Entrepreneurship has social as well as economic value for the nation. The paper deals with entrepreneurship on conceptual basis, and deals with its numerous definitions and the factors which lead to entrepreneurship in the society. It also discusses the personality characteristics present in the persons that make them successful entrepreneurs. The paper has practical implications for designing courses in entrepreneurship, which may help in creating a conducive environment for the development of entrepreneurship and the emergence of entrepreneurs.
Entrepreneurship
has been in existence for centuries. Time and again, attempts have been made to
understand the concept of entrepreneurship. Theorists and practitioners have tried
to explain this phenomenon from different aspects. Economists, sociologists and
psychologists have described entreperenurership in their own ways. The available
literature is full of numerous empirical and theoretical studies, which manifests
the interest created by the concept. Entrepreneurship also draws the attention
of young, ambitious and creative minds to venture into profit-making activities,
which in turn, act as a source of employment for many, thereby enhancing their
economic activity and social status. Some of the questions that often come to
mind while thinking about the entrepreneurs are: Are entrepreneurs born or made?
Are entrepreneurs forced into entrepreneurship due to unemployment or prosperity
pulls them towards it? What sort of people are entrepreneurs? What are the personality
traits of an entrepreneur?
This
study attempts to answer these questions by presenting a brief snapshot of some
of the acclaimed definitions and theories of entrepreneurship. The study also
makes a foray into the personality traits of entrepreneurs with the help of the
survey methodology, using the famous Big Five model as the basis for the description
of personality traits. The
word `entrepreneur' was introduced by Cantillon (1755). He considered entrepreneurship
as an important economic function. According to him, there were three important
agents in the economy: capitalists, who owned lands; hirelings, who were wageworkers;
and entrepreneurs, who were arbitragers or middlemen. Entrepreneurs enjoyed an
important position in the economy, as they made all the exchanges and transactions
possible.
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