Ch. 3 Developing an Entrepreneurial Mindset
Power of Mindset
Why Mindset Matters
Experience & knowledge only go so far w/o confidence
Example: Robert Donat, founder & owner of GPS Insight
Athletes use a motivational mindset to achieve goals on the field
Critical Thinking
Should a budding entrepreneur accumulate experience working for others before
starting an entrepreneurial venture
What is Mindset
Fixed mindset views
Talents are traits
Brains plus talent equals success
Constructive criticism is a personal attack
Others’ success is due to luck
Avoid challenges
Growth mindset
Believe abilities can be developed thru hard work
Brains & talent are only the beginning of success
Lifelong learners
View failure as an opp to improve
What kind of mindset do you have
Growth
I can learn anything I want to
When im frustrated, I perservere
I want to challenge myself
When i fail, i learn
Tell me i try hard
If you succeed, Im inspired
My effort & attitude determine everything
Fixed
im either good at it or im not
When im frustrated, i give up
I dont like to be challenged
When i fail, im no good
Tell me im smart
If you succeed, i feel threatened
My abilities determine everything
Critical Thinking
Consider a highly successful person. Which aspects of his or her success are due to
luck & which come from dedication
Entrepreneurial mindset
The ability to quickly sense, take action, & get organized under certain conditions
Ch. 3 Developing an Entrepreneurial Mindset
Includes the ability to persevere, accept & learn from failure, & get comfortable w/a
certain level of discomfort
Metacognition
What is my goal
How motivated am I
What do I already know about this
How much time will it take
What strategy works best
Passion
Intense positive emotion
Motivates to overcome obstacles
Stimulates focus on goals
Enhances creativity
Critical Thinking
How do your passion relate to your desired impact
Entrepreneurship as a Habit
Develop a mindset thru creating a habit
Practice until it is carried out unconsciously & continually
Entrepreneurs are more likely to continue when rewarded
Critical Thinking
What challenges do you foresee in developing the habit of entrepreneurship? How
can you overcome these challenges
The Self-Leadership Habit
Self Leadership
Individuals must influence & control their own behavior, actions, & thinking to
achieve the self-direction, & thinking to achieve the self-direction & self-motivation
necessary to build their entrepreneurial business ventures
3 strategies for self-leadership
Behavior focused strategies
Self-awareness
Self-observation
Self goal setting
Self reward
Self punishment
Self cueing
Natural reward strategies
Making aspects of a task more enjoyable by building in ft to focus on the most
positive aspects of the tasks
Constructive though pattern strategies
Forming productive ways of thinking that can benefit out performance
How to practice: identify & reframe destructive beliefs by practicing positive selftalk & mental imagery
The Creativity Habit
Ch. 3 Developing an Entrepreneurial Mindset
Developing creativity
Creativity: the capacity to produce new ideas, insights, inventions, products or
artistic objects, which are considered to be unique, & of value to others
Roadblocks to Creativity
Fear
No appetite for chaos
Preference for judging over generating ideas
Dislike for incubating ideas
Perceived lack of challenges
Inability to distinguish reality from fantasy
A Creative Mind
Req both left brain & right brain thinking
Both sides of Csikzentmihalyi’s Polarity of Creative Individuals model
Left v Right Brain Orientation
Left Brain thinking
Detail oriented
Forms strategies
logic
rational
analytical
verbal
quant. processing
talking
writing
objective
linear
directive
words
language
reasoning
Right Brain thinking
big-picture oriented
presents possibilities
intuition
emotional
synthesizing
spatial
nonverbal processing
drawing
manipulating objects
subjective
creative
experiential
Ch. 3 Developing an Entrepreneurial Mindset
symbols
images
dreaming
The improvisation Habit
Improvisation: art of spontaneously creating something w/o prep
Improvisation Guidelines
not just for actors & musicians
no such thing as being wrong
no questioning or rejecting suggestions
ideas are taken on board, expanded, & passed on for further input
everything is important
it is a group activity
trust that the group will solve problem
listen closely & accept what you are given
be spontaneous & imaginative
Improv
yes & principle
anyone can improvise
The Mindset as the Pathway to Action
Self-efficacy & entrepreneurial intentions
Entrepreneurial self-efficacy (ESE) - belief in own ability to begin new ventures
ESE can be measured
Self efficacy can change over time
Role of Mindset in Opp Recognition
As we adopt a more growth-oriented mindset, we are more inclined to recognize &
create opp.