Shifting Gears: Are entrepreneurs crazy idiots?

My Entrepreneurship seminar instructor asks, “Are entrepreneurs crazy idiots?” His answer is, “Not necessarily, but some of them are.” It’s basically a risk vs. rewards calculus – if you have little to lose and much to gain, you probably should take the plunge, but if that’s not you, you probably should not. I think that sounds right – I co-founded two businesses after college, and it was the right time – I had little debt and few expenses, so an abject failure was not likely to upend my life too badly. Fortunately, Topsail Consulting is still alive, after more than 5.5 years, and Safe At Hand turns four this month. I may not own or be involved in either, anymore, but it’s nice to know they didn’t fail out of the gate. The point, however, is this: there’s a right time for such efforts and a wrong time; be sure you know which time it is, and act accordingly.