7 Motivation and perseverance
7.1 Introduction
Money is an important reason to start a new venture. By starting your own business, you can earn a living, and some people even become rich from it. However, research shows that money is usually not the only reason to start a venture (after all, you can also earn money as an employee). In the Netherlands, autonomy (having decisional freedom at work) is a primary motive for many people to start their own business, and various other motives also play a role. Whatever your motivation, in almost all cases perseverance is needed. You have to deal with uncertainty [see: Coping with ambiguity, uncertainty and risk] and challenges (for example in raising funds, in acquiring clients). All kinds of obstacles and difficulties can occur. This chapter offers insights and exercises about motivation and perseverance. This is an important topic, not least because motivation and perseverance are required for almost all of the other competencies in this book. This makes motivation and perseverance a meta-competency.
7.2 Insights
Motivation
In the EntreComp framework, entrepreneurship is to act upon opportunities and ideas and transform them into value for others. The value that is created can be financial, cultural, or social (see box Further Reading [1]). The second sentence shows that entrepreneurship can pursue value in different areas, which immediately suggests that different motives can play a role. A well-known distinction is that between social entrepreneurship [2], where the business is a means to achieve a social goal, and commercial entrepreneurship, where the creation of value is primarily a means to provide financially for yourself (and your dependants), or even to get rich with it.
However, entrepreneurial behaviour can be motivated by a variety of value orientations [see: Ethical and sustainable thinking]. Some motives may play a role regardless of whether your primary goal is to help others, yourself, or both. Research into entrepreneurial motivation began with the idea that entrepreneurs are people with a high need for achievement. Someone with such a need sets high goals, and wants to be responsible for achieving these goals. Having a business of one's own puts people in a good position to fulfil their need for achievement. Meta-analyses, a statistical technique that allows you to calculate the average outcome of a large number of separate studies, show that entrepreneurs with a high performance need are both more likely to start a business and more likely to be financially successful [3]. A motive that is strongly associated with wanting to start a business is autonomy (independence, freedom). Entrepreneurs like to decide for themselves what they do, how they do it and when they do it. Here too, having your own business offers good opportunities, although this autonomy does not come automatically as other stakeholders (e.g. customers, employees) and factors (e.g. the financial situation of the business) can influence how much autonomy you ultimately have. Regardless of these challenges, autonomy is a reason for a lot of people to go into business.
In addition to commercial motives, social motives, performance needs and autonomy, there are many other motives for starting an enterprise. The world of entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial behavior is highly diverse. The relevant motivation has, if all goes well, a great influence on how the company is organized. Someone with a high need for achievement may focus on making the company grow as big or as good as possible. Someone who mainly strives for autonomy (freedom, independence) will set up the company in such a way that the autonomy is increased. Someone who seeks challenge will choose an exciting industry and take a relatively high level of risk. Someone who is mainly looking for a good work-life balance will organise the company in such a way that their private goals are also achievable (e.g. someone does telemarketing from home in order to be able to be with the children; someone's company has flexible hours in order to be able to participate in training sessions for top-class sport). So the issue is not whether people have the appropriate motivation to become entrepreneurs. The question is, given what motivates them, how they can arrange their business so that it suits them best, where they feel the most passion. In the entrepreneurship literature, much research is done on passion [4]. Passion is important, on the one hand because it motivates, and on the other hand because it enables people to persevere when things get difficult. This is the subject of the next section.
Perseverance
As Johan Cruyff said, every disadvantage has its advantage, and the 'advantage' of difficulties and setbacks is that you can learn quickly and a lot [5] [see: Learning through experience]. However, this requires perseverance. People who give up right away will not learn. But if they know how to persevere, they can learn a lot, even if they do not (entirely) overcome the difficulties. Conversely, learning makes it possible to persevere: by learning people develop new or better ways to deal with the difficulties. A good insight into the setbacks and difficulties that entrepreneurs experience is offered by a recent study about what keeps entrepreneurs awake at night [6]. In this study of 77 Dutch start-up entrepreneurs, 73% were concerned about financial matters (e.g. having enough income, being paid (on time), being able to get a loan); 71% about their own abilities (e.g. having enough skills, knowledge and experience), and 75% about dependencies (e.g. whether an important customer will stay on, whether employees or co-owners will do their job well, whether suppliers will be reliable).
