Are you selfish enough to become an entrepreneur?

Over the years I've had a fair amount of conversations with people who, in my opinion, swoon over the allure of entrepreneurship. You get to build a business from scratch, make something from nothing. Work anywhere, anytime. Be your own boss. It all sounds so great. But, when we discuss the downside, or perhaps the dark side, I see that those people haven’t even grasped the real meaning of entrepreneurship.

“I don’t know if I can take that sort of financial risk,” most people say. I often agree that maybe they’re entrepreneurial, not necessarily an entrepreneur. Sure, that’s a part of it, but at the end of the day, entrepreneurship is about convincing others to give you money. More or less, you need to be incredibly selfish if you want to succeed.

Did you know: When Steve Jobs and Woz made Breakout for Atari, they agreed they were going to split the pay 50-50. Atari gave Jobs $5000 to do the job. He told Wozniak he got $700 so Wozniak took home $350.

Are you willing to do that?
What if working any time of day actually means all day, everyday?
Are you willing to trade family time to be your own boss?
Are you willing to go to your friends, family, and network, and take what you need, or want?

If not, good. Save entrepreneurship for the selfish.