I hate the word entrepreneur.

I spend a lot of time talking to business owners. Sometimes, they have startups. Sometimes, they have large businesses. Public companies, small businesses, venture backed companies. Old companies; tech companies. New companies; manufacturing companies. (Am I becoming the Dr. Suess of Startups? Does Horton hear an IPO?)

Are there similar things that run true to these “entrepreneurs,” or all they all different?

Yesterday, I came across an article on Forbes.com that discussed the concept of “Humpty-Dumpty Entreprenuers.”

Dr. Steven Berglas postulates that a true entrepreneur is neither a workaholic or narcissist.

Most [Humpty Dumptys] I encounter think that working 24 hours, seven days a week, 365 days a year is proof of their entrepreneurial spirit. Wrong. Workaholism is a psychological disorder–having entrepreneurial spirit is not.

He goes further to outline that workaholics are focused on working as a “socially sanctioned avoidance of social contact.” Whereas entrepreneurs are:

Motivated by a messianic passion to prove themselves to the world, entrepreneurs work feverishly and for long stretches–but they can turn it off and have fun, too. True entrepreneurs are blessed with a joie de vivre that demands fulfillment through hedonistic pursuits….By contrast, natural entrepreneurs tend to be affable charmers. How else would they lure talented employees with meager salaries and slices of potentially worthless equity?….Entrepreneurs are quality control freaks…

Dr. Berglas continues, by also saying that Humpty Dumptys are narcissists, which by definition cannot be entrepreneurs.

Narcissists are committed to building a facade, while entrepreneurs are devoted to an ideal….Entrepreneurs suffer a unique form of madness, but they are not without humility.

I know many people like the ones that Dr. Berglas describes as Humpty Dumptys. They believe that they can work harder than anyone else, and that effort alone will allow them to succeed. They believe they are the only people who can solve the problem/or build the solution and often they wont listen to anyone else. Yet, they consider themselves an entrepreneur.

My favorite example, is when someone builds a site or starts a business, asks for feedback, and if that feedback is negative, immediate calls me the idiot.

There are many Humpty Dumptys in Boulder. While its no real surprise that there is always one (maybe two) in the Techstars program, it amazes me that there are so many startups (or serial entrepreneurs–another term I hate) that are really just lucky workaholics.

Jessica Mah, a entrepreneur from an early age, hits the nail on the head in her post Why 99% of Entrepreneurs Fail: Because they dont do anything. So many “fake” entrepreneurs have a million ideas, and rarely do they pursue those ideas until completion.

If you are going to own an idea, and want to pursue it, you must take it to the ground.

Its really that simple.

When you complete the process, it might be that the result is not overly positive, but thats ok. 90% of being an entrepreneur is failing.

Jessica is much nicer than I am in calling “fake” entrepreneurs “amateur entrepreneurs,” and she outlines three types:

1) All ideas, no implementation. I often refer to people that love to come up with ideas and solutions, but never implement them “all pomp and no circumstance.” My biggest mistake is often falling into this group. Most people that settle here do so because its easier to come up with ideas and never implement them, rather than come up with ideas and fail.

The problem lays in the fact that most self-proclaimed entrepreneurs are great at dreaming and envisioning their business idea, yet they lack the capability (and even willpower) needed to see it through.

2) Lots of ideas and half assed implementations.

Walk into any Boulder coffee shop, and you will find this class of amateur entrepreneurs. This tends to occur because of a lack of patience. Most people will play with an idea and at the first hint of trouble bail out.

Jessica writes:

However, they take the “fail fast” mentality way too far — they’ll launch a prototype of their project, put in almost no effort in getting it noticed, then call it a failure. Or even worse, I know of some entrepreneurs who dedicate months of their time working on a startup idea, but never end up launching. If you’re going to fail, at least make people think that you spent your time semi-wisely. Alternatively, type 2 amateur entrepreneurs have multiple ideas that they’re simultaneously working on, and figure that they’ll get rich from at least one of them.

I have worked with entrepreneurs that will present to me 20 or 30 ideas hoping that one grabs my attention. Usually by idea 4, I am just trying to pretend that I am actually awake and engaged.

Have a passion about something and do it. Take it to the ground.

Its that simple.

3) Lots of ideas, lots of implementations, and absolutely no focus.

Most entrepreneurs are awful at running companies. They live in a world of ideas and possibilities rather than operational efficiencies and bottom lines. Most amateur entrepreneurs just dont know when to get out of the way when a company is growing or has outgrown their expertise and skill set.

In addition, similar to the Forbes article, this type of entrepreneur is often not really an entrepreneur to begin with. They love to work and do things. They find creation interesting, but they fail to see the importance of finishing.

Type 3 entrepreneurs are marginally better than type 1 and 2 combined, but they have absolutely no time for anything other than their work. They make a solid attempt to see their business idea through, but get distracted by the idea of another growth opportunity. I feel bad for these people more than anything — they try harder than both type 1 and 2 entrepreneurs, yet they often see just as devastating results.

Both Jessica and Dr. Berglas have interesting takes on the challenges of being an entrepreneur. The concept of entrepreneurship has been romanticized in today’s world. The ideal of coming up with a great idea, and working with cool people blazing your own trail is hard–for Americans awash in capitalistic principles ingrained since birth–to avoid.

But, not everyone can be an entrepreneur. We are not all wired in that way, and most people see only the exciting sides of entrepreneurship (coming up with an idea, raising financing, selling the company for millions) and fail to realize that the truly successful entrepreneurs are the ones that have passion, and take their ideas to the ground.

Its that simple.

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