Coping
The same study [6] also looked at how entrepreneurs cope with all these sources of worry (there were nine sources in total). These ways of coping can be seen as strategies for persevering. After all, the alternative is giving up. The first method is to try to solve the problem. This can be done by trying harder, asking for help, looking for information, or tackling it in a different way. However, in some cases that is not so easy. A second way is not to fix the problem, but to look at it in a different way. For example, you may have been rejected by a client, which is not motivating, but you can be motivated by the fact that at least you did finish among the last two candidates, or that you received certain valuable information that will help you do better next time. Another tactic is to put the setback in the context of the larger, longer-term goal of your business. It is important not to attribute the setback to yourself in general and definitive terms ('I can't do it') but rather to see it as temporary, specific and attributable to the environment ('this potential customer happened not to be into it, the next one might be'). What also helps to persevere is to compare yourself with other entrepreneurs. Those who have success show that you can do it too. Those who are difficult show that you are not the only one who has to overcome adversity.
A third way of dealing with setbacks involves changing your goals. For example, it could be a setback that you only sold for 80,000 euros, instead of the set goal of 100,000 euros. But perhaps you can break the goal down into smaller goals (in addition to the sales goal, sell to new customers, and get more customers to return). Maybe you have achieved the sub-goals. Or you can adjust your goal. Maybe 80,000 euros was more realistic? You can also set learning goals instead of or in addition to result goals: you want not only achieve the turnover goal, but also maximize learning about selling or another aspect of the entrepreneurial process.
Finally, a fourth approach is to first restore your energy level, so that you can then look at the issue with renewed vigour. Problems and worries cost time and energy, and both are depleted at some point. Research by Baumeister and colleagues on self-regulatory strength shows that the energy to deal with problems becomes depleted during the day [7] . You can restore your energy level by, for example, going for a walk, run, swim, meditate, do yoga, or eat out, and this is what many entrepreneurs in the study did. It helped them to put the problem to rest for a while. Another way for many entrepreneurs to recover and regain energy was to seek emotional support from their private partner, friends, or other entrepreneurs. Still others had inspiring role models, or sought support in their faith. Some started drinking alcohol or partying, but they usually found that these were not effective strategies in the long run if repeated too often. Baumeister's research also showed that you can become stronger in willpower and self-discipline through training (see exercises below). Especially interesting is the finding that by practicing self-discipline in one area, self-discipline improves in all areas.
Flexibility
It is important to realise that perseverance is not always the best approach. Flexibility is also an important characteristic of entrepreneurial people [see: Learning through experience]. A well-known problem is escalation of commitment: as an entrepreneur, you carry on with a certain approach for too long (for example, keeping an unprofitable restaurant open without making any changes) despite signs that there are problems. At the same time, you do not want to change your approach too quickly. It is therefore important to find an optimum balance between flexibility and perseverance. The solution lies in making a distinction between goals and means. Where you need to be persistent with your ultimate goal, it is often good to be flexible with the means to get there. You certainly don't want to give up the ultimate goal.
In the EntreComp framework, entrepreneurship is to act upon opportunities and ideas and transform them into value for others. The value that is created can be financial, cultural, or social (see box Further Reading [1]). The second sentence shows that entrepreneurship can pursue value in different areas, which immediately suggests that different motives can play a role. A well-known distinction is that between social entrepreneurship [2], where the business is a means to achieve a social goal, and commercial entrepreneurship, where the creation of value is primarily a means to provide financially for yourself (and your dependants), or even to get rich with it.
However, entrepreneurial behaviour can be motivated by a variety of value orientations [see: Ethical and sustainable thinking]. Some motives may play a role regardless of whether your primary goal is to help others, yourself, or both. Research into entrepreneurial motivation began with the idea that entrepreneurs are people with a high need for achievement. Someone with such a need sets high goals, and wants to be responsible for achieving these goals. Having a business of one's own puts people in a good position to fulfil their need for achievement. Meta-analyses, a statistical technique that allows you to calculate the average outcome of a large number of separate studies, show that entrepreneurs with a high performance need are both more likely to start a business and more likely to be financially successful [3]. A motive that is strongly associated with wanting to start a business is autonomy (independence, freedom). Entrepreneurs like to decide for themselves what they do, how they do it and when they do it. Here too, having your own business offers good opportunities, although this autonomy does not come automatically as other stakeholders (e.g. customers, employees) and factors (e.g. the financial situation of the business) can influence how much autonomy you ultimately have. Regardless of these challenges, autonomy is a reason for a lot of people to go into business.
