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From Dream to Reality: How Women Can Thrive as Entrepreneurs

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International Women’s Day is an occasion to shine a spotlight on gender equity issues around the world. When women embrace entrepreneurship, they can expand opportunities to forge their own path and reap the economic rewards. If you’ve thought about starting your own business – even part-time or as a side hustle – there is a supportive community to help you explore this option.

The theme of this year’s International Women’s Day (#IWD2024) is to Inspire Inclusion (#InspireInclusion). As explained on the IWD site, when we inspire others to understand and value women’s inclusion, we help to build a better world. And when women themselves are inspired to be included, there’s a sense of belonging, relevance, and empowerment.

One of the ways organizations and groups can inspire inclusion is through action in building women’s economic empowerment. According to Equality Now, full and equal economic participation by women would increase global GDP by more than a quarter, representing nearly $28 trillion of additional shared wealth being contributed to the worldwide economy every year.

Women Entrepreneurs by the Numbers

Women entrepreneurs are a force to be reckoned with. Here’s an excellent list of recent statistics on women entrepreneurs compiled by Luisa Zhou, some of which I’ve highlighted below:

  • 42% of all U.S. businesses are owned by women
  • Women-owned businesses have grown 114% in the last two decades
  • Startups with all-women teams only received 1.9% of venture capital funding
  • About half of all startups in the U.S. are founded by women
  • One-third of businesses worldwide are owned by women
  • Lower-income countries have the highest participation (55.6%) of young female entrepreneurs

Interestingly, one in six women globally reported an intention to start a business in the near future. The highest entrepreneurial intention rates were observed in low-income countries, where approximately 28% of women expressed intentions to start a business. For these women, entrepreneurship is a way to change their life circumstances.

Why do Women Start their own Businesses?

Among all entrepreneurs, there are various reasons why someone decides to start their own business. At MIT, I worked with many women-led startups and the reasons are often connected to a passion or an experience in the founder’s life. Alicia Cong Rodriguez’ grandmother died of a heart attack when she was only 13 years old. This fueled her personal mission to co-found Bloomer Tech, a company that makes a bra that monitors women’s heart health, as she explains in this CBS News profile.

Yet, worldwide, more than 70% of women reported job scarcity as the motive behind their startups, according to the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) Women’s Entrepreneurship report ‘22/’23. It is interesting to note the differences between necessity-based entrepreneurs and innovation-based entrepreneurs. Women and minority entrepreneurs are often necessity-based entrepreneurs – starting their own business after losing a job, to supplement their income, or to gain flexibility to attend to other demands in their lives. This doesn’t take anything away from their entrepreneurship. In fact, in addition to economic gain, necessity-based entrepreneurs are often motivated when traditional labor options are insufficient to meet their needs and goals.

How to Explore Entrepreneurship

If you’re considering becoming an entrepreneur, now might be the perfect time to explore opportunities – even for an entrepreneurial side hustle. You don’t necessarily have to leave your current job (and regular paycheck and benefits) just yet, but taking some time to delve into entrepreneurship can be immensely rewarding. Start by conducting research and testing the waters to gauge the viability of your business idea.

Fortunately, there are a wealth of resources available within the entrepreneurial community to support you, including networks specifically geared towards women in business. Look into organizations and programs designed to assist female entrepreneurs, such as Women’s Business Centers (part of the U.S. Small Business Administration). Additionally, take advantage of events and workshops hosted by colleges and universities, where you can connect with fellow entrepreneurs and gain valuable insights from experienced speakers.

Conferences serve as vibrant hubs for entrepreneurs to connect with like-minded individuals. When selecting a conference to attend, you could choose one that may be geared toward entrepreneurs, or it could be focused on the industry where you want to start your business. After attending an event, are you thinking, “I could do that!”? By immersing yourself in the conference environment and connecting with others who share your vision, you can enrich your entrepreneurial journey and expand your network of supportive peers and mentors.

LinkedIn is also an invaluable tool for entrepreneurs. Take advantage of its vast network to connect with other entrepreneurs in your industry. Don’t hesitate to reach out and request an informational interview. Use this opportunity to gain insights into an entrepreneur’s journey – ask about how they got started, the challenges they faced, and any advice they have for breaking into the field.

Resources for Women Entrepreneurs around the Globe

Download the ebook

One place to start researching entrepreneurial opportunities is with the ebook I created titled, “An Introduction to Start-up Accelerator Programs around the World,” a free guide for entrepreneurs who may be exploring ways to start their own businesses, especially in countries outside the U.S.

I’ve found that diversity, thought leadership, and collaboration all work together to make the ecosystem of entrepreneurs a much richer place. To that end, this ebook includes information about entrepreneurship around the world to show how different countries support their entrepreneurs with various programs and accelerators.

Boston-area Resources for Women Entrepreneurs

Closer to home, I’ve also included a list of local resources. Boston and Cambridge are renown for some of the world’s most prestigious universities and they support the Boston area’s unique entrepreneurial DNA for success. MIT even offers a free online course on Becoming an Entrepreneur.

Here are several resources and organizations in the Boston and Cambridge area. For other regional areas, search online to find local resources. 

The key message here is that you’re not alone on this journey – there are people and resources ready to support and guide you as you explore the world of entrepreneurship. So, take that first step, and embrace the possibilities that lie ahead!

In my current role as an entrepreneurship consultant and coach, I help entrepreneurs as they explore their options. Please feel free to reach out.

