Are you a businessman or an entrepreneur? Have you
ever wondered what’s the difference between the two? In vocabulary, both
are synonymously similar. Both have to form a company, start a business,
sell products or solutions to customers and pay their dues. Businessmanship is
not a word, but entrepreneurship is. So, what is entrepreneurship?
Once, I asked a college mate majoring in management; and he just stared blank
at me. Of course, anyone can consult Google and find a bunch of answers, but if
I did it that way, then my post would look placidly plain, wouldn’t it? Back in the day, everyone who owned a venture or inherited one was
called a businessman, at least in India. Some of the largest business houses
started out as traditional family-owned set ups too, that have been run by next
generations over the decades. Business people and entrepreneurs have many
similarities. They both provide jobs for the unemployed, give solutions to the
consumers, and help in developing the economy of a certain
nation. However, they are not the same kind of people.
The following are 5 differences between a
businessman and an entrepreneur:
- On The Originality Of Idea:
A businessman can make a business out of an
unoriginal business or product idea. He enters into existing businesses, such
as franchising and retailing. He chooses a hot and profitable business idea
regardless of whether it is his original idea or borrowed from someone else.
An entrepreneur is an inventor and
the first creator of a product. He invests time, energy and money on his own
idea. He doesn’t start a business from an unoriginal idea. That is why he
starts on a startup while a businessman starts on a business.
- Profit motives:
Businessmen have one primary motive-a healthy bottom line, even in the
early days. In short, they want short-term gains. An entrepreneur, however,
begins his journey with a people and customer-oriented outlook. Entrepreneurs
we know look to solve problems, and therefore give customers what they need as
opposed to what they want. Profits, therefore, are a natural progression to
this goal and if thought out wisely, come late but in good measure. An
entrepreneur thus, works with patience and perseverance, to see his or her idea
mature, gain good traction and carves a niche, which in effect, gives rise to
competitors or more businessmen!
- On The Degree Of Risks Taken:
Businessmen take calculated and managed risks. They
cannot afford to lose money and suffer from bankruptcy. That is why they always
do the Math when it comes to business. Entrepreneurs are like sky divers. They
take crazy risks. They often don’t care of losing time and money just to pursue
their passion. But since they do it with love, joy and passion, they often gain
extraordinary rewards. Entrepreneurs, since they do the things they love the
most, they do it with the best of themselves, resulting to greater success.
- Businessmen are highly concerned about their positions:
A businessman can become the proprietor in his
owned business or say in a corporate structure he can be the Chairman, the
Managing Director or the Chief Executive Officer (C.E.O) because he has whole
lot of employees to manage the other tasks.
The Entrepreneur can become everything from top
level President to a local sales man of his organisation, because he is damn
crazy about his work that positions do not matter.
- On
How He Defines Success:
A businessman defines success as the success of his
business and its stakeholders. Its stakeholders include himself, co-owners,
employees, customers, investors, and even his community. An entrepreneur
doesn’t define success. He simply do his job and let history defines the
success that he accomplished. Remember that this list is only according to my
own opinion, and I don’t mean to put one of them on top of the other. Both
businessmen and entrepreneurs are supposed to be the kind of people that our
world needs. A businessman needs an entrepreneur. An entrepreneur may also need
a businessman. There can also be a person who is partly a businessman and
partly an entrepreneur.
No comments:
Post a Comment