise that entrepreneur has become kind of a buzzword around here.
During Central Standard's first Buzz Kill session, small business consultant Dodie Jacobi reflected on widespread misuse of the word and all its permutations.
Dictionary.com uses the definition that Forbes magazine endorses, so for our reference, let's read that entry.
entrepreneur [ahn-truh-pruh-nur]: a person who organizes and manages any enterprise, especially a business, usually with considerable initiative and risk.
"If we want to be recognized as one of the leaders in entrepreneurship," says Jacobi, "we ought to be able to pronounce the word correctly and use it in a sentence."
"Using proper words in a proper context is a credibility issue," she insists.
By following these simple instructions when wielding this current buzzword, Kansas Citians can encourage and support true entrepreneurship.
- Entrepreneur does not rhyme with sewer. Say the end of the word like 'nerd', just drop the 'd'.
- Entrepreneurialism and entrepreneurism are not words. They just aren't. Use entrepreneurship.
- To be an entrepreneur means to pursue an endeavor beyond one's current resources. The pursuit of new resources for oneself and one's industry or community is at the heart of entrepreneurship. Which bring us to...
- There's a distinction between an owner/operator and an entrepreneur, who's creating something that does not yet exist.
- A successful entrepreneur is not necessarily someone whose pursuit has been monetarily fruitful. Despite a certain mystique and glamor associated with the word, not all entrepreneurs are rich and famous.
- Entrepreneurship means change, and it's risky. Attempts to minimize the risk by imitating other communities, like Silicon Valley, are inherently not entrepreneurial in nature. To stake our claim as an entrepreneurial center, our goal must be to become the first Kansas City, not "the next" someplace else.
