Art vs. Maths
Entrepreneurship is like art. You
are never sure whether it will yield the result that you have been looking for.
The ending may turn out to be quite different than the way you had planned it.
Job is like Math. First, you concentrate on getting the right
education, then look out for the job that enhances your professional
experience. Then you work towards getting promotions till you reach the peak of
career in terms of satisfaction and capability. The path is logical, traveled
many times and like a simple math equation, parameters are few.
Certainty of pay check
vs. none
Entrepreneurship is not really for
people who cannot survive without pay check. The entrepreneur makes nothing for
months, sometimes for years. She/he toils for what interest her than what pays
immediately.
Jobs pay immediately. Within one month of taking a job, one
starts getting salary in the account. It is usually fixed and certain.
Incremental vs. explosive
Entrepreneurship is difficult. But
it can lead to explosive growth if worked through with patience. The explosive
growth can make you rich and famous. Think Zuckerberg, Bill Gates, Steve Jobs
and many others.
Jobs are logical increments over time. You start at the junior
level and move on to become a senior. A few gets into higher levels. Salary
increases consistently with every rise in position.
Passion vs. consistent
track record
Starting
own venture is about passion. You cannot think about consistency. There is
none. Either you make it or you don’t. Your paintings sell or they don’t.
Selling is important but passion is more important.
Job is
about meeting deadlines consistently. Job is like going from point X to point Y
without detour. People with jobs have to consistently meet expectations and in
turn get rewarded with promotion.
Diversified vs.
concentrated skills
Entrepreneurship is equal to being
stranded on an island with a toolbox(sometimes not). You have to learn to
design and create your own boat and then escape in it. You need to be
multi-skilled if you want to survive.
Job is about getting better at the skill you obtained in your
education in. More often than not you become an expert in your area. That is
your bread and butter.
Creation vs. continuation
Entrepreneurship is about ideas,
creation and developing something new, It is about solving problems in a unique
way. It is about thinking out of the box. It is about targeting opportunities.
Job is often about continuation of same work and doing it in
much better way. Creativity may be useful but is not necessary for survival.
You need to do work on time. Organizations appreciate creativity but nurturing
that it is not the priority.
Direct vs Indirect job
creation
Entrepreneurs find and exploit
opportunities that create thousands of jobs. They look for improvements and
then utilize them to start companies that bring in more jobs.
People holding jobs indirectly create job. They
take loans, buy houses, cars. This keeps money in circulation. Businesses
invest to fulfill needs of job holders often creating jobs in the process.
Whole day vs. 9-6
Entrepreneurs often lose track of
time. They work more than fifteen hours a day. They always have their plates
full. They find it difficult to adjust to the demands of family and society.
People
in job often work for fixed time and find enough time for their families.
Wealth creation vs. being
rich
Wealth is different from richness. Wealth is when you have
assets that generate income for you. Rich is when you get a fat salary to
spend. Entrepreneurs generate wealth in long term. They may be rich but
they are more wealthy than rich.
It is
hard to create too many assets with job unless you have a very high paying job.
Often people with job purchase two or three houses on loans and then call
themselves wealthy. It is not true because they are not wealthy till they clear
off the loan and start earning money from those houses.
Adaptability and
flexibility
Entrepreneurs
are survivors. They know how to survive in worst conditions because they have
been there. They know how to utilize whatever they have to create business.
They have to be flexible, need to learn new skills in order to get into new
lines of business. Entrepreneurs can survive in recession and boom times.
People
in jobs often find it difficult to adapt from one skill to another. If they
lose their job, they are most likely to apply for another job in same area.
Their chances of success depend on availability of such jobs and competition.
Boom time brings untold money and happiness to job holders while recession is
very disastrous.
Risk
Entrepreneurship
is risky. You could lose all your money. You have to plan and move ahead.
Jobs
have relatively low risks unless you are working in risky, hazardous job. Even
if you lose your job, you will not lose a lot of money and often you will get
similar job, maybe at lesser salary but still.
So
which is better?
No one
can answer but only you. It all depends on your drive, your capacity to take
risk, the goals of your life. These are just a few pointers that help you
decide.
Reference
Ashwini Kumar Saxena
