Thinking Like an Entrepreneur (Part 1 of 4)
If I could use one word to summarize most of my friends and acquaintances in college, it would be slackers.
That’s not to say I wasn’t a big-time slacker myself.
Prior to college, when I was taking computer science in university, a few visuals come to mind:
Drinking.
Sleeping in.
Sleeping in class.
Computer science just wasn’t my thing. I mean, I knew how to code, but when I started messing around with circuit boards and discussing the foundational differences between C++ and Java, my brain utterly shuts down.
I eventually left, with greater ambitions to move to Toronto and take the business marketing program at George Brown College. While I still couldn’t code Frogger in C++, one thing was certain: I needed to develop a stronger work ethic.
In college, most of my peers had other priorities. One dude sold t-shirts, another tried making it rich selling steroids, and a much shadier guy ran a business (stereotypically) selling car stereos.
While none of them made it past the second semester, it’s clear that they had one thing going for them. A drive for entrepreneurship.
Marketing programs rarely teach the concepts of entrepreneurship. The majority of courses provide skill-building opportunities, and if you’re up for the challenge, strategy-based learning.
Theoretically, entrepreneurship isn’t something that can be easily taught, nor digested. Aside from the functional stuff related to operations, entrepreneurship is mostly a mindset that is learned from experience.
The Financial Times states:
Entrepreneurial Mindset refers to a specific state of mind which orientates human conduct towards entrepreneurial activities and outcomes. Individuals with entrepreneurial mindsets are often drawn to opportunities, innovation and new value creation.
Characteristics include the ability to take calculated risks and accept the realities of change and uncertainty.
By combining your marketing skills with the mindset of an entrepreneur, you’re setting yourself up for even greater opportunities in the future. That includes taking larger roles in organizations, or even better, being your own boss.
There are many key characteristics of an entrepreneurial marketer, but for the next week, we’re going to focus on three that I personally think top the charts.
On Friday (which is Christmas Day 🎄), we’ll start with the most proactive trait: self-starting.
Click here to read part 2: Becoming a self-starter
The stars will never align, and the traffic lights of life will never all be green at the same time. The universe doesn’t conspire against you, but it doesn’t go out of its way to line up the pins either. Conditions are never perfect. ‘Someday’ is a disease that will take your dreams to the grave with you. Pro and con lists are just as bad. If it’s important to you and you want to do it ‘eventually,’ just do it and correct course along the way.
— Tim Ferriss, The 4-Hour Work Week
Handpicked Remote Marketing Jobs 👩💻👨💻
Content Marketing Manager - Relay Financial
Your WFH Playlist 🎧
Since we started this week talking producers, let’s keep it on repeat. In 2006, hip hop lost one of the greatest producers of its time: J Dilla. One-third of the original Slum Village, Dilla produced Common’s Like Water for Chocolate; a slew of tracks by Busta Rhymes, Tribe Called Quest, and De La Soul; and one of my favourite albums of all time: Pharcyde’s Labcabincalifornia.
J Dilla released Donuts on February 7, 2006, just three days before passing away in his bed at the age of 32 - a result of a combination of rare blood disease TTP and lupus.
Have a listen as you work from home today.
Trending Investments 🚀
Being a marketer in payments, I’ve been keeping a close eye on two stocks: Square (NYSE:SQ) and Nuvei (TSX: NVEI). Square has seemingly been on a consistent and steady rise, and with so many groundbreaking products on their belt like Cash App and their point-of-sale system, their trajectory for growth is reflective in their stock. Nuvei, on the other hand, is Canada’s largest private and non-bank payment processor and kicked off with a $700 million IPO on the Toronto Stock Exchange this past September. Both are worth looking into long-term.
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Today’s the day. Let’s get productive!
Reggie ✌️