The Entrepreneur's Edge: Tapping Into Your Inner Entrepreneur

By James A. Vena

These days, the word entrepreneur has become the most over used word in social media. The self descriptive title ‘"entrepreneur” is used too often, mostly without much merit or credibility. Whether you're fantasizing about leaving the daily grind of "employee-dom" or dropping out of school for what you think is the freedom and independence of "business ownership utopia", you may want to take a moment to first understand your "inner entrepreneur." Knowing yourself and understanding the "Inner Entrepreneur" (or lack of), may be more important than your vision and even the business model itself. Doing something entrepreneurial, doesn't necessarily make one an entrepreneur. Simply put, it's my opinion that true entrepreneurship is a journey and a lifestyle, rather than merely a single act or destination. It is powered by passion, creativity, purpose, instinct, courage (aka grace under pressure) and a unique charismatic confidence (sans arrogance) to go along with a never give up attitude. This book will also help you better understand how tho innovate to raise hell and articulate to raise capital in its capital raise section. Also covered in this book is effective leadership, the power of optimism and tips to help you become more successful in everything you do by following 15 simple daily actions! James Vena is an innovative and strategic thinker who has influenced key decision-makers globally in business development and revenue growth strategies. For more than thirty years, James has built a resume that encompasses a wide range of industries and expertise in sales, marketing, entrepreneurship, finance, merger arbitrage, technology and executive management. He has successfully developed innovative, high growth businesses and restructured companies that immediately demonstrated accelerated sales and profit growth. His 30 year career has been marked by success across many countries and industries. This track record has established James’s credentials as both a seasoned internationally astute executive and a disruptive innovator with a quick and fearless mind to seize opportunities along with the ability to articulate the mission needed to achieve specific goals. Mr. Vena’s career started as a China trader of commodities in the early 1980’s for a large US firm. After 5 years, he founded his own trading company at 26 and over the next 20 years developed that company into an internationally recognized brand with offices in 24 locations in some 15 countries. After retiring as CEO and Founder of his global trading company to take a 5-year sabbatical in order to care for his cancer stricken wife and help raise the couple’s young children, the always energetic James unretired and re-entered the world of international business. However, this time focusing on his past experiences, leadership skills and entrepreneurial mind-set to help develop and grow small businesses and early stage ventures. James’s entrepreneurial mind-set and dynamic personality combined with high energy, passion and purposeful manner, makes him an effective inspirational and motivational communicator. James has been mentoring entrepreneurs, lecturing students and publicly speaking to corporate leaders on the importance of cultural awareness, social responsibility, entrepreneurship, benevolent capitalism, organizational ethics and his brand of ‘intellectual humility’ in the workplace.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Outskirts Press
• Release date: Jan 3, 2018
• ISBN: 9781478795223

James A. Vena

James Vena is an innovative and strategic thinker who has influenced key decision-makers globally in business development and revenue growth strategies. For more than thirty years, James has built a resume that encompasses a wide range of industries and expertise in sales, marketing, entrepreneurship, finance, merger arbitrage, technology and executive management. He has successfully developed innovative, high growth businesses and restructured companies that immediately demonstrated accelerated sales and profit growth. His 30 year career has been marked by success across many countries and industries. This track record has established James’s credentials as both a seasoned internationally astute executive and a disruptive innovator with a quick and fearless mind to seize opportunities along with the ability to articulate the mission needed to achieve specific goals. Mr. Vena’s career started as a China trader of commodities in the early 1980’s for a large US firm. After 5 years, he founded his own trading company at 26 and over the next 20 years developed that company into an internationally recognized brand with offices in 24 locations in some 15 countries. After retiring as CEO and Founder of his global trading company to take a 5-year sabbatical in order to care for his cancer stricken wife and help raise the couple’s young children, the always energetic James un-retired and re-entered the world of international business. However, this time focusing on his past experiences, leadership skills and entrepreneurial mind-set to help develop and grow small businesses and early stage ventures. James’s entrepreneurial mind-set and dynamic personality combined with high energy, passion and purposeful manner, makes him an effective inspirational and motivational communicator. James has been mentoring entrepreneurs, lecturing students and publicly speaking to corporate leaders on the importance of cultural awareness, social responsibility, entrepreneurship, benevolent capitalism, organizational ethics and his brand of ‘intellectual humility’ in the workplace.

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The Entrepreneur’s Edge

Tapping Into Your Inner Entrepreneur

All Rights Reserved.

Copyright © 2018 James A. Vena

v2.0

The opinions expressed in this manuscript are solely the opinions of the author and do not represent the opinions or thoughts of the publisher. The author has represented and warranted full ownership and/or legal right to publish all the materials in this book.

This book may not be reproduced, transmitted, or stored in whole or in part by any means, including graphic, electronic, or mechanical without the express written consent of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

Outskirts Press, Inc.

http://www.outskirtspress.com

ISBN: 978-1-4787-9522-3

Library of Congress Control Number: 2017917992

Cover Photo © 2018 Thinkstockphotos.com. All rights reserved - used with permission.

Outskirts Press and the OP logo are trademarks belonging to Outskirts Press, Inc.

PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Table of Contents

Introduction

1. Understanding Your Inner Entrepreneur (or Lack Thereof)

2. Entrepreneurs: Born or Made?

3. Entrepreneurship and the power of Intellectual Humility

4. The Myth of Business Ownership Utopia

5. Critics vs Cynics—Friend or Foe?

6. Contenders vs Pretenders—Talk Is Cheap, Always in Supply, Never in Demand!

7. Innovate to Raise Hell, Articulate to Raise Capital, Communicate to Raise Revenue

8. Entrepreneurship and Leadership Go Hand in Hand

9. Leadership, Business Success, and the Power of Optimism

10. My Closing Argument

More About the Author

Introduction

These days, the word entrepreneur has become the most overused word in social media. The self-descriptive title entrepreneur is used too often, mostly without much merit or credibility. I think it’s fair to say that people should not call themselves entrepreneurs unless someone else already has affixed the label to them.

Let’s be honest, in way too many cases, the word entrepreneur has been a label used by the unemployed who have been out of work and now are seeking a new job or transitioning into a new career, and aspiring entrepreneur is often used by underachievers and those looking for an excuse to avoid college or a real job.

To the young reader aspiring to become an entrepreneur, please stay in school! It will help you in your future endeavors and would be a fallback