In addition to commercial motives, social motives, performance needs and autonomy, there are many other motives for starting an enterprise. The world of entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial behavior is highly diverse. The relevant motivation has, if all goes well, a great influence on how the company is organized. Someone with a high need for achievement may focus on making the company grow as big or as good as possible. Someone who mainly strives for autonomy (freedom, independence) will set up the company in such a way that the autonomy is increased. Someone who seeks challenge will choose an exciting industry and take a relatively high level of risk. Someone who is mainly looking for a good work-life balance will organise the company in such a way that their private goals are also achievable (e.g. someone does telemarketing from home in order to be able to be with the children; someone's company has flexible hours in order to be able to participate in training sessions for top-class sport). So the issue is not whether people have the appropriate motivation to become entrepreneurs. The question is, given what motivates them, how they can arrange their business so that it suits them best, where they feel the most passion. In the entrepreneurship literature, much research is done on passion [4]. Passion is important, on the one hand because it motivates, and on the other hand because it enables people to persevere when things get difficult. This is the subject of the next section.
Perseverance
As Johan Cruyff said, every disadvantage has its advantage, and the 'advantage' of difficulties and setbacks is that you can learn quickly and a lot [5] [see: Learning through experience]. However, this requires perseverance. People who give up right away will not learn. But if they know how to persevere, they can learn a lot, even if they do not (entirely) overcome the difficulties. Conversely, learning makes it possible to persevere: by learning people develop new or better ways to deal with the difficulties. A good insight into the setbacks and difficulties that entrepreneurs experience is offered by a recent study about what keeps entrepreneurs awake at night [6]. In this study of 77 Dutch start-up entrepreneurs, 73% were concerned about financial matters (e.g. having enough income, being paid (on time), being able to get a loan); 71% about their own abilities (e.g. having enough skills, knowledge and experience), and 75% about dependencies (e.g. whether an important customer will stay on, whether employees or co-owners will do their job well, whether suppliers will be reliable).
Coping
The same study [6] also looked at how entrepreneurs cope with all these sources of worry (there were nine sources in total). These ways of coping can be seen as strategies for persevering. After all, the alternative is giving up. The first method is to try to solve the problem. This can be done by trying harder, asking for help, looking for information, or tackling it in a different way. However, in some cases that is not so easy. A second way is not to fix the problem, but to look at it in a different way. For example, you may have been rejected by a client, which is not motivating, but you can be motivated by the fact that at least you did finish among the last two candidates, or that you received certain valuable information that will help you do better next time. Another tactic is to put the setback in the context of the larger, longer-term goal of your business. It is important not to attribute the setback to yourself in general and definitive terms ('I can't do it') but rather to see it as temporary, specific and attributable to the environment ('this potential customer happened not to be into it, the next one might be'). What also helps to persevere is to compare yourself with other entrepreneurs. Those who have success show that you can do it too. Those who are difficult show that you are not the only one who has to overcome adversity.
A third way of dealing with setbacks involves changing your goals. For example, it could be a setback that you only sold for 80,000 euros, instead of the set goal of 100,000 euros. But perhaps you can break the goal down into smaller goals (in addition to the sales goal, sell to new customers, and get more customers to return). Maybe you have achieved the sub-goals. Or you can adjust your goal. Maybe 80,000 euros was more realistic? You can also set learning goals instead of or in addition to result goals: you want not only achieve the turnover goal, but also maximize learning about selling or another aspect of the entrepreneurial process.
Finally, a fourth approach is to first restore your energy level, so that you can then look at the issue with renewed vigour. Problems and worries cost time and energy, and both are depleted at some point. Research by Baumeister and colleagues on self-regulatory strength shows that the energy to deal with problems becomes depleted during the day [7] . You can restore your energy level by, for example, going for a walk, run, swim, meditate, do yoga, or eat out, and this is what many entrepreneurs in the study did. It helped them to put the problem to rest for a while. Another way for many entrepreneurs to recover and regain energy was to seek emotional support from their private partner, friends, or other entrepreneurs. Still others had inspiring role models, or sought support in their faith. Some started drinking alcohol or partying, but they usually found that these were not effective strategies in the long run if repeated too often. Baumeister's research also showed that you can become stronger in willpower and self-discipline through training (see exercises below). Especially interesting is the finding that by practicing self-discipline in one area, self-discipline improves in all areas.
