How to become an entrepreneur

(written by Lawrence Krubner, however indented passages are often quotes)

Interesting

So I attended events, meetups, conferences, and mingled with the local startup community in Seattle. When the time came to move to the Bay Area, I found even more events, more meetups, and more conferences. The startup ecosystem was so busy and alive, and I found a wealth of knowledge and experience being shared, which I consumed eagerly.

There were also blogs, videos, and books that I ingested with passion. They made great conversation topics to share and discuss during the events, the meetups and the conferences.

I even joined a startup incubator!

It wasn’t until I decided to launch my own startup that I realized that nothing I’ve read, watched or attended really prepared me for it. And I mean it. Absolutely NOTHING. I had forgotten most of what I’ve learned, and what I remembered didn’t apply much to my situation. I’ve been snacking on other people’s experiences and success, and like good junk food, it made me feel satisfied. Sorry to be a party pooper, but that’s reality.

In the beginning, I tried applying the things I’ve learned to my situation. That didn’t work. The magic moment really happened when I made peace with the fact that I’d just wasted a good deal of time learning things I didn’t really need, believing there was a magic word someone would utter that would launch me into action. Every event, every conference, and every blog post was just another excuse to postpone action one more day. I made peace with it and moved on from a beginner’s mind state, believing that I will figure out what I need along the way.

And that made all the difference.

There is a part in each one of us that wants to create, deliver, and launch into an entrepreneurial adventure with all the uncertainty and risk that it brings. But there is also the other part, the one that wants to feel certain and confident that we’re making the right decision, and we’re not going to fail and hurt ourselves along the way. And that’s where most of the friction comes from.

Apparently it is now easy to become a dilettante in the startup world. It’s sort of like the modern day equivalent of going to parties to show how much you care about starving children in Africa. But in the end, what really matters is not the parties/conferences/meetups. It’s how much you actually build and sell.