In my last post I talked to you about the characteristics of entrepreneurs. On this one I want to emphasize one of them: the one related to constant learning. The point is that last week, the 10th of October, I had the honor of participating again in the DeustoSTART program, a program whose goal is to contribute to the developing of entrepreneurship among the students from the last courses of the degrees of the University of Deusto.
As the people in charge of the DeustoSTART program affirm, the program “doesn’t pursue by itself the creation of new business ventures, but it leads to the developing of the competency, intention and entrepreneurial self-efficacy of the participants, strengthening the work done on the respective degrees”. This is not the only program about entrepreneurship that is offered from Deusto Innovation and Entrepreneurship of the University of Deusto, but it is the only one on the campus of Bilbao that is oriented towards achieving a goal not routed exclusively to the creation of a business. In fact, that’s how many of the participants of other editions, who learned a lot, see the taking part in this kind of programs.
Today I want to dedicate this post to every single one of the participants of this new edition with whom I was able to share an afternoon on the 10th of October. Ana, Jon, Nerea, Aitor, Ander, Nerea, Uxue, Ignacio, Paul, Ane, Lucía, Iciar, Cristina, Aritz, Beñat, Lucía, Maite, María, Leyre, Lander, Yurema, María, Ander, Ricardo, Asier, Maria, Jaione, Eder and Beñat are the names of the 29 participants that have embarked on a new adventure that started with some uncertainties but also with great enthusiasm, willingness to learn and to discover a world that is still new for them, in which I’m sure they will find more than one satisfaction. That’s how the sessions they have ahead claim so.
Every Wednesday, until the 21st of December, they are going to reflect about topics such as entrepreneurial attitude, opportunity recognition and generation of ideas, the design of their own ideas, social entrepreneurship, business models, change and risk taking and the communication and persuasion. The program will end with the presentations of the final projects that, in groups, they will have to develop.
The participants are students from the last courses of the degrees and double degrees of BMA + Law, Tourism, Industrial Design Engineering, Social Work, Computer Engineering, BMA+ Management Development Programme, BMA+ Industrial Technology Engineering, International Relations + Law, Physical Activity and Sports Sciences and Psychology. Basically, every faculty of the University of Deusto is represented and the best thing is that the variety and diversity of the profiles make it possible that the ideas they come up with are as rewarding as possible for everyone.
In my case, we dedicated the first afternoon of the program to think about entrepreneurship and the entrepreneur and the truth is that we needed more time.
It caught my attention the fact that for the first time, when they were asked what they thought “entrepenurial spirit” mean, no one said creating a business or a company as their first choice; it was a nice way of breaking into the entrepreneur concept.
While I don’t remember every single one of the characteristics of the E.P. that each participant highlighted and took home together with the magic pills, I still hear the echo of these words: initiative, effort, bravery, passion, leadership, don’t be afraid of failure, positivism or creativity. Those were just a few of them and the ones that I relate to. I hope the session was worthy and that the willingness to learn about entrepreneurship, the entrepreneurial attitude and competency and entrepreneurs last for a long time and go further than this program.
Congratulations to everyone for taking the plunge.
On the last part of the session an entrepreneurial woman accompanied us to give them her vision on E.P. Leire Pérez Mencia, from Hambroneta, who I’ve talked to you before, used part of her time to share with the participants her “story” as an entrepreneurial woman. For that, she relied upon the characteristics of entrepreneurs of my latest post. Honestly, for me, it was a compliment. Firstly, because she follows me, but, above all, because we could see the evolution of an entrepreneur woman after being working for 6 years in Hambroneta.
To finish this post, I’d like to remind you that participating in specific training programs isn’t the only way to be trained and to keep learning about entrepreneurship and being an entrepreneur, but there are other possibilities such as YOUR participation in:
- Competitions about company creations, initiatives, entrepreneurial ideas
- Awareness-raising days
- Specific workshops
- Coffee conversations / breakfasts with entrepreneurs.
- Events orientated towards developing the entrepreneurial spirit
- Forums about entrepreneurship or entrepreneurs.
- Business incubators
- Courses for entrepreneurs offered by public and/or private institutions
- Pecha Kucha
- Debates
- Weeks of entrepreneurship and/or of the entrepreneurs.
- Entrepreneurs networks
- AND MANY MORE…
Do you dare?
Enjoy these weeks.
Translated by María Ubierna Quintanilla and supervised by Arantza Arruti.