Passion
There is a widely held view that by understanding what is happening in a great artists life at the time of the piece of work you are enjoying, you gain extra depth and see more colours in the work. This I think is true. More people know about the personal hell that Van Gogh went through (in terms of cutting off his own ear) than recognise his work.
I have always felt this way about pop music and music videos; that is my culture and just because it is not very old does not make it less cultured. I remember listening to the Hothouse flowers song “Dont go”. It is an OK song, but when I learned this song was written for a friend who was dying of a terminal disease who wanted to give up, it took on a very powerful meaning for me.
It is very much the same thing in business. There is nothing wrong with being in business to make lots of money. But in my limited experience I have found that just isn’t enough as the commitment or ‘passion’ that is required to see you through the really tough and lonely times will not come from wanting to make just money.
I regularly meet people who are running business and want coaching from me when they get stuck in a rut. 8 out of 10 times they are actually looking for someone to take the business off them (or outsource the entire business). The real reason, which they dare not say is that they have either run out of steam or they did not realise how much hard work is required.
Business is great fun but it is a really hard slog. Great businesses take ages to come into fruition and cashflows never turn out to be accurate. It is something else that will drive you forward and that is passion. That is why I am nervous about people who are motivated solely by money; it really is not enough.
And getting back to the artist link, this is why funders often want to know more about the founding team and where there passion for the business and the idea came from. They are often testing the commitment the entrepreneur has to the success of the idea.
Trust me when I say there are much easier ways of making money than through entrepreneurship; but that misses the point. It is not about making money!
