This is the third in a series of posts defining the three characteristics of successful entrepreneurs:
- Focus
- Discipline
- Passion
Focus and discipline are defined here and here respectively. Today's post is devoted to "passion".
The Merriam Webster dictionary defines passion as:
Intense, driving, or overmastering feeling or conviction
I would define passion as:
Intense, enduring motivational feeling or conviction
Enduring expresses the idea that passions are not fleeting.The insertion of "motivational" captures the notion that passions bring about actions. There is no passion without acts that demonstrate it. Conviction as opposed to "belief" demonstrates the "certainty" of passion.
All three characteristics of the entrepreneur are important, but passion is what sustains one in the challenges of a startup and insures the time and energy for discipline and focus to produce the desired results. The wisdom in entrepreneurship is in knowing when to use discipline and focus. Passion brings about action but discipline and focus put it on the correct path.
