Entrepreneurial motivation is often driven by personal adversity, it has been claimed.
According to the Aldridge Foundation’s Origins of the Entrepreneur survey, seven out of ten business founders have been motivated by hardships such as divorce, accidents or illnesses or under-achieving at school.
The study also found that the majority of business owners (56%) believe determination is the most important characteristic for an entrepreneur to have, followed by passion with 22%.
Laura Tenison, founder of maternity and baby wear brand JoJo Maman Bébé said her lack of school success made her want to prove teachers wrong, while Bar Hewlett said getting over cancer gave her the determination to set up weight loss business LighterLife.
Ron Aldridge, chair of the foundation and the founder of Capita Group, who also believes underachievement at school was a motivating factor in setting up his business, said:
“It is admirable that so many entrepreneurs have overcome personal adversity to lead incredibly successful lives. It’s a lesson to us all that anything is possible – but we can’t take this resilience for granted.
“There are many young entrepreneurs who are struggling in this recession and need experienced business people to give them mentoring support to help them adapt and survive. And if we want to come out of this recession with a pool of entrepreneurial talent, we need to instil resilience and an entrepreneurial mindset among school children.”
© Crimson Business Ltd. 2009