Flexibility
It is important to realise that perseverance is not always the best approach. Flexibility is also an important characteristic of entrepreneurial people [see: Learning through experience]. A well-known problem is escalation of commitment: as an entrepreneur, you carry on with a certain approach for too long (for example, keeping an unprofitable restaurant open without making any changes) despite signs that there are problems. At the same time, you do not want to change your approach too quickly. It is therefore important to find an optimum balance between flexibility and perseverance. The solution lies in making a distinction between goals and means. Where you need to be persistent with your ultimate goal, it is often good to be flexible with the means to get there. You certainly don't want to give up the ultimate goal.
7.3 Further reading
[1] The document that guides this book. Bacigalupo, M., Kampylis, P., Punie, Y., & Van den Brande, G. (2016). EntreComp: The entrepreneurship competence framework. Luxembourg: Publication Office of the European Union.
[2] Classic article on social entrepreneurship. Mair, J., & Marti, I. (2006). Social entrepreneurship research: A source of explanation, prediction, and delight. Journal of World Business, 41(1), 36-44.
[3] Review of studies on how various psychological characteristics are related to starting and success. Frese, M., & Gielnik, M.M. (2014). The psychology of entrepreneurship. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 1(1), 413-438.
[4] Classic article on the role of passion in entrepreneurship. Cardon, M. S., Wincent, J., Singh, J., & Drnovsek, M. (2009). The nature and experience of entrepreneurial passion. Academy of Management Review, 34(3), 511-532.
[5] Article showing how entrepreneurs experienced personal growth as a result of going through adversity. Cope, J., & Watts, G. (2000). Learning by doing - an exploration of experience, critical incidents and reflection in entrepreneurial learning. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research, 6(3), 104-124.
[6] Research among Dutch starters about what they worry about, how they deal with it, and whether the worries demotivate them or make them more focused. Thompson, N.A., Van Gelderen, M.W., & Keppler, L. (2020). No need to worry? The role of the social sciences in the development of knowledge. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, article 398.
[7] Review of various experiments on self-regulatory power. Baumeister, R.F., Gailliot, M., DeWall, C.N. & Oaten, M. (2006). Self-regulation and personality: How interventions increase self-regulatory success, and how depletion moderates the effects of traits on behavior. Journal of Personality, 74(6), 1773-1802.
[2] Classic article on social entrepreneurship. Mair, J., & Marti, I. (2006). Social entrepreneurship research: A source of explanation, prediction, and delight. Journal of World Business, 41(1), 36-44.
[3] Review of studies on how various psychological characteristics are related to starting and success. Frese, M., & Gielnik, M.M. (2014). The psychology of entrepreneurship. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 1(1), 413-438.
[4] Classic article on the role of passion in entrepreneurship. Cardon, M. S., Wincent, J., Singh, J., & Drnovsek, M. (2009). The nature and experience of entrepreneurial passion. Academy of Management Review, 34(3), 511-532.
[5] Article showing how entrepreneurs experienced personal growth as a result of going through adversity. Cope, J., & Watts, G. (2000). Learning by doing - an exploration of experience, critical incidents and reflection in entrepreneurial learning. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research, 6(3), 104-124.
[6] Research among Dutch starters about what they worry about, how they deal with it, and whether the worries demotivate them or make them more focused. Thompson, N.A., Van Gelderen, M.W., & Keppler, L. (2020). No need to worry? The role of the social sciences in the development of knowledge. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, article 398.
[7] Review of various experiments on self-regulatory power. Baumeister, R.F., Gailliot, M., DeWall, C.N. & Oaten, M. (2006). Self-regulation and personality: How interventions increase self-regulatory success, and how depletion moderates the effects of traits on behavior. Journal of Personality, 74(6), 1773-1802.
7.4 Exercises for students
1) Motives
The world of entrepreneurship is extremely diverse. Virtually any motive is suitable for entrepreneurship – which implies that you need to design your business to fit your motive. Give your students the following assignment:
Take the Career Anchors Test at https://psycho-tests.com/test/sheins-career-anchors . Review the results. Discuss the various so-called career anchors and their relationship to entrepreneurship. Develop ideas together for what a business might look like that fits the particular career anchor.