An Inside View: MIT’s Intense, Week-long Entrepreneurship Development Program

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MIT beaver mascot

#MITEDP … IYKYK

OK, enough with the acronyms! But MIT’s Entrepreneurship Development Program (EDP) is one of those experiences that has that aura of “if you know, you know.”

It’s a week-long intensive entrepreneurship program run by MIT Sloan Executive Education, and this year MIT EDP included 76 participants representing 19 countries and 6 continents – and the individuals who attend become raving fans. This program is designed for aspiring entrepreneurs, corporate venture officers, startups, and those who would like to develop or strengthen a climate of entrepreneurship in their corporations, universities, and regions.

The entrepreneurial spirit runs high during the week. The days (and nights) are long as the teams of five to eight people create a tight bond while working together to create, identify, and evaluate new venture opportunities. Participants regularly describe MIT EDP as inspiring, enlightening, and even life changing. Here are a few comments posted on LinkedIn by this year’s attendees:

  • “An intense deep-dive into disciplined entrepreneurship and venture creation … Lots (!) of pivots, iterations and learnings from our primary market research led us to pitching a SaaS company focused on maximising athlete performance – not the idea we started with and far removed from my biotech day job, but I loved it! Lots of laughs along the way made for a great team spirit and an unforgettable experience. Now time to take the MIT mindset, energy and everything I’ve learned and apply it to mycoBiologics.”
    Fiona Rudkin, mycoBiologics Co-Founder and Managing Director
  • “I am honoured to return to MIT Sloan Executive Education alongside a cohort of ambitious entrepreneurs and founders on a mission to improve the world by accelerating high-growth businesses and creating high-skill jobs for the future.”
    Luis Ibarra, Founder & CEO at eCERTO

  • “When we arrived on day one, we were promised ‘the real thing.’ I nodded politely; it sounded an incredibly American thing to say. Having experienced it however, there’s something quite indescribable about being there … You talk about energy amplification, my Scottish friends will think I’ve gone all American on them, but I struggle to think of a better way of describing it.”
    Andrew Smith, Technical Director, distilling and cask management

  • “Let’s have an impact and solve the big world’s problems through entrepreneurship. Creativity is contagious! The world needs entrepreneurship!”
    David Desplaces, Director, VTLI at The Citadel

This year, my role at MIT EDP was as one of the judges, viewing the program from a different perspective than I have in the past. For three years, I was an instructor and facilitator for the Entrepreneurship Development Program, and it was always refreshing to work with seasoned professionals who are used to delivering results and can bring their life experiences to this program. (Here’s my post from 2020 which discusses some of the details of MIT EDP and its impact.)

My view as a judge was a bit different. Usually, I am involved in sausage making, this time, I was in a position to see how the finished sausage turned out. To take the analogy further, as a connoisseur versus a chef, I appreciated the outcomes of the continual learning process even more.

My perspective as an MIT EDP judge was framed by my own recent entrepreneurial experience. For the past year, I have been running a coaching business focused on energy leadership coaching. Although my prior experience includes navigating two startups through to IPOs, teaching Eship classes at MIT, and serving as director of delta v (MIT’s capstone program for entrepreneurship), applying the lessons of MIT EDP to your own business brings it all into sharp focus.

This time, I pressed a bit deeper to see how the teams thought about their businesses. If they were going to start with an idea, did they apply the key concepts of Disciplined Entrepreneurship to that idea? For example: Who are the first 10 beachhead customers you are going to target? Have you considered the burdened salaries of the team of engineers you are planning to hire? Does this technical solution deliver enough added value for customers over existing approaches to solve the problem?

In the course, the process of learning a concept, applying it, and reinforcing it through coaching is designed to simulate the experience of a startup company seeking funding. As participants are taught in the course, the judges want to understand the assumptions the groups made, and these teams were well prepared by the end of the week. A key concept that I use in energy coaching is “how you show up matters,” and these teams showed up with their best energy.

The final day of MIT EDP culminates in a competition that reflects the MIT “mens et manus” (mind and hand) approach to learning by providing both the theory and reinforcing it with the practical. Ideas in the competition ranged from Urgent Care AI to creating a plug for casks to monitor volume – the ideas were terrific, as was the demonstration in applying the concepts. A dozen teams competed with a 10-minute pitch and a 10-minute Q&A session in the first round. This was then narrowed down to four finalists. I’m not going to call out the winner here, because the stakes aren’t high, and I truly believe that winning is in learning and applying the process with a team you met less than a week before. (But, the lucky winners did get autographed galley copies of new entrepreneurship books from Paul Cheek and Bill Aulet.)

The MIT EDP program fosters entrepreneurial skills and an entrepreneurial mindset among participants, but the lessons apply across the board. Corporate leaders often need to be immersed in an experience where you are learning and applying new ideas in a team with people you just met. The EDP experience made me think of how this intense, immersive type of experience would be ideal for onboarding new employees, helping teams to gel faster, and accepting newer players and their ideas.

So, whether you had the opportunity to attend MIT EDP or not, I encourage you to take the plunge and be open to new experiences. Create a space where you can identify new opportunities, experience different ways to work, learn new skills, and embrace your passions.

If you’re an entrepreneur or corporate leader, and would like to learn more about how energy leadership coaching can help you to recognize your unique energy and harness it to lead more effectively, please reach out.

I hold coaching certifications from both iPEC and ICF.

