Entrepreneurs and businessmen: differences and similarities
Posted: Mon Jan 06, 2025 5:29 am
There is a certain difficulty in society when it comes to differentiating between the concepts of entrepreneur and businessman, a difficulty which is logical, given that just ten years ago the word entrepreneur was not even used: back then we only knew about self-employed people and businessmen.
However, over the years, the use of the term 'entrepreneur' has spread to a wide sector of society, jumping from the startup ecosystem to the media and from there to the rest of the population. But what real difference exists between the new entrepreneur that is so much talked about and the lifelong businessman? Is it a question of money or also of character?
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According to Wikipedia, “an entrepreneur is a person who designs, launches and operates a new business”, while entrepreneurship would be “ the ability and desire to develop, organize and manage a business, together with its respective risks, and with the aim of making a profit”. Although the definition may be adjusted to that of the businessman, at one point in the definition the source introduces the concept of startup , a business format strongly associated with the entrepreneur.
However, beyond this nuance, the definition still falls short when it comes to drawing a dividing line regarding the concept of entrepreneur. An approach that can help us resolve denmark number data the issue is the one made in the book “My First Business”, which states that, while the entrepreneur is someone who “tries to do” and “does” business with the almost exclusive objective of obtaining an economic return for his activity, the entrepreneur not only seeks the economic reward but in a broader sense, “seeks to satisfy personal or social challenges”.
The difference – we begin to sense – lies in the motivations of both. The entrepreneur seeks monetary profitability, the entrepreneur seeks emotional profitability, to satisfy an aspiration. In other words, one makes a vital decision while the other focuses his energy on a purely economic activity , without any further twists and turns.
Along the same lines, consultant Enrique Navarro comments in his blog –which is echoed in muypymes– that “the entrepreneur is a person who lives happily in a state of permanent uncertainty, with his head in the stars but with his feet on the ground; a dreamer with open eyes who never stops having faith in his vision even in the worst situations.”
On the contrary, the entrepreneur has “more practical and less emotional goals”, because what he really seeks, according to Enrique Navarro himself, is to be the manager of a company in a climate of tranquility and security. The simple idea is complemented by the following quote from the entrepreneur Carlos Blanco: “The entrepreneur usually faces fairly controlled risks, he likes safe businesses. But this also makes the entrepreneur a better manager for his company than an entrepreneur.”
That said, what happens when a startup grows unexpectedly and the initial passion gives way to a less passionate but more professional management? There the line between entrepreneur and businessman begins to blur, as the vision of wanting to conquer the world is lost in favor of a more technical, more pragmatic profile. The utopian perception of the business is buried under a canonical management of the company, from which to capitalize on all its potential. When dreams begin to be monetized, they lose part of their essence.
However, this does not mean that the entrepreneurial spirit has to be necessarily displaced after this growth . There are still giant startups that, despite their growth, still retain their identity. They are the result of a humble project and remain humble in their ascent. The differences, therefore, are very subtle and difficult to identify. In the initial phase of a business it is easier to detect them, but then they almost always end up diluting. At that point, the difference – or similarity – between entrepreneur and businessman is practically a question of self-perception.
However, over the years, the use of the term 'entrepreneur' has spread to a wide sector of society, jumping from the startup ecosystem to the media and from there to the rest of the population. But what real difference exists between the new entrepreneur that is so much talked about and the lifelong businessman? Is it a question of money or also of character?
Improve your productivity and boost your results!
Try Holded completely free and without limits for 14 days.
Find out
According to Wikipedia, “an entrepreneur is a person who designs, launches and operates a new business”, while entrepreneurship would be “ the ability and desire to develop, organize and manage a business, together with its respective risks, and with the aim of making a profit”. Although the definition may be adjusted to that of the businessman, at one point in the definition the source introduces the concept of startup , a business format strongly associated with the entrepreneur.
However, beyond this nuance, the definition still falls short when it comes to drawing a dividing line regarding the concept of entrepreneur. An approach that can help us resolve denmark number data the issue is the one made in the book “My First Business”, which states that, while the entrepreneur is someone who “tries to do” and “does” business with the almost exclusive objective of obtaining an economic return for his activity, the entrepreneur not only seeks the economic reward but in a broader sense, “seeks to satisfy personal or social challenges”.
The difference – we begin to sense – lies in the motivations of both. The entrepreneur seeks monetary profitability, the entrepreneur seeks emotional profitability, to satisfy an aspiration. In other words, one makes a vital decision while the other focuses his energy on a purely economic activity , without any further twists and turns.
Along the same lines, consultant Enrique Navarro comments in his blog –which is echoed in muypymes– that “the entrepreneur is a person who lives happily in a state of permanent uncertainty, with his head in the stars but with his feet on the ground; a dreamer with open eyes who never stops having faith in his vision even in the worst situations.”
On the contrary, the entrepreneur has “more practical and less emotional goals”, because what he really seeks, according to Enrique Navarro himself, is to be the manager of a company in a climate of tranquility and security. The simple idea is complemented by the following quote from the entrepreneur Carlos Blanco: “The entrepreneur usually faces fairly controlled risks, he likes safe businesses. But this also makes the entrepreneur a better manager for his company than an entrepreneur.”
That said, what happens when a startup grows unexpectedly and the initial passion gives way to a less passionate but more professional management? There the line between entrepreneur and businessman begins to blur, as the vision of wanting to conquer the world is lost in favor of a more technical, more pragmatic profile. The utopian perception of the business is buried under a canonical management of the company, from which to capitalize on all its potential. When dreams begin to be monetized, they lose part of their essence.
However, this does not mean that the entrepreneurial spirit has to be necessarily displaced after this growth . There are still giant startups that, despite their growth, still retain their identity. They are the result of a humble project and remain humble in their ascent. The differences, therefore, are very subtle and difficult to identify. In the initial phase of a business it is easier to detect them, but then they almost always end up diluting. At that point, the difference – or similarity – between entrepreneur and businessman is practically a question of self-perception.