Explanation: All the motives in the Career Anchors Test are suitable motives for starting a business. Even security: for example, as the owner of a translation agency, you can hire freelancers, so that despite fluctuations in orders you are never without work yourself. By being aware of what you are really striving for, it also becomes easier to persevere. Explain to your students that the wider issue is not whether they have the appropriate personality to become entrepreneurs, but how they will design their entrepreneurship given their personality.
2) Analyse your strategies for perservering
Analyse your strategies for persevering. Give your students the following assignment:
There are several ways to persevere. Which ones do you already use, and which ones do you not use yet? Review the four types of perseverance strategies discussed in the insights section. Consider an episode in your life in which you had to persevere. For each of the categories, see which tactics you used, and which ones you could have used as well. It doesn't matter in the chosen situation whether you were successful or not.
Explanation: This exercise helps to analyse a situation in terms of what helped you, or could help you, to persevere. Often students look at whether they were successful in this situation. However, whether you managed to persevere, regardless of eventual success, is valuable in its own right. Although perseverance helps you to be successful, you may also have shown a lot of perseverance while ultimately failing.
3) Practicing self-regulatory power
Give your students the following assignment:
Self-discipline is a human trait that can be practiced. Moreover, more self-discipline in one domain leads to more self-discipline in other domains. Choose one of the five exercises on https://www.forbes.com/sites/quora/2018/06/14/five-daily-exercises-that-build-self-discipline/ (if necessary, translate the page using Google Translate). Stimulate students to choose to practice something they do not currently do, maybe even something they don't like doing. Keep this up for a month.
Explanation: Entrepreneurial behavior requires self-discipline. The good news is that you can practice self-discipline in an unrelated domain. Taking a cold shower daily, meditating for 10 minutes, doing push-ups, making your bed etc. will also make it easier to persevere when you have setbacks in your entrepreneurial initiative, because you are exercising your 'self-discipline muscle'.
The world of entrepreneurship is extremely diverse. Virtually any motive is suitable for entrepreneurship – which implies that you need to design your business to fit your motive. Give your students the following assignment:
Take the Career Anchors Test at https://psycho-tests.com/test/sheins-career-anchors . Review the results. Discuss the various so-called career anchors and their relationship to entrepreneurship. Develop ideas together for what a business might look like that fits the particular career anchor.
Explanation: All the motives in the Career Anchors Test are suitable motives for starting a business. Even security: for example, as the owner of a translation agency, you can hire freelancers, so that despite fluctuations in orders you are never without work yourself. By being aware of what you are really striving for, it also becomes easier to persevere. Explain to your students that the wider issue is not whether they have the appropriate personality to become entrepreneurs, but how they will design their entrepreneurship given their personality.
2) Analyse your strategies for perservering
Analyse your strategies for persevering. Give your students the following assignment:
There are several ways to persevere. Which ones do you already use, and which ones do you not use yet? Review the four types of perseverance strategies discussed in the insights section. Consider an episode in your life in which you had to persevere. For each of the categories, see which tactics you used, and which ones you could have used as well. It doesn't matter in the chosen situation whether you were successful or not.
Explanation: This exercise helps to analyse a situation in terms of what helped you, or could help you, to persevere. Often students look at whether they were successful in this situation. However, whether you managed to persevere, regardless of eventual success, is valuable in its own right. Although perseverance helps you to be successful, you may also have shown a lot of perseverance while ultimately failing.
3) Practicing self-regulatory power
Give your students the following assignment:
Self-discipline is a human trait that can be practiced. Moreover, more self-discipline in one domain leads to more self-discipline in other domains. Choose one of the five exercises on https://www.forbes.com/sites/quora/2018/06/14/five-daily-exercises-that-build-self-discipline/ (if necessary, translate the page using Google Translate). Stimulate students to choose to practice something they do not currently do, maybe even something they don't like doing. Keep this up for a month.
Explanation: Entrepreneurial behavior requires self-discipline. The good news is that you can practice self-discipline in an unrelated domain. Taking a cold shower daily, meditating for 10 minutes, doing push-ups, making your bed etc. will also make it easier to persevere when you have setbacks in your entrepreneurial initiative, because you are exercising your 'self-discipline muscle'.