The Second Lieutenant Advantage: Embracing Collaboration in Entrepreneurship

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Not everyone aspires to be the leader. Some individuals find genuine fulfillment in supporting their teams — stepping into the limelight when necessary, and gracefully stepping back when it’s time for others to shine. In the fast-paced world of entrepreneurship, where the prevailing stereotype often emphasizes the leader persona, there is immense value in fostering a collaborative environment where everyone’s contributions are recognized.

The Happiness in the Shadows

For some, the limelight can be daunting. I, for one, appreciate having my moments but find satisfaction in letting others take center stage. It’s not about avoiding responsibility or lacking ambition; it’s about finding happiness, acceptance, and humility in being part of a team where everyone’s efforts contribute to the collective success.

When I watched the CBS News video, “Sidemen, Backups, and Understudies: Playing in the Shadows,” it really resonated with me. I encourage you to take a few minutes and watch it. The segment features Mark Rivera, Billy Joel’s sideman and saxophone player; retired baseball catcher Erik Kratz, who spent 11 seasons with 14 different major league organizations; and Kayla Pecchioni, a Broadway understudy who often steps into the shoes of the star. These professionals play in the background or are called up when the stars aren’t available — and they all embrace their position as #2.

These very accomplished individuals understand the importance of their role and talent and a humility that allows them to shine even when they’re not number one. One thing that stood out to me was their “team first” attitude. They work just as hard as the superstars to be the best that they can be for the team.

Rivera explains he’s been the frontman, and he feels he has a much better gig now. Katz comments that the lesson is about finding contentment built on a foundation of humility and gratitude. While Pecchioni talks about looking for glimmers and being appreciative of the everyday. While we may not know their names, these team players help ensure their organizations are successful.

The Desire to Belong

In today’s entrepreneurial landscape, people are increasingly seeking to be part of something bigger than themselves. While not everyone can, or wants to, assume a leadership role, we are more dependent than ever on individuals who can step up when needed. However, it’s crucial to do a better job of recognizing and appreciating these contributors beyond just the top leadership echelon.

Entrepreneur magazine advises how leaders can foster a sense of belonging in the workplace, and how this helps employees feel free to be their authentic, true selves, which makes it easier to show up, engage with others, create solutions, and perform well.

In a study cited in the article, a high sense of belonging among employees was strongly linked with a 56% increase in job performance, a 50% decrease in risk of leaving, and a 75% reduction in sick days. For a company of 10,000 people, this could mean annual savings of more than $52 million.

Social belonging is a fundamental need. Entrepreneurial leaders need to remind themselves that the hard-working team members who may be playing in the shadows need to feel included, and as leaders, they should proactively create a workplace of belonging for everyone.

Creating a Culture of Recognition

Not everyone can be a general; not everyone can be a second lieutenant. However, everyone can be recognized for their unique contributions. The key lies in acknowledging the diverse roles within a team and ensuring that each person’s efforts are valued.

When I worked as the executive director of MIT’s Martin Trust Center for Entrepreneurship, I was involved in almost every aspect of the Trust Center and the delta v accelerator, which is the capstone entrepreneurial experience for students at MIT. However, although I was not the face of theCenter or the program, I was the “glue” that held it together. For me, this was a role I preferred, and it gave me the opportunity to make the team and the delta v program shine.

I also played a similar “second lieutenant” role at startups that I helped to grow. I realized that providing direction and support, and letting others lead when necessary, yielded better results than anyone had projected.

Being “on” all the time can be exhausting for some of us. By surrounding ourselves with a collaborative team, we not only get to experience our moments of success but also share in the success of others. This sense of camaraderie builds a strong team spirit and reinforces the notion that everyone is supported. However, the leaders in the organization must recognize all the behind-the-scenes people that are essential to their success.

Balancing Ambition and Contentment to Gain a Sense of Fulfillment

Many individuals today seek better balance in their lives. It’s not a lack of ambition or a fear of challenges; rather, it’s a conscious choice to find happiness in what they do and contribute to a collaborative effort. Recognizing and motivating teams is now more critical than ever, especially in a hybrid work environment where face-to-face workplace connections are not as strong since daily interactions may be limited.

A sense of fulfillment at work goes beyond a mere paycheck. It’s about having the opportunity to step into the limelight, share achievements with the team, and then step back and continue contributing. A culture of mutual respect, where individuals rotate in and out of the spotlight, fosters a positive and supportive work environment.

Another interesting perspective is to look at how different generations view leadership and management positions. According to an article in Business Insider, many Gen Zers are saying “no thanks” to promotions because they feel that doing more work to get promoted is not worth the pay or the accompanying stress.

Work-life balance has become a bigger part of the conversation for this newest generation in the workforce, and bosses need to think about what other incentives might entice Gen Z (born from 1997 onward). Meaningful work, career development, mentorship, transparency, caring leadership, and an entrepreneurial culture are all factors that may motivate Gen Zers more than a bigger paycheck or a promotion.

In any generation, embracing the concept of allowing oneself to learn from others is pivotal. Observing and enabling the growth of team members allows for collective progress. It’s about moving away from the notion that everyone should constantly be climbing the corporate ladder and, instead, recognizing the potential for growth within the existing environment.

