To dream the impersonal dream
I've been trying to find words to explain what it's like wanting to make things happen, how it's not about me but rather about the possibilities I see. One of the books I just picked up from a library has a good quote about it:
Entrepreneurship is nothing about the one who creates a thing and everything about the one who consumes the thing. Entrepreneurs don't care about the thing they create, in and of itself (as much as they may love what they produce or do). They care about creating it because of the impact it can have on someone else. It's about that thing as an answer to a question others have long ago stopped asking, or long before they even consider the possibility of it changing for them. (p.50)
And another snippet:
Unless your idea for a business exceeds anything you have ever imagined doing before, is bigger than anything you have believed yourself capable of before this moment, has the potential of transforming a large enough number of people's lives in the world to make a huge difference in how the world works, and challenges you sufficiently to risk everything you have to make it a reality, don't do it.
Just don't do it, dear reader, because it will likely disappoint you in too many ways to mention. Don't do it unless you're ready to rumble. Don't do it unless you can put all your fears behind you. Don't do it unless the pain of not doing it will exceed the probable pain of doing it by a factor of ten. Don't to it, because it's not a game one plays casually. Don't do it, because it will confound you, confuse you, threaten to overwhelm you, every single dangerous step of the way. (p.104)
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Awakening the Entrepreneur Within: How Ordinary People Can Create Extraordinary Companies by Michael E. Gerber |
Here's what I care about at work:
- I care about helping new hires, interns, and other fellow Generation Y-ers connect with the rest of the company, and vice versa. I care because I think it would be pretty amazing if all of us newbies were engaged, passionate, and sharing what we're learning along the way. Ultimately, I want to affect not only the way IBM connects with its new hires and interns, but the way leading enterprises bring these new voices into the conversation.
- I care about helping interested colleagues learn more about how to use Web 2.0 to improve their personal productivity and collaborate more effectively. I care because I've seen how people use these tools to connect and collaborate across the organization for unexpectedly wonderful results. Ultimately, I want to see these tools become part of the culture not only at my company but also in others.
- I care about helping clients learn from IBM's experience with social media, and helping IBM learn from them. I care because I believe in what we've got inside IBM and I want to help other organizations explore this kind of culture of openness, trust and collaboration. I care because I know we can learn a lot from other companies as well. Ultimately, I want to connect evangelists and champions in different companies so that we can learn from each other's experiences.
So I guess I'm a bit of an intrapreneur after all. Technology evangelism around Web 2.0 and emerging technologies is officially part of my job, but all of these things are things I do because I have to do them, because I can't imagine not doing them. =) I'm going to need a lot of help, but there are a lot of people who are glad to help out because these are their visions too. (I like to think that I'm the one helping them!)
Let's find out how wonderful it can be. =)
What's your dream?
