Risky business?

Many people like to tell me they are entrepreneurial but they do not pursue their entrepreneurial dreams because they are "too risky." Right ...\nEveryone talks about how entrepreneurship is risky, but they do not define what they mean. Before we can define something as risky, wouldn't it be convenient if we knew what we meant by this word? In fact, the term "risky" is one of the most relative terms in the dictionary. \nThe sad truth is that when most people say something is risky, they are implying one thing: It would risk their comfortable standard of living. Think about it. What is the worst thing that can happen to an entrepreneur in this country?\nThe worst possible scenario is that the entrepreneur finds a bank that gives him or her a loan that is not secured by assets. Once the business collapses, the individual is forced to go into bankruptcy.\nWhile bankruptcy is not a good experience, it is not the end of the world. The good news is that ever since 1861, when debtors' prisons were abolished in the United Kingdom, the risk for an entrepreneur has decreased significantly. \nIn fact, if the entrepreneur has any friends or family, he or she can usually find cosigners for any loans during their bankruptcy period. Better yet, if the entrepreneur has some skills -- and I do mean serious skills -- he or she can even find new private investors for his or her next venture.\nThe worst-case scenario is that the entrepreneur relies on the welfare system of this country while he or she sits like a dog with its tail between its legs. Surely we can agree that the entrepreneur will not go starving.\nRather than continuing to analyze this issue on a superficial level, let me dig deeper into the real cause of why people say entrepreneurship is risky. As noted above, the true "risk" that people are talking about is societal pressure. No one is immune to this pressure, the pressure of what others will think of them if they do not succeed.\nPersonally, it is a burden on my shoulders as well. I have an opportunity to intern at a prestigious investment banking firm this summer. This internship would likely lead to a high-paying career opportunity. Basically, I would be money. \nThe reason that I will decline this offer is because my definition of risk differs from most people's. What I see as risk is not reaching my potential and not feeling fulfilled by my work -- the risk of knowing that no matter how much money I have and what car I drive, deep down inside I am a fraud.\nWhile I am conscious of other people's expectations, I do not live as a slave to them. I have learned over the last several years that most people don't really know what's best for you. \nA big misconception about entrepreneurs is that they like to take great financial risks. Let me assert that any entrepreneur who tells you he or she likes to take financial risks is either crazy or lying to you. Entrepreneurs have to deal with the same uncertainty and fear everyone else deals with on a daily basis. The difference is that entrepreneurs take risks in spite of the fear. \nThere are studies that show one of the big differences between the middle and upper classes is that the middle class "plays not to lose" while the upper class "plays to win." The world rewards those who are willing to take calculated risks. \nWhen my parents decided to immigrate to the United States from Russia in 1989, they sacrificed their whole livelihood and took many risks. They gave up the comfort of living among friends and family who spoke the same language and had the same customs. \nThey took this risk to give my sister and me the opportunity to live in a free and democratic country. \nIn Russia, where I was born, the risks of doing business were much more formidable than they are in the United States. Even now, in the current "capitalistic" business climate, bribery, corruption and murder are commonplace. It is good that my parents decided to move to the United States because I would have been an entrepreneur in Russia despite the negative business climate. Odds are, right now I would either be corrupt, dead or working on my writing skills in prison. Now that is a truly risky situation.\nThere will never be a better time in your life to take risks than in college. In several years, you will be hit with many financial and personal obligations (i.e. family). It is time to let go of your inhibitions and leave the naysayers eating dust. Today you must take advantage of your freedom and follow your dreams.