Conclusion

In the ever-evolving landscape of entrepreneurship, it’s time to break free from the misconception that success is synonymous with leadership. The strength of being a second lieutenant lies in recognizing the power of collaboration, appreciating diverse contributions, and fostering a culture where everyone can shine. In the hybrid world of work, where connections are not as visible, creating an environment that values every individual’s role is not just a strategic move; it’s a necessity for sustained success.

Finding Glimmers: How Entrepreneurs can Reframe and Reset with Small Moments of Joy

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Think about the last time you saw the sky turn brilliant orange as you caught an unexpected glimpse of the sunset. Or maybe you smelled fresh brewed coffee when you came in from a brisk walk. Or patted a furry friend contentedly. These are all examples of “glimmers” – tiny, positive moments that have the potential to bring joy or happiness and promote mental well-being.

This use of the term was coined by Deb Dana, a licensed clinical social worker who specializes in complex trauma, in her 2018 book “The Polyvagal Theory in Therapy.” According to the Polyvagal Theory, glimmers activate the parasympathetic nervous system, promoting a state of calm and relaxation. Glimmers are often described as the opposite of triggers – they are personal to each individual and can be experienced with any of the senses. They spark ease, relaxation, safety, and connection.

In the high-stakes world of entrepreneurship, where stress and anxiety are constant companions, these moments of calm can be a game-changer.

The Power of Glimmers

Entrepreneurs often face immense challenges, from financial pressures to the uncertainty of the market. As an entrepreneur, the demands and pressures of launching and running a business can become all-consuming and can take a toll on your mental health. Plus, the culture of entrepreneurship celebrates working round the clock and always putting your startup first. A founder’s self-identity is often tied to the success of their startup, and as a result, entrepreneurs often experience loneliness, depression, and anxiety as they experience the ups and downs of startup life.

As entrepreneurs strive for success, it’s helpful to recognize and embrace this concept of glimmers — and how those small, uplifting moments may be able to positively impact the well-being and mental health of entrepreneurs.

Glimmers and Entrepreneurship

Incorporating the concept of glimmers into the entrepreneurial journey can positively affect mental health, and even perhaps, business success. Yes, it’s true that a glimmer is just a small moment, but it can let you reframe and reset a situation you are going through, and that self-awareness is a critical skill for entrepreneurs to learn.

When I held the role of executive director of MIT’s Martin Trust Center for Entrepreneurship, I worked with MIT Sloan MBA alumna Kathleen Stetson to debut the Entrepreneurial Confidence and Communication (E.C.C.) program at M.I.T.’s delta v accelerator.

This was the first comprehensive program to address mental health challenges in the start-up community and is outlined in this article in HBR. Our goal was to teach student founders and their team members tools to build greater self-awareness. Stress is inevitable in start-ups, but by learning how to manage that stress, the entrepreneurs could make better choices for themselves and their start-ups.

We taught MIT student entrepreneurs the tools and benefits of self-awareness, and the results were impressive. After taking part in the program, 93% of participants felt that a self-awareness practice could help entrepreneurs create more successful businesses. By the end of the summer-long program, 88% of student entrepreneurs had independently established their own regular, weekly meditation or mindfulness practice (vs. 21% before the program), despite heavy workloads and continual critical deadlines. The data affirms that self-awareness tools are useful in managing stress — and they can be taught.

Building upon that foundation, I believe that finding glimmers and using those moments as a pause for reflection and self-awareness can create a positive mental health break for entrepreneurs that can be easily incorporated into their daily routine.

Recognizing and Cultivating Glimmers

To harness the benefits of glimmers, entrepreneurs must first recognize and appreciate these small moments of positivity. It could be a compliment from a colleague, hearing a favorite song, or enjoying a piece of chocolate. The key is to be mindful and intentional about acknowledging and savoring these positive experiences.

Create a routine that allows for the acknowledgment of glimmers – you may even want to jot it down or take a picture. Plus, the more you look for glimmers, the more you’ll find them due to frequency bias. Whether it’s starting the day with a gratitude journal or taking short breaks to appreciate achievements, these intentional practices can contribute to a more positive and resilient entrepreneurial mindset.

In an article in USA Today, Amy Morin, a licensed clinical social worker and editor-in-chief of Verywell Mind, explains, “A little joy and some relaxation can reduce your emotional distress. And when your emotions go down, your logic goes up. That means you might be able to tackle a problem from a different angle because you see things a little differently.” This is certainly a benefit that entrepreneurs should embrace.

Glimmers for Resilience

Resilience is a key trait for entrepreneurs navigating the complexities of business. Glimmers can play a role in fostering resilience by providing moments of joy, hope, and accomplishment. In times of stress, recalling these positive moments can serve as a powerful coping mechanism, helping entrepreneurs bounce back from challenges with renewed energy and determination.

Think about tying glimmers to mindfulness, or as a reminder to practice meditation or breathing exercises. All of these tools to promote self-awareness can help you reset, reframe, and build resilience.

Conclusion

In the dynamic world of entrepreneurship, prioritizing mental health is not just a personal choice but a strategic necessity – yet one that is often ignored and overlooked in the entrepreneurial win-at-all-costs culture. Glimmers offer a unique and effective way to infuse positivity into the entrepreneurial journey, contributing to improved mental well-being which can support an entrepreneur’s success.

As entrepreneurs embark on their ventures, it’s crucial to embrace the power of glimmers, recognizing them as small ways to capture joy, and strengthen a resilient and thriving entrepreneurial spirit. By fostering a positive mental health culture and incorporating intentional practices, entrepreneurs can navigate the challenges of the startup landscape with a renewed sense of purpose and well-being.

