At Hearpreneur, we have a feature where we ask entrepreneurs and business owners why they started their business.
At the heart of the question, we get to revisit that precious moment when the idea forms that has laid the foundation for that particular entrepreneur's business. It might have been seeing an opportunity in the market, it might have been a specific moment of frustration or it might have been out of necessity but regardless of the specific business, we get to reflect with entrepreneurs and business owners and see what went through their minds when they decided to start their businesses.
As we say in our intro (below), ALL businesses started with an idea and we get the opportunity to hear from these great and inspiring entrepreneurs.
Each business has a story. No matter if the business is a Goliath like Wal-Mart, or a local business owned by a couple or family, the business has roots in an idea. For each business owner, the story of their journey can range from monetary needs or the passion for a unique project. Each story is different though the reasons may remain the same. No matter the tale, the background behind each and every business is what fuels each entrepreneur and brand.
Sometimes we will hear the question returned, so, “Why did you start your business?” We decided to provide a response just like the great ones we have heard. So, check out my response below.
Saw an Unfulfilled Market
For me being an entrepreneur was something I now know I was before I completely understood what the word was. As I became older, I began to understand a little more about what it meant. It was more than just a word to me. It was an identity. I started many different types of “businesses” everything from selling potato chips to customized necklaces, music CD's to starting a nonprofit organization with one of my friends from high school to an editing business. The list goes on and on. So, when I came across the word entrepreneur and really delved into understanding what it meant, I felt at “home”. I started to study it even more voraciously than anything I had in the past and even devoted my Capstone project for my Masters Degree to study Sports Entrepreneurs and specifically creating a program called EXECUTE: The Sports Entrepreneur Playbook. For this project, I interviewed entrepreneurs and business owners in the sports industry and I found 10 universal traits that made up sports entrepreneurs. From there, I developed a program that anyone could use to improve their entrepreneurial skills and become a sports entrepreneur. Little did I know this project probably laid the foundation for CEO Blog Nation.
After I graduated, I started doing freelance writing for Patch, specifically having a column called the Entrepreneur's Spotlight where I interviewed entrepreneurs and business owners in the Lake Ridge, Virginia area and wrote their story. It was during this time where I felt even more alive. Hearing the guts and boldness of these entrepreneurs and business owners was nothing short of inspirational. As I wrote more and more, I began to see that these stories weren't really being told. While there were resources on the internet, it just wasn't enough. I also noticed that when I would send out the published stories to the entrepreneurs and business owners they were so happy to send it out to their friends, families and business colleagues. It was as if they were yearning for a voice.
Unfortunately or fortunately, I tore my achilles tendon while playing basketball and I was forced to spend extended time in bed and it was there that the first of the blogs was born–Hearpreneur. Being unable to move around and talk with entrepreneurs and business owners for my Patch posts, I leveraged technology like HARO, Social Media, and Skype and was still able to tell stories and grow the blog. It was also then that I began understanding that people didn't come to sites for 1 specific reason, to just hear stories, they came for multiple reasons and felt connected because of things like location, industries, gender, race, and purpose. It was there that the foundation for CEO Blog Nation was born and the idea behind it.
We've been growing ever since and we will continue to because at our core we have the heart of an entrepreneur and while we chose the name CEO which people often use for large companies, most of the entrepreneurs and business owners we have spoken with have a drive and a goal to grow and build their business to not necessarily be on the Fortune 500 but to change the world, create jobs, and build something awesome. We hope to capture that on our sites and celebrate entrepreneurs, startups and business owners.
Gresham Harkless, Founder, CEO Blog Nation (CEO Media Firm, LLC) – The Voice of Entrepreneurs
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