This isn't a normal post. Usually, I'll write an analytical piece. Sometimes, it'll even be political. But today, I'm writing a piece that hits home. But it's a bit more to that. I'm not going to try to analyze it, because truthfully, I don't know much about it yet. Or better put, enough to set aside my own emotional biases about that.
So this is a tale from personal experience and nothing else.
Something I always enjoyed scrolling through was my Instagram feed. It would be full of motivational quotes. Advice from entrepreneurs. A bunch of stuff about living your own life. And today, I still do. I'm always able to find a bit of content that adds value into my day — whether that be talking to real entrepreneurs or a piece of content from Gary Vaynerchuck.
At the same time, I've become fearful of what people really think entrepreneurship has become. The same accounts I would follow to amplify my own character and to build my own set of rules has become, to say the least, worse.
Day by day, I'm seeing posts that are not characterizing entrepreneurship the way it was meant to be- or what it really is.
Posts that talk about money and how it brings happiness. How it is all you need in life And if you say otherwise, you should deposit all your money into the Instagrammers bank account — forgetting that the relationships and memories that were made separate from money are what it is we should work for.
Posts that talk about waking up at 5 a.m. to be a millionaire — since people aren't up at that time, you get work done. Which forget that the world can be pretty silent at 1— 4 a.m. as well. Or that working at the time that suits you is probably a better way to go, productivity-wise.
Posts that talk about status and create a sense of superiority for those who build wealth, not wisdom.
It's all glamour. Idolizing fame and fortune over what entrepreneurship really was about in the first place- making you happy, and setting you free. To never have to follow the status quo. But if idolizing money, waking up at set times, working a set period of hours and limiting status is what the alternative is — well, it sounds a hell lot like the boundaries entrepreneurs tried to escape in the first place.
People become entrepreneurs because there's an idea that they believe in. So they have time to be with the people who they love, regardless of money. So they can work the hours that they want, earn the wisdom that they want and live life the way that they want.
It's not — and never should be — about making more money, about working however long others tell you to or creating a false sense of status when entrepreneurs are just trying to survive in this world like anyone else.
If you want to have more opportunities, earn more money. Do that through wealth accumulation and working longer hours. If you want status, follow the rules to garner influence. But if you don't want to, you can still be an entrepreneur. All you need to do is run the show on the terms you want.
What scares me is that you see people liking commenting, and seriously drooling over the posts of glamour. That speaks of status. That tailors itself to "entrepreneurs." It inspires people to take control of their lives, but to the wrong destinations — and it should never be as such. People who really love building can't simply eyeball the idea of being a figure of status, and to ignore all else. That's not entrepreneurship.
That's glamour. Tabloid Glamour. It's a faux-opted cult and it needs a correction.