The infographic below, from Neurodiversity Education Academy, gives more detail about glimmers and triggers.

When Entrepreneurship and Antifragility Collide

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Think like an entrepreneur to cultivate creativity and innovation in your role.

As a learning and development (L&D) professional, you may not think of yourself as an entrepreneur, but embracing an entrepreneurial mindset can help you foster creativity and innovation in your organization. Understanding how you can encourage an antifragile approach to deal with internal forces as challenges arise within your company is essential. Connect that to how you show up in your job and how it affects both your own effectiveness as well as co-workers’ effectiveness.

What it is

The pursuit of entrepreneurship in the context of an existing organization is often called corporate entrepreneurship or intrapreneurship – whether it is a for-profit corporation, a not-for-profit organization, a government agency, or any other type of company.

Corporate entrepreneurship is a method used to develop new businesses, products, services, or processes inside of an existing organization to create value and generate new revenue growth through entrepreneurial thought and action. People who see themselves as corporate entrepreneurs are the engines of growth within a company; they are often corporate leaders or develop into leadership roles.

L&D professionals are well positioned to harness their intrinsic entrepreneurial skills to create value in their organizations given their roles entail working with both internal customers and a variety of other stakeholders. Further, the skills, knowledge, and ability L&D practitioners possess can help them solve corporate problems by thinking like an entrepreneur.

How it works

Here’s an example: The operations team at a small technology company in the data analytics space had a major problem – the startup competed against industry giants such as IBM. As the old saying goes, “Nobody ever got fired for buying IBM.” The team leader needed to figure out how the company could compete and get the attention of prospects to have them take the leap of faith to buy from a smaller, unproven vendor.

Operations team members assessed the skills, knowledge, and abilities in terms of how they could take an entrepreneurial approach to solve that problem. The team identified the company’s customers and their compelling needs. Because people were tired of waiting on hold and dealing with multiple customer service representatives who couldn’t solve their problems, the startup began taking a customer-centric approach. The team figured out that one way it could differentiate was by gearing all its operational decisions toward how to best serve the customer and provide an excellent customer experience.

The operations team simplified the process for the customer – from being able to always talk to a knowledgeable person to easy, one-page contracts – which helped the business succeed. As the company grew from a startup to a more established business, customers still valued and encouraged the founders’ entrepreneurial spirit and mindset. The happy ending to this story is that IBM acquired the company after seeing the value it provided to customers.

Guidelines

As corporate entrepreneurs start activating their ideas, they should aim small so that if they succeed, they can build on that success; if they miss, they may learn even more from that experience, which will help in the future.

Corporate entrepreneurs should also look to cultivate an antifragile mindset, a concept taken from Nassim Nicholas Taleb’s book Antifragile. His premise is that many things in life benefit from stress, disorder, volatility, and turmoil — they not only gain from chaos but need it to survive and flourish. To be antifragile, individuals must bend but be strong enough not to break.

In a talk by GE Ventures CEO Sue Siegel to entrepreneurs at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, she said, “The pace of change today is the slowest it will ever be.” People with an entrepreneurial and antifragile mindset can prepare themselves and their organizations for rapid change and disruption. They get stronger in the face of adversity.

Results

The outcomes of corporate entrepreneurship will be evident once individuals start thinking like an entrepreneur and moving forward with this mindset, which opens up a world of possibilities – such as IBM acquiring your startup business. Set a vision and create a team of people with credibility and a good understanding of the problem you are trying to solve.

One of the biggest obstacles is overcoming initial inertia. The do-nothing strategy tends to be easier for corporate employees than embracing change. To combat this, align yourself with employees who have a compelling reason to change, and educate them on how the new product or service or way of doing things will address their problem.

As Netflix co-founder Marc Randolph, states, “If you are unwilling to disrupt your business, there will always be someone willing to do it for you.” Demonstrate that you are able to stand in the storm and provide leadership as a change agent for your organization.

Checklist

  • What is the problem you are trying to solve? What benefits will it deliver to your customers?
  • Define the problem, quantify it. Can you do primary market research with open-ended questions to validate your hypothesis?
  • Come up with solutions. Does your solution solve a compelling need? Does it make monetary sense?
  • De-risk your solutions. How can these solutions be adopted by your prospects with a low risk to them?
  • Identify a team to help. Success is more likely when you are backed by a team. Entrepreneurship is not a solo sport!

Resources

Disciplined Entrepreneurship,Bill Aulet

Antifragile, Nassim Nicholas Taleb

An Introduction to Start-up Accelerators Around the World, Trish Cotter

Personal Branding and Marketing Yourself, Rita Balian Allen

About the authors

Patricia “Trish” Cotter is an entrepreneurship consultant and coach as well as a past director of MIT’s delta v student venture accelerator program;  patriciacotter76@gmail.com.

Rita Balian Allen is an executive coach focused on leadership development, management training and career development; rita@ritaballenassociates.com.

Note: This article is the property of ATD. It was published August 1, 2023 in TD Magazine:
https://www.td.org/magazines/td-magazine/when-entrepreneurship-and-antifragility-collide

What is Disciplined Entrepreneurship? A Short Overview for the Uninitiated.

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When I recently presented at the Association of Talent Development’s ATD ’23 conference, our session was focused on how to Think Like an Entrepreneur and Foster Creativity in Your Organization. This was geared to help learning & development (L&D) professionals take lessons from entrepreneurship and apply them to their organizations.

