ISBE Poem

Johnathan Hick



Am I an entrepreneur
How can you tell?
There are some basic instincts
Which I know rather well

You have lots of ideas
You regularly spot a gap
You see a product or market
And think I can do better than that!

You have no fear of risk
Down to your very last pound
You’ll pile everything you can borrow
Into getting the idea off the ground

When it starts to go wrong
(cos you’ll never start fully right)
You’ll adapt and change direction
Never with a thought of flight

When you run out of money
You’ll find a way to borrow more
You won’t pay customs & excise
And whilst you shouldn’t break the law

You’ll stretch your creditor payments
And collect cash as fast as you can
Re the security of your family
Alas you’re unlikely to give a damn

Because you know you cannot fail
You think you can walk on water
Even at 20 odd stone
(You can ask my son and daughter)

And if (god forbid) you fail
You never see it as such
For failure is not an option
You put it down to learning much

And when (god willing) you succeed
You see it merely as a stepping stone
As straight into the next idea
Your energy and cash are thrown

Entrepreneurialism is not for the faint hearted
It’s a roller coaster ride
But building something from scratch
Is a source of massive pride

If you think it’s inside you
Then please give it a go
For ultimately that’s the only way
That you will actually know

Whether you are Sir Alan Sugar
Or a member of the Dragon’s Den
Or equally valiant on the T-shirt
One of the “Had a Go” women or men

We all need to look
For that first stepping stone
It might start via work
Or from something at home

If and when you find it
Or know someone that does
Please be truly positive
For entrepreneurs need a buzz

Confidence can be brittle
In the very early days
And well-meaning doubting Thomases
Can stop Golden Eggs being laid

So there is a 10 o’clock challenge
To all you members of ISBE
To use your intellectual powers
To create the next generation Frisbee…

Or Facebook….or GHD’s….
However you earn your spurs
For one thing Britain needs
Is more Entrepreneur Professeurs

Jonathan Hick, Serial Entrepreneur and ISBE Conference Keynote Speaker

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