Entrepreneurs are change makers on the lookout for ways to better people’s lives. This is more than appreciated. But there is an allusion that they are the sole societal rescuers, fighting for enhanced living.
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It’s as if everyone’s dream title is ‘Founder and CEO’ these days. A chunk of people hype about how to be one. The youth, particularly, is growing increasingly obsessed with being their own boss, an entrepreneur. Entrepreneurship is treasured in any society, let alone in Ethiopia, where development is impaired by several challenges. What’s of concern is the skewed implication most unfortunately are falling for: the change maker notion and the monetary gain.
Yes, entrepreneurs are change makers on the lookout for ways to better people’s lives. This is more than appreciated. But there is an allusion that these are the sole societal rescuers, fighting for enhanced living. People who haven’t yet embarked on their ventures are led to believe their contributions are insignificant, losing meaning in what they do. They get less credit for their hard work and commitment they show to their respective posts. They don’t feel seen as long as they aren’t Founders, revolutionising the status quo, oblivious to the value they had to keep the status quo thus far.
The other implication is the monetary promises of entrepreneurship. In developing countries like Ethiopia, where economic strains are a burden for the majority, people are continuously searching for better means of living. It’s always a chase to get that extra cash to make ends meet. Here come the societal icons who made it; the entrepreneurs enjoying the good life. They have garnered a large following, and a great number aspire to be like them. Apparently, much of entrepreneurship, but not all, is substantially motivated by financial gains.
In fact, there is nothing wrong with being financially motivated; it’s actually quite human. Deriding people who pursue otherwise is where things start to get disordered. We have seen many who publicly ridicule those who pursue academics and career development. It's common to hear people say their employment is transitory, eagerly waiting for the end of their misery to finally become “Founders”. Fewer youth talk about advancing, specialising, and being experts in their field. Everyone is ready to scrape together whatever skills they have and launch the next multi-million-birr business.
Views ingrained in society
It’s troubling how many children now say they want to be businessmen and businesswomen when they grow up. We hear less and less of Engineers, Doctors, or Artists whose indispensable contributions have realized today’s advances. Education has gradually lost value in the eyes of many, as if it tricks people out of the ‘good life’, financial surplus. High schoolers are now hustlers, too busy for the value education offers: critical thinking, informed decision making, and character development.
Successful entrepreneurs are praised as if they are more than human, not just for the societal gap they strived to fill but also for the lifestyle they can afford. That’s primarily the reason for the growing popularity of lifestyle content of ‘successful’ people. Many are invested in watching what rich people do with their riches rather than in how it was built. They fell into pits of despair from living on a salary. It’s not a shift in perspective; it’s become a societal plague.
Economic and identity crisis
A pervasive complication arising from this is the influx in the number of youth avoiding employment, in hopes of one day becoming an entrepreneur. The ones that do manage to get employed are dispirited as they consider it temporary, not worth their best. Those who made it a few years into their specializations are quick to drop it at the first glimpse of entrepreneurial opportunities. This leads to high turnover, skill drains, and poor company performance.
A layer of complication is added when such endeavors fail to deliver the promise. People leave their stable positions, embarking on their own. Unable to survive, they not only lost their jobs and financial stability, but bit by bit fell into an identity crisis. Too immersed in the prospects of being a ‘Founder’, failure could mean a serious hit to their self-esteem, not a lesson to learn from or reroute. Why can’t I make this work, like everyone does? They suffer in a nagging feeling of incompetence- unable to be the change maker.
The too obvious we missed
Actually, the regular employees, service providers, and those in less glamorous positions keep the system functioning. However, obsessed with the appeal of the title and everything it helps people afford, many tend to overlook the value every single person provides to society. There are people with brilliant minds and determination who work within companies, making them excel. Many have grown into making a decent earning and offering meaningful contributions.
You aren’t an entrepreneur, maybe not yet, maybe not ever. That is perfectly okay. It doesn’t deem you a coward or less of a relevant member of society. You can leverage your creativity and work discipline in whatever you are engaged in, pressing for the change you wish to see. This is not a call for people to be less ambitious or settle where they are, but a plea to society to value its members, who, without fancy titles, sustain everyday lives.
