Every entrepreneur needs to be true and honest about their startup route, their skills and ability, as well as their strengths and weaknesses. Entrepreneurs are known to be risk takers, but for the average entrepreneur themselves, they believe non-entrepreneurs are the most risk-aversive people. According to them the safest path is to take control of their own lives, to construct their own world, and not be dependent on anyone. There is something about their stories which makes people uncomfortable. An economy that supports entrepreneurship, weakens the profession by wrapping it in destructive myths. A great number of social and cultural myths have been formed around the idea of what it really takes to be an entrepreneur.

1. 10 COMMON
MYTHS
About Entrepreneurship

2. What are we talking about?
Every entrepreneur needs to be true and honest about their startup route,
their skills and ability, as well as their strengths and weaknesses.
Entrepreneurs are known to be risk takers, but for the average
entrepreneur themselves, they believe non-entrepreneurs are the most risk-
aversive people. According to them the safest path is to take control of their
own lives, to construct their own world, and not be dependent on anyone.
There is something about their stories which makes people uncomfortable.
An economy that supports entrepreneurship, weakens the profession by
wrapping it in destructive myths. A great number of social and cultural
myths have been formed around the idea of what it really takes to be an
entrepreneur.

4. You need money to start your business
This is the oldest entrepreneur's myth of all times. The first thing that
comes out when you ask people about entrepreneurship is that
"We need to have a huge financial support and have to be rich“
That's not always true, the world has seen so many examples of people who
are self-made, and who started out without any support.
Many entrepreneurs have started business amidst troubling financial
circumstances

5. Risk taking route
People generally believe that most successful entrepreneurs take wild,
uncalculated risks in starting their organisation.
It's true that risk is a major part of any business idea. But, it is mostly
later in the development of the company, when the idea has created
some real value, do entrepreneurs take risk of losing it all if they want
to grow continuously.

6. You need to be an expert
Steve Wozniak, who helped start - Apple Computers, was a software
engineer at Hewlett-Packard when he built the first Apple computer.
There are many examples like Steve Wozniak, who break this myth. It's
not true that most successful entrepreneurs have strong expertise and
years of experience in the industries.
The founders of successful companies may become knowledgeable and
prominent in their field later on, but during early growth stage, they are
likely to start as amateurs with little experience in the field.

7. Proper planning and clear vision
People believe that most successful entrepreneurs have a well-planned
business idea and they have researched and developed their ideas
before taking any real action.
It's true that you need strategic planning and proper research but these
are later stages of development, rather than a necessary initial
ingredient. For many startups, extensive research and planning are
generally unnecessary and financially impossible. Ability to adapt is
much more important than a thorough, rationalised decision making
process.

8. You need luck to be successful
Bill Gates is the world's richest man, is it all luck? Nope, luck is not an
essential ingredient for the success of a business. In addition to the
argument of luck, Bill Gates is also a very smart and resourceful
person.
This is the story of most business people who prospered with hard
work, drive and intelligence.

9. You need a great idea to be successful
Entrepreneurship became synonymous in public mind with "new-age" or
"unconventional". This is another common myth about entrepreneurship
i.e. lack of a great idea.
It's true that some entrepreneurs run unorthodox businesses, but on the
other hand there are people who are owners of a restaurant chain, or
automobile moguls and they are no less than of entrepreneurs than
unorthodox business owners.
Furthermore, a great idea is less important than a profitable, proven
business model.

10. Personality Myth
Many people believe that to be an entrepreneur, you need to have
certain personality traits, and that people who are entrepreneurs are
born with it. Great entrepreneurs are made through experience and
nurture and not through nature.
If you are passionate and have a great idea, you stand every chance to
be an entrepreneur.

11. Immediate Success
Most famous people in any field are the ones, who succeeded right out of
the gate. Google is the best example in this regards, because of the
overnight success they got.
But there is still room in the business world for people who learn from
their mistakes, who fall and again start. There are many individuals
who saw success after a great amount of hard work.
Winston Churchill rightly said
"Success consists of going from failure to failure without losing
enthusiasm”.

12. On your own
Starting a business by yourself is wonderful, but it’s really hard. The
saying of too many cooks spoil the broth, doesn't apply in business. You
need a partner who will share the same thoughts of success as you.
A Partner will help you fight the challenges which your business will
face, and will always guide you on the right track. Having a partner also
takes off some pressure from you, in case you need your personal time. A
partner also serves as a 2nd eye into details you might not see or think
about.

13. It’s easy
The idea that everyone is capable of working for themselves easily, and
that everyone can be an entrepreneur without putting in the effort is a
myth. There are several important differences between
entrepreneurship and employment, and some are incapable of making
the needed adjustments.
There are some people who cannot get work done without external
pressure and for them entrepreneurship is just a dream.

14. Mara Foundation’s Ambition
We enable, inspire and empower ambitious entrepreneurs in Africa. With the support of our Mara Mentors we will:
Inspire millions of young people in Africa to become
entrepreneurs.
Teach entrepreneurs new skills.
Enable entrepreneurs to turn business ideas into a
reality.
Guide business owners to grow businesses and hire
(more) employees.
Empower entrepreneurs by providing a platform to
showcase their business and build their network.

15. THANK YOU
Website: mentor.mara.com
App: iTunes, Blackberry, Android, and Nokia.
Customer Support: support@mentor.mara.com
Mara Foundation is supported by a
number of partners, including: