In the last century, it was believed that entrepreneurs are born and not made. Later in the 1950s, this mindset began to change. Frederick Terman introduced the concept of “Entrepreneurial Education” along with the study of business history. The idea was to encourage academic staff and students to start working as entrepreneurs. Then, in 1985, Peter F. Drucker argued in his book “Innovation and Entrepreneurship” that most of what you hear about entrepreneurship is all wrong. It is a discipline which can be learned.

What happened next?

Since the 1950s, the concept of entrepreneurship has evolved. It is not a magic and it has nothing to do with genes. A lot of technological advancements and innovations have encouraged people to come forward and pitch their idea.

Mark Zuckerberg was 19 years old when he launched Facebook which has a net worth of $54.5 billion today. In this age of the internet, people have access to almost all sorts of knowledge. Teenagers are coming up with technological solutions proving that the age and education level have become negligible.

Open access to a variety of information has also made it possible for female entrepreneurs to introduce their business ideas and find great success. In the last several years, the number of women-owned businesses has bloomed and reached new heights.

The Role of the Internet

Thanks to the internet, most of the businesses can be run online from any part of the world. In 2017, the number of people who have access to the internet was more than the number of people who didn’t. This happened for the first time. Also, internet usage in the Middle East reached 60% of population while in Africa it is about 29%. This has opened ways to do business with anyone from any part of the world.

The need for huge startup capital has become negligible since technological advancements have made markets digitally connected and progressive. Blogging platforms like WordPress allow users to post content for free. Bloggers and influencers have started their businesses by seeking followers from online platforms and social media. Social media platforms like Instagram and Twitter have made it easy for businesses to market and promote their ideas and to seek significant attention from the audience.

During the last two decades, the barriers to entrepreneurship have been significantly reduced as well as addressed through innovations. Such innovation is not limited to the internet, but it has also spread to other business segments. Ecommerce businesses like Amazon and eBay are becoming preferred means for shopping, thus replacing a need for conventional shopping malls.

Future of Entrepreneurship

What will be the face of entrepreneurship in the next two decades? If we look back at history, we may observe that while drivers for entrepreneurship have remained the same, it is mainly the external factors that have changed. The main idea of entrepreneurship is to pursue the innovation and to never give up. Therefore, it can be predicted that the number of successful entrepreneurs and innovation will increase in the future.