Entrepreneurial learning
and creativity in the
moment
Professor David Rae
Lincoln Business School
University of Lincoln
drae@lincoln.ac.uk
Professor David Rae
• Entrepreneurship researcher, educator & writer
• Career in small business, government & higher education
• Entrepreneurial learning: PhD & publications 1999-2012
• Director of Enterprise & Innovation, Lincoln Business School,
University of Lincoln
• Editor, International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour &
Research: ‘human & social dynamics of entrepreneurship’
• Optimist, based on human creativity & potential for learning
davidrae.org.uk
drae@lincoln.ac.uk
‘Warycat’ on Twitter
Recall a ‘special moment’
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Think back to a significant moment in your
experience of life, learning or work
This may be anything memorable for you:
 An
event
 A meeting
 A conversation
 An idea
 A decision
 A good or bad experience
Recall a ‘special moment’

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Thinking of that significant moment….
What happened?
How did you feel?
What makes it special/memorable?
How did it affect you subsequently?
What did you do as a result?
Share your story
The ‘moment’:
How
Entrepreneurs learn
A point in time
when we experience
conscious
mental awareness of
and
create
new
business
what is going on within our mind, or around us, and we are aware
and able to remember our thinking and responses.
opportunities
Its meaning is related to the human experience and generation of
meaning in a conscious attention span of subjective duration.
Entrepreneurial Learning
Moments: truth & lightbulbs….
Ernest Hemingway:
The moment when the matador confronts the bull
prior to the kill ‘momento de la verdad’
(‘Death in the Afternoon’)
‘Lightbulb’ or ‘aha’ moment:
Conscious realisation of
creative inspiration
Why moments matter
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We focus much of the time on ‘the future’ or ‘the past’
Most decisions and actions happen ‘now’- often without time to think!
We behave authentically in the moment: intuition & instinct
The ‘aha’ or ‘Eureka’ discovery moment
 Recognising opportunities
 ‘Moments of truth’ - interactions, customers, competitors
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Value created & captured by digital eye-brain interactions:
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Twitter messages
 Website visits
 Email, social media, messaging
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Moments can become critical turning points in personal narratives of
learning & identity
‘Momentary perspectives’ increasingly matter in understanding
entrepreneurial opportunity recognition, behaviour & learning
A range of theoretical perspectives
on the moment…
Philosophy & time: Bergson, James, Husserl, Adam
 Literature & narrative: Polkinghorne, Sartre, Ricoeur
 Education & learning: Pillemer, Giordano, Bedeian
 Cognition & neuroscience: Banks & Isham, Damasio,
Beeman & Kounios
 Organisational studies: Czarniawska, Shotter, Weick
 Entrepreneurship: Cope, Rae, Dew, Krueger, Kollmann &
Kuckertz
These are examples from a wide field of knowledge
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Research framework
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Moment: ‘a point in time, an instant’; ‘a turning
point in a series of events’.
Q1: Is the moment significant in relation to processes
of entrepreneurial learning and creativity?
Q2: Can a useful model be developed to understand
‘momentary perspectives’ in entrepreneurial
learning?
Entrepreneurial learning
Enterprise & entrepreneurship are increasingly prevalent at all
educational levels but hard to ‘teach’.
 Entrepreneurial learning is a natural & social process within both
everyday practice and formal education.
 Centred on creating, discovering, recognising and acting on
opportunities.
 Connects personal emergence (confidence & identity) and capability
development (skills & behaviours).
 Moments of serendipity, ‘discovery’, ‘crisis’ & ‘decision’ fit well with a
naturalistic approach to entrepreneurial learning

Enterprise and entrepreneurship education:
Guidance for UK higher education providers
Final version issued September 2012
http://www.qaa.ac.uk/Publications/InformationAndGuidance/Documents/enterprise-guidance.pdf
Entrepreneurial effectiveness
Research method
Online survey of entrepreneurs & educators
Questions
 Recall a ‘special moment’ from your experience
 This may be anything memorable, such as :

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
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
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
An event, meeting, conversation
An idea, seeing an opportunity, a decision
A good or bad experience
Can you remember what happened?
What makes it special/memorable for you now?
How did it affect you at the time?
What did you do as a result?
Share your ‘special moment’
Quick survey: types of moments
reported by entrepreneurs
S p e c ia l m o m e nts
Discovery of new
knowledge
Social encounter
Opportunity
recognition
Creative inspiration
Problem or incident
0.0%
10.0%
20.0%
30.0%
40.0%
50.0%
60.0%
70.0%
Common types of entrepreneurial moments
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Creativity
Innovation
Opportunity
Problem
Encounter
Insight
Intuition
Judgement
Resolution
– inspirational association forming a new idea
– application of idea to a practical situation
– potential or actual position of advantage
– disadvantage, mistake or setback
– social interaction, meeting or social connection
– realisation of new knowledge
– ‘knowing’ at a subconscious or ‘gut’ level
– making a decision or choice
– intention to act
Entrepreneurial moments & responses
Creative
Idea
Inspiration
Opportunity
Problem
Future possibility
Innovation
Incident!
Encounter
Discovery
Social interaction New knowledge
Meeting
Learning
Innovation
Judgement!
Emotion
Feelings
Positive: liking,
pleasure, trust
Negative: fear,
dislike
Cognition
Add to/draw on
memory
New knowledge
Learning
Identity
Being: who you are
& aspire to be
Narrative: story you
tell
Action
Knowing what &
how to act
Behaviour
Impact & selfawareness
Generating
meaning
Perceiving
Conscious
attention
Acting
Subconscious
awareness
Conscious awareness in the moment
Meaning
Acting
Perceiving
Being
in the moment
Prospective imagination
Experiential memory
Future anticipations
Past recollections
Narrative time
How do past
experiences help make
sense of the moment?
Kairotic time: events
Chronos time: linear
What is likely to happen?
What future possibilities &
opportunities are there?
What action can I take?
Social interactions
Talk
Behaviours
Subconscious
Conscious
Instinctive
Intuitive
Emotion
Feeling
Realisation
Reflection
Intention
Meaning
Acting
Perceiving
Sensory perceptions
Being
in the moment
Visual, hearing, touch
taste, smell
Prospective imagination
Experiential memory
Future anticipations
Past recollections
Narrative time
How do past
experiences help make
sense of the moment?
Instant
Deferred
Verbal
Physical
Kairotic time: events
Chronos time: linear
What is likely to happen?
What future possibilities &
opportunities are there?
What action can I take?
Moments in teaching & learning
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Can educators create ‘special moments’?
The value of learners reflecting on special moments &
building these into their narratives:
Enabling learners to capture, share, learn within & from
special moments
And to perceive, judge & act effectively in the moment?
Using technology to share moments – twitter, blogs
Building understanding of entrepreneurial behaviour
through momentary perspectives
Conclusions
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Momentary perspectives can offer new understandings
of entrepreneurial learning behaviour, creativity, &
transformative action
Connects with philosophical & cognitive science
perspectives
‘Moments of truth’ are often turning points in learners’
narrative accounts
Unconscious processes of intuition, instinct & emotion
are significant in creativity, decision-making &
opportunity recognition behaviours
Educators can elicit & use momentary perspectives in
entrepreneurship education
Comments & questions welcome…..
Research paper available at:
http://eprints.lincoln.ac.uk/7088/
Slides available from: drae@lincoln.ac.uk
Entrepreneurial Learning