When enrolling in an "Introduction to Entrepreneurship" course, I believed I had signed on to learn about business models, finances, and such. What I have discovered instead is a course dedicated to principles even more fundamental than the practical knowledge of running a business.
The course objectives, based on the first reading assignments I have completed, are to instill in its students a sense of what their goals in life are, and determining how best to reach them.
As part of these fundamental principles, the words of former president of Brigham Young University - Idaho, David A. Bednar conduct a powerful message that applies to all people--not just students. He compares an education in which the "path of least resistance" is taken (by way of selecting only "easy" classes, and doing only minimum work) to "an expensive car that has no engine. The car may look very good from the outside, but inside the real power is missing." (Full address can be found here.)
I, regrettably, feel as though I have been such a student. All the advice given in the articles I have read can be largely summed up in this phrase: "Determine what really matters to you, then be willing to sacrifice for it."
I find myself in awe of these ideas, though they have been expressed to me in various ways throughout the years. Taking the path of least resistance is a sure way to misery and stagnation. For myself, I believe that part of the problem lies in my fear of failure. Yet one of the lessons taught in these articles is that failure is not something to be feared, it is something to accept and learn from.
Taking a risk and failing, yet learning something as a result, is in this case much better than "taking the path of least resistance."
I look forward to the journey of discovery and thorough planning, and hope that much of what I accomplish here will benefit me in the months and years to come.
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