Re: Christopher Hunter’s Post “Energy Aware and Thoughts on Entrepreneurship”

In Christopher Hunter’s blog post about Janice Cheam‘s presentation the other day in our Comm 101 class, he questions “if the long hours that she put into her product [Energy Aware] was worth it.” For those of you who do not know, Energy Aware is a device that measures energy consumption. As Christopher mentions, “Although Janice spoke of the satisfaction that came from seeing her product come to life, she juxtaposed this with sleepless nights and struggling to pay her bills.” He concluded “the long hours that Janice put into her company were not because the prospect of being wealthy, and obviously not because of securing a job that will insure long-term stability, but rather because she wanted to get her product out to the public.”

To me, I believe it is true that “successful entrepreneurs should be passionate; if not, they would not have the drive to continue.” However, money does play an imperative role especially in the ventures of new entrepreneurs. I believe people shouldn’t underestimate the value of money. How could Janice have continued pursuing her passion if her product had not succeeded? The risk of her venture was high, and if her product had been a flop in the market, not only would her time and money spent on the project been wasted, but she would not be able to further pursue her passions because of overwhelming budget constraints and the struggle to pay off debt. New entrepreneurs do not have a lot of room to play with when it comes to money. In the end, when there is not an abundance of money, everything will be limited by money.

Christopher Hunter’s blog site:

https://blogs.ubc.ca/christopherhunter/

Picture source:

http://www.newventuresbc.com/2011/08/2006-competitor-energy-aware-on-cover-of-bc-business-magazine/