As an Entrepreneur: The Vision of Value

Entrepreneurship is essentially about problem solving through creative thinking.

Creativity is thinking outside of the prescribed formulas to generate ideas and connect them in solving problems, thereby making the world a better place.

As an entrepreneur, you are expected to Add value, Bring creativity to bear and Create something of value (ABC).

As an entrepreneur, adding value is what makes you more valued than other workers.

You can only add value when you think value and value thinking. An entrepreneur leaves a thing better than he/she met it.

Adding value is not necessarily a function of creativity, it is a by-product of responsibility. Entrepreneurs set the pace and re-set the space.

Adding value is essentially making a difference.

Entrepreneurs are full of initiatives and novel ideas which are not necessarily creative solutions, but valuable contributions such as borrowed brilliance, experience, expertise, best practices and so on.

Adding value does not require much; one has to be uncomfortable with the norm and make a difference by introducing what is New, Uncommon, Transformative, Real, Innovative and Entrepreneurial (NUTRI-Ent).

Nothing can have value without being an object of quality, utility and originality — these are the “nutritional contents” of value.

As an entrepreneur, bringing creativity to bear is what makes you distinct among other workers. Bringing creativity to bear is essentially making an impact.

Entrepreneurs bring creativity to bear by generating creative ideas which are unique and problem-solving.

By bringing creativity to bear in every endeavour, the economy is transformed and society is modernized.

As an entrepreneur, creating something of value is what makes you a leading worker. Creating something of value is essentially making the world a better place.

Entrepreneurship is a spirit, leadership is its soul, while society is its body. The world is transformed by the creative solutions entrepreneurs bring to society.

As an entrepreneur, you are expected to nurture creativity until it becomes ‘NUTRIEnt’.

Innovation is what creativity looks like. Without innovation, we doubt creativity.

The “nutritional value” of creativity is in innovation.

Innovation adds value to businesses and makes creativity a valuable raw material and resource for organizational functions.

Creativity is available for everyone, but not as valuable as an innovation.

As an entrepreneur, you are expected to add value to an organization, bring creativity to bear in organizing events and create something of value in an organized manner.

As a Leader: The Value of Vision

Leadership is essentially about putting things in order through strategic planning and skillful implementation of projects, programs and policies.

An entrepreneur is a leader who creates value and systems.

What creativity is to value creation is what vision is to system creation.

Without a system, the impact of value is short-lived.

Entrepreneurial leaders don’t just think of idea generation (creativity), they also think of the next generation, that is, posterity.

Everything rises and falls on leadership.

What vision is to leadership is what innovation is to entrepreneurship.

Value creation is the central issue in entrepreneurship. The creation of value rises and falls on vision.

The “nutritional value” of vision is the positive transformations it brings to society.

Remember, the nutritional value of creativity is in the innovation it spawns.

An innovation is a creative solution to a problem.

Consequently, vision is the principal raw material for societal transformation through the application of creative solutions to problems and to opportunities to enhance and to enrich people’s lives.

The value of an innovation is seen in society’s positive transformation.

It is therefore important to understand that an innovation on its own is incapable of turning things around until the force of vision is applied.

It takes the force of leadership for entrepreneurship to make sustainable impact in society.

As an entrepreneur, you are expected to turn creativity into an innovation by solving problems practically.

As a leader, you are expected to turn vision into practical value.

As an entrepreneurial leader, you are expected to translate value into sustainable transformation.

Entrepreneurs create value.

Leaders create vision for value.

Entrepreneurial leaders create systems for sustainable value.

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As an Entrepreneurial Leader: The Value of Vision in Innovation and the Value of Innovation in Vision

The value of vision in innovation

Innovation without a vision is a limitation.

Entrepreneurial leaders create the future with the instrumentality of vision.

The future is a system of value (innovation).

The value of a system is determined by the quality and depth of vision that produced it.

It is vision that sustains value.

The value of innovation in vision

Just like vision sustains value, value on the other hand sustains vision.

Vision without a system of value (innovation) is also limited.

Vision is sustained by a value system.

As an entrepreneurial leader, you must deepen your value system to sustain your vision.

Remember the ABC — Add value, Bring creativity to bear and Create something of value.

You don’t have to be the one to do all these, but you can hire entrepreneurs or create a team of thinkers and innovators who perpetually help create value and deepen your vision through initiatives, ideas and creativity.

From the above, it is clear that vision sustains value and vice versa.

The future on the other hand is sustained by systems.

Entrepreneurial leaders create systems that sustain vision and value through core administrative policies.

Just like innovation is the central issue in entrepreneurship, administration is the central issue in leadership.

The value of a system is determined by the administration of its system of value.

As an entrepreneurial leader, you are expected to deepen your administrative competence to ensure vision and value are preserved and sustained.

Here are some quotable quotes:

“To do meaningful work is to create value in society.” — Charles Koch