Very Short Interview No. 1

The entrepreneur I interviewed was Collin Austin.  He is the COE “Chief of Everything” at New Scooters 4 Less (NS4L).  He started his business in 2004 and it is now one of the largest scooter dealerships in the southeastern United States.  I met Collin at an event downtown called “Startup Hour”.  Startup Hour is an event where local entrepreneurs and people are thinking about starting their own business meet and network.   Here is the transcript of my interview with Austin:

What traits do successful entrepreneurs need to posses?

“When it comes to entrepreneurship it’s all about taking a risk. It’s the ability to step into the unknown.  The most successful entrepreneurs have grit, that drive, to not let anything keep them from achieving their dream.”

What made you want to become an entrepreneur?

“I was that kid who couldn’t get on the bus to get to school. I would sit and wait at the stop and the bus would drive by me with the words ‘Full Bus’ at the top.  This was me realizing an opportunity and deciding to solve a problem.  I realized the opportunity and I decided to go after it."

What does it mean to be an entrepreneur?

“Similar to the first question, you have to go out and accomplish this mission, this vision.”

What do you wish you‘d taught in school before going out on your own path as an entrepreneur?

“One thing I think they should teach you in entrepreneurship is how to get over the fear of failure and rejection.  So many people don’t start business because they are afraid that they are going to fail.  If you can get over that fear of failure then you are well on your way to becoming an entrepreneur.  I also think the University needs to teach you how to start a business physically, like where to acquire licenses and the tools like QuickBooks that can help you run your business.  I think entrepreneurship classes need to teach how you actually physically start a business."

Advice for new entrepreneurs or potential entrepreneurs?

“  Biggest advice is to execute. Too many people have ideas, ideas are great.  You and I could sit here and come up with a list of ideas and that’s all they’re going to be unless someone actually decides to execute. When it comes to leadership and entrepreneurship it’s all about serving others.  The whole reason I got into this business was to help students, to help serve students.  Always having that mindset of serving is huge and make sure that’s why you’re getting into it.”

This is the start of my reflection.  I learned a lot from interviewing Collin and there is still more to learn.  Collin mentioned how he started his business he saw a problem that many people were experiencing, he came up with an idea to solve it, then he executed that idea and was very successful.  He also emphasized the ability to execute in the last question.  I agree with him all the way on that, ideas are virtually meaningless if no one is going to execute them.  One thing I thought was interesting was that he wished the university had prepared him more for was physically starting a business, such as obtaining licenses and using tools like QuickBooks to manage your new business.  I think this is an excellent point that often gets over looked by professors.