One of the topics that we touched upon was Disciplined Entrepreneurship. The Disciplined Entrepreneurship approach was such an important and ingrained part of the entrepreneurship program at MIT, that I had to step back and realize that this was new information to most of the ATD ’23 attendees. (In fact, I’m currently preparing materials to teach Disciplined Entrepreneurship content via a partnership between MIT and Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia.) 

Since I had a lot of follow up questions on Disciplined Entrepreneurship, I thought I’d give a little more background on the approach and how it works in this blog post. Disciplined Entrepreneurship – or DE as we like to call it – is an approach to help you think about how you start to get your product or service to move forward.

This methodology assists the start of an entrepreneurship journey, and Bill Aulet, Managing Director of The Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship, has documented this in his Disciplined Entrepreneurship book.  This is a great place to start if you are looking for an accessible and methodical approach to entrepreneurship. (Plus, the illustrations are fantastic!)

Source: Disciplined Entrepreneurship

The focus is that entrepreneurship can be broken down into 24 steps based on six themes. The discipline comes in by following these steps.

Six Major Themes of Entrepreneurship

As you’ll see in the DE map, the themes are color-coded. The six themes are:

  1. Who is your customer?
  2. What can you do for your customer?
  3. How does your customer acquire your product?
  4. How do you make money off your product?
  5. How do you design and test (prototype) your product? and
  6. How do you scale your business?

(This process does not include sales, sales tactics, marketing, raising capital, team building, etc. but if you are thinking about a venture this is a good place to start.)

De-Risking Your Venture

A disciplined approach focuses on de-risking the venture by understanding your customer’s needs and providing value, so they become paying customers. It will help you establish your business and understand how customers are going to find you (along with where you will find your customers). You also need to thoroughly understand how you will make money (renewals, add-ons, etc.).

The book takes you takes you through important steps that are often overlooked – like hypothesis testing and concept validation. It also talks about how you need to focus on designing a prototype or minimum viable product (MVP), as well as how you are going to scale.

People think it is risky to be an entrepreneur. Yet, as discussed in the ATD23 session, an entrepreneur is adaptable and willing to focus on a core group of customers to build the business rather than trying to be everything to everyone.

How do you start?

Start with the first theme—what problem are you solving and for whom? You need to move from concept through qualitative interviews (talk to humans), then quantitative research if required. Find a core group with a message that resonates and a problem you can solve; this is problem research.  

If you start with an open-ended question about what you do on a typical day? Ask open-ended questions (Tell me more? What about that product or service that is going well? What is not? etc.). There is a free e-book online called Talking to Humans by Giff Constable that can help with this. This is a process that continually refines and tests your hypotheses. Your primary market research (PMR) will help you understand your potential customers’ pain points.

Giff also has a book (another short read) called Testing with Humans.  At the end of the problem research, if customers didn’t mention the problem that you are building or providing a solution to, then move on to others, and if you can’t find your core, you may want to revisit your core assumptions.

Once you have a core that has the compelling problem then work with that set to review potential solutions. You then will move to what value they will achieve from your solution so you can gauge purchase intent.  

As you explore entrepreneurship further, make sure you are thinking from a global perspective. My ebook on Startup Accelerator Programs Around the World can help entrepreneurs find accelerator resources, with a focus outside the US.

This blog post presents a quick overview of Disciplined Entrepreneurship that gives a little more information that was possible in my session, but there are many resources for you to delve into further.  For those looking for ideas and ways to potentially introduce entrepreneurship ideas into their corporation, there is a short blog explaining the four models of corporate entrepreneurship and a more in-depth article from MIT on the four models.

More Entrepreneurship Resources

For further reading, viewing, or participation, here are some additional resources on entrepreneurship:

Celebrating Our Entrepreneurs

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Photo credit: MIT

It is with fond memories that I watched this year’s MIT delta v Demo Day presentations. Even though I was traveling out of the country, Demo Day generates the kind of enthusiasm and excitement that had me tuning in and watching the passion of these student entrepreneurs. (You can catch the replay of the Cambridge presentation here. The group also presented in San Francisco and New York City.)

MIT delta v Demo Day

Demo Day is an annual event that showcases the culmination of three months of work with the intensive delta v capstone educational accelerator program. Why am I so passionate about delta v? For five years I served as the director of this MIT program – a full immersion into a wide variety of innovative technologies and startups.

This year, watching from abroad, I saw a new cohort of entrepreneurs pitch their innovative and potentially world-changing companies to an audience of MIT students, mentors, friends, investors, and perhaps even customers. Kudos to Executive Director Paul Cheek, Jenny Larios Berlin, and Ben Soltoff, along with the entire Martin Trust Center staff for a successful Demo Day! Like any successful performance, there is an immense amount of hard work and preparation that goes into the final production. Like a proud parent, it was gratifying to pass the torch and see the program grow and move forward.

delta v 10-year Impact Study

In addition to celebrating this year’s delta v entrepreneurs, MIT just released an in-depth longitudinal study of the impact of delta v. I’d like to highlight some of the findings here to show how much this program has meant to the students and their startup companies, the MIT community, and to demonstrate the overall economic impact of the program.

