Week 3 Reading Reflection

Chapter 2 reading reflection

1. Something that surprised me and stood out the most during the reading is the Entrepreneurial Ego. This was a very bold title and made me want to read into it more. It surprised me that the author chose to describe the inflated egos of entrepreneurs as a destructive implication. In my opinion, entrepreneurs must have an ego and certain confidence about themselves in order to be successful. This is what sets them apart from others and gives them the ability succeed at running a business. I figured the author would have written this part in more of a positive sense that if entrepreneur's are not confident and do not have an ego, they will probably not succeed.

2. One part of the reading that was confusing to me was the fact that the importance of "fostering positive relationships in all areas of life" was a concept that just began to transpire when the number of female entrepreneurs grew. The text made it seem as if females hadn't begun to emerge as entrepreneurs, there would be less of a focus on the importance of strong relationships in entrepreneurial businesses. I am confused because I feel that this should be a core value of entrepreneurship despite the growing emergence of females and their "caring" nature.

3. The first question I would ask the author is why they wrote this chapter in a way that makes entrepreneurship seem negative. Seeing the title "The Dark Side of Entrepreneurship" doesn't really make me want to read more and definitely doesn't make me want to become an entrepreneur. The author used the term "destructive" to describe the dark side of entrepreneurship. Much of the chapter was devoted to all of the negatives that go along with being an entrepreneur such as risks and stress, and the entrepreneurial ego.

The second question I would ask the author is why all of the key terms contain the word entrepreneurial. It doesn't seem that any of them are specific to entrepreneurship, such as motivation, or cognition. These are all general terms that do not seem specific to the realm of entrepreneurship. I understand that these terms are in the context of the entrepreneurial world but I think the terms could be more specific to entrepreneurship instead.

4. I disagree with the fact that the author made it seem like being an entrepreneur and able to succeed at starting your own business is something that is a natural and innate ability. The entrepreneurial mind-set and all of the cognition theories made it seem like you are born an entrepreneur and are unable to develop these skills. I disagree because I believe someone can develop these characteristics based on the environment they grow up in or the workplaces that they are exposed to from a young age.