There was a hunter who used to go for his hunt in the jungle almost daily. Sometimes he would hunt for himself and his family, otherwise he would sell his hunt to earn some money. One day the young hunter thought that a time would come when he will grow too old to be able to go hunting in the forest, and was worried that he did not have a son to help him and take care of him when he does. So he brought two puppies of wild dog, fed them daily with meat and milk, trained them for years as they grew into deadly beasts.
Time went by… the hunter grew older and was feeling tired of running behind his prey in the jungle. So he decided that it was time for his two daredevil dogs to catch the hunt for him. One day, he brought them to the jungle. As he spotted a deer far from them, he ordered the dogs to run and get the prey for him.
As if the dogs were waiting for this day to repay all their debts to their beloved master for taking care of them all these years, they plunged and leapt no sooner they heard the command. The deer sensed the danger and started running away into the jungle. Seeing the deer jumping away, the dogs intensified the chase, bearing their deadly teeth and eager to catch and kill the prey.
Scared, the deer ran with full steam, jumping over pits and puddles, with death following and closing in fast…..
….The hunter was getting impatient as his dogs took a longer time to return than he anticipated. He paced back and forth until, finally, his wait was over….he could sense his dogs returning from far, but as they approached he was shocked to see that both were exhausted, with their long tongues hanging out of their mouths, drooling, which clearly indicated that the deer gave them a mighty chase and they returned without killing the prey.
The hunter was very angry as he yelled “Did I feed you all these years for thissss dayyy?? Two of you couldn’t even catch one deerrrr? What do I ever expect from you nowww?” Hunter was visibly frustrated and in disbelief.
Dogs were really ashamed as one of them meekly replied, “You are right Master that we failed you. We did chase the deer with all our might, power and determination. Let me confess, we were running for our stomach, for you Master whom we are serving. But the deer was running for her life…..and we realised that those who run for their stomach would never catch those who run for their lives.”
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Wonder why many would take a very narrow view of the word “Entrepreneurship”. They think when one starts a venture of their own, only then can they qualify to be called an entrepreneur, and that they have entrepreneurial spirit. My personal experience is that if one takes the ownership and accountability of a given task or responsibility, be passionate and motivated to contribute, be coach-able, need no supervision to execute an assignment, be self-critical and a team player, even if that person is employed in any corporate, academia, start-up, self-employed professional, performer / Artist or a home-maker, I believe that person is a true entrepreneur.
To me, entrepreneurship is a ‘love affair’; you can’t be sparingly in ‘love’. You must have a ‘head-down’ attitude and can’t just feel the water at the shore.
‘जलील’ आसान नहीं सम्भालना ये घर मोहब्बत का,
ये उसी का काम है जो ख़ुद बरबाद होते हैं ।
Jalil, aasaan nahin sambhalna ye ghar mahobbat ka,
ye oosi ka kaam hai jo khud barbaad hote hain.
That is what the morale of the above story is — This is one of the significant distinctions between an employee mindset and an entrepreneurial mindset. Employees work for salary (stomach) as against a genuine entrepreneur and contributor who is passionate to make a difference and works with their total potential (life) to pursue the dream and vision for a larger good.
At Cornerstone Venture Fund, our Tech VC fund (www.csvpfund.com), we are waiting for such passionate people who are running for life….You are welcome to join the madness.
A beautiful definition of an entrepreneur also could be –
हम तो दरिया हैं हमे अपना हुनर मालूम है
जिस तरफ भी चल पड़ेंगे रास्ता हो जायेगा !
Hum to dariya hain hume apana hunner maloom hai
jis taraf bhi chal padenge raasta ho jayega.
Nothing will stop me….I will find my way.