The study was based on 10 cohorts of delta v students who comprised 181 teams. There were 692 participants during that time (67% were MIT students), and 322 of them (47%) responded to the survey. Some of the highlights include:

  • Survival Rate: Since its inception, 61% of delta v projects have become real companies that either continue to exist to this day or have been acquired. (For companies from the past five years of delta v, that number increases to 69%.)
  • Attractiveness to Investors: 63% of all the projects have resulted in companies that raised money.
  • Funding Attracted: The companies that have raised funding to date have totaled over $1 billion, and that continues to grow.
  • Founding Other Companies: Over 130 new additional companies have been created and raised an additional $2 billion beyond the companies started from the projects worked on in delta v.
  • Broader Entrepreneurship Communities: 68 (37.5%) of delta v startups were accepted into external, private/for-profit accelerators, including Y Combinator, TechStars, and Mass Challenge.
  • Connected Community: 83% of survey respondents say they are still in touch with their delta v cohort.

What’s Next for Me?

So, how can we help the next generation of entrepreneurs around the world be successful in their endeavors? Now that I’m working on the “fourth act” of my career, I’m working one-on-one with entrepreneurs and their startups in a consulting and coaching role.

These days I’m also traveling more for both pleasure and business. And, I’m working on an e-book resource on Global Entrepreneurship and Accelerator Programs around the World.

Interested in the e-book? Sign up here and I’ll send you a copy once it’s completed.

Taking a Well-Deserved Break … and What I’ve Learned

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Recently, I left my job at MIT, and I don’t have another job. As the Executive Director of the Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship, my days (and many nights) were filled with activity – working with students, teaching, and shaping entrepreneurship education programs. All that has stopped, and I’ve taken time to be still, breathe, take stock, and think.

This time of reflection is providing me a much clearer view of what is possible—and realizing the big picture is even bigger than I thought. Quitting your job is not for everyone (and I am very fortunate that I’m in a position where I could do that), however, taking time to make room for other activities is something I highly recommend to everyone. Creating space to see that there are other opportunities, different ways to work, new skills to learn, and passions to embrace is enlightening. (My new passion is tennis! Who knew?)

I have had three acts thus far in my career. I held roles from engineer to executive in tech companies. Then, as an entrepreneur, I navigated two startups through to IPOs, and my third act was a career in academia teaching entrepreneurship in the classroom and through hands-on programs. Each transition had its moments where I said, “What did I get myself into?!” Yet, digging in and being open to learning proved to be rewarding in every case. I’ve had great rides with successful companies, enjoyed relationships with diverse and interesting colleagues, and embarked on learning experiences I could never have imagined. I have traveled the world, thrived in new environments, and have seen colleagues soar and cheered on their success. I’ve learned so much about people and how they think, work, celebrate, and come back from setbacks. It makes you realize that the people you work with truly can make or break any job experience.

As someone with many, varied job experiences, I’ve realized that experience is double-edged sword. On the one hand, you know how to do things, and perhaps you have even forgotten what others have not yet learned. However, experience also can leave you in a lane you know too well and prevent you from taking the risk of trying—and potentially failing—at new skills. When you are starting fresh, you know there will be new risks, new failures, and new experiences.

I am extremely fortunate to have enjoyed every job I’ve had, but I do realize my enjoyment of work is dependent on my own attitude and approach. Approaching each new role as a learning experience helps you get over the hurdles and enjoy the successes. I’ve worked with folks who had deep expertise but lacked some of the skills I have, and we ended up being a terrific team. I am fortunate to have friends from my very first job and from my most recent job, and I make a concerted effort to keep in touch with these people. My network—and talent tree—is something that was built organically with people I enjoy, and it makes a career so rewarding.

In my research findings for my doctorate, it wasn’t a real surprise that matching new graduates with seasoned employees in data analytics roles was a recipe for success. The veterans could contextualize situations for the students based on experience, and the recent graduates would apply that context to achieve a much more robust analysis. Later, my work at MIT included building mentorship programs and creating networking relationships between students, alumni, and startup founders. When I was no longer running these programs, I realized I needed to apply my networking and mentorship skills to myself as well.

Although I am a certified professional coach, it’s true that even coaches need a coach. If you want to do something different and are unsure about how to get there, working with a coach is a perfect way to figure out these decisions. I needed a coach to look at why I was working so hard; although I enjoyed the work and the people, it didn’t feel like it was enough for me at the time. My coach helped me realign my values and aspirations—something that had not been done for quite some time.

I have always been curious, optimistic, and a contributor, but I needed more balance, less commuting (yes, I still commuted through most of the pandemic!), and a good challenge to be passionate about. The first two were difficult to manage in my last job, but there was no lack of challenge, in fact, there were actually too many challenges! I spread myself so thin because I wanted to do everything and for everyone—and this led to an erosion in my passion for my job.

So, as I take time to reflect, I’m betting on myself and focusing on balance. Just creating the space to reflect has let me think about of all sorts of exciting things I can do next, both professionally and personally. I am enthusiastic about the future and approaching new challenges with the renewed energy that taking a break has given me. I hope my story inspires you to give yourself some space to think, reflect and renew!

MIT Study: Entrepreneurship Education delivers Value beyond Startups

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At MIT, the delta v accelerator is our capstone entrepreneurial experience for students. As educators, we always want to know what students gained from our programs and how it helped them in their post-MIT life. We recently interviewed delta v alumni to understand how their entrepreneurship education has had an impact on their life, and we wanted to share the findings.   

We reached out to over 400 delta v alums from 2012-2019 with 60 responses.

87% Consider Entrepreneurial Skills a Core Competency

Slightly more than four out of five survey respondents currently consider themselves entrepreneurs. However, the vast majority of alumni (87%) view entrepreneurial skills as a core competency by 87% of respondents – rather than just a means to start their own business. These people may be creating their own ventures now, but they may transition throughout their careers between entrepreneurship and other roles. It’s important that these entrepreneurial skills will support them in either situation.

Respondents consider who consider entrepreneurship a core competency credit both the MIT program as well as the importance of hands-on experience to develop their entrepreneurial skillset. Many also noted they view entrepreneurship as a set of skills that must be honed through practice.

Entrepreneurship is Seen as an Important Part of People’s Identity

Many alumni view entrepreneurship as a way to solve important problems and pursue their visions. Entrepreneurship is the lens through which they approach these challenges and visions, with 62% of respondents reporting that an entrepreneurial outlook is an important part of their identity.

However, a select few respondents see entrepreneurship as a strict occupation, and not a core part of their identity. Others described themselves as entrepreneurs within their specific field or company, for example, an “entrepreneurial scientist.”

92% Say MIT Entrepreneurship Classes Support their Current Role

The classwork that delta v alumni participated in has proven to be on target. A full 92% of respondents either strongly agreed or agreed that what they learned in MIT entrepreneurship classes supports their current role, even if they are not an entrepreneur today.

Specifically, delta v alumni said the skills learned in the classroom help them in the following situations:

  • It gave me a playbook when I have to do things I have not done before.
  • I use what I learned at MIT every single day, in working with my team, financial planning/strategy, product development and management, and making sure I am looking at the right problems, in various different ways.
  • I focus a lot on management – and classes in particular help understand people and teams.
  • I need to assess new technologies according to their business promise and their technical risks.
  • I can more effectively voice my concerns and disagreements.
  • I can think about problems from a variety of different angles – rather than just technically.
  • The classwork provided a structured approach to innovation.  
  • The presentation skills and network taught in delta v are still used to this day.

Entrepreneurial Skills are Marketable

Respondents feel that the entrepreneurial skills they learned while at MIT are marketable with 79% strongly agreeing or agreeing with that statement. They feel that:

  • The skills are an asset in their current role (86%)
  • The skills will be an asset in their future roles (68%)
  • The skills will help them in landing a future job (37%)

Some of the general entrepreneurial skills respondents bring to the table include customer identification/market research, Identifying competitive positioning and use cases, product design, business modeling, and scaling a business.

MIT’s entrepreneurship courses benefit participants by providing frameworks, structure, and discipline to their ideas. It also gave them opportunities to test out ideas and take risks, iterating those ideas in a supportive and knowledge-based environment. Many respondents mentioned the supportive delta v ecosystem and cohort, providing mentors in the entrepreneurship community and a network that gave the entrepreneurs confidence.

One of the delta v alumni sums it up nicely, saying:

“delta v gives people the opportunity to create transformational value in society. It gives young people the tools and skills they need to make that happen. The future rests on the next wave of entrepreneurs to bring about that change and growth.”

Capturing the Promise of AI

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robots-764951_960_720Capturing the promise of artificial intelligence (AI) will require that companies understand that their current software support infrastructure is inadequate. Right now – to the extent that AI exists in organizations – it exists in small models in distinct units.  These models are being created using unique data sets, targeted toward particular outcomes.  However, taking AI to scale and putting it in operationally critical places will require a more robust approach organizationally and therein lies the management challenge.

For example, today if you shop on Amazon, the company’s AI models will give you three related items to purchase – the risk of their being wrong is small to both the organization and the individual consumer.  However, when you are running or building gas pipelines or chemical manufacturing plants, the risks and dangers become much more significant if AI models in those places are wrong.

As we move AI models from small department level models to models that predict and decide in a way that removes important manual work (automating), we change the requirements of the model. Models will need to be more real-time, consistently accurate and available. In short, they will need to act like large-scale enterprise resource software commonly known as tier one software.

The challenge for most organizations and their senior leadership will be scaling up from small, bespoke department models to enterprise-wide models. If companies just take all the small models at the department level and put them into production across the business, you could end up with multiple models doing similar things.  Also, because models are, in essence, small pieces of software, without a strategy, you end up with a lot of custom software that needs to be supported and maintained.  If this software is automating core business decision areas, this becomes a serious problem.

Furthermore, models are like software on steroids –not only do you need to know that if you ping it, you will get a response, you need to decide whether you should use the response that you get. However, that ability to know whether you should trust the response lies in details of the data. For example, is it the same as the data the model was built on?

Finally, unlike software, for a model to be really good at solving a specific problem, it may have limited generalizability.  As a result, there will be strategic decisions and tradeoffs to be made about how when and where to train the model to solve a specific problem exactly and where to generalize and maybe lose some accuracy.

For that reason, the long-term care and feeding of the models themselves will be critical.  This represents a new and significant management challenge as senior executives struggle with the new technology.

Like other revolutionary technology advancements in the enterprise, the business value will only be realized if companies look beyond the technology, to the integration, maintenance and quality process required to scale business impact. Teams will need to develop tools and standards and adhere to appropriate testing and integration processes and develop governance structures that oversee these disciplines. In other words, the use of AI will need to become another well-managed business procedure as it matures in order to have impact enterprise-wide.