Transformational Entrepreneurship

Today in Western Europe, only about 1% of people reach the age of 100. Yet, during the past century, our life expectancy has increased around two years every decade. Meaning, in the last fifty years, life expectancy has risen from 63 to 83 years. There are many reasons for the sharp increase in life expectancy. There has been a sharp decrease in the number of infants who die before their third birthday, because of better living conditions, access to healthcare, and improved food and nutrition. These developments are exciting and interesting, but what does that have to do with us entrepreneurs? In the very near future, people will have the potential to be productive between their twentieth and ninetieth year of life. Yet, the speed of technological developments will ensure that by 2035 only 50% of our current jobs will exist (conservative estimate of the World-Economic Forum in Davos, 2017). To combat the loss, new jobs will be created, but many of those are only expected to last a few decades. As a result, many people will have to choose a new profession about every fifteen years of their life. If you are allowed to work for sixty years after completing your degree (say after your twenty-fifth birthday), this means that you will have to (or should) choose a new profession about four times in your life. In the future, it will be perfectly normal to return to school at the age of 60 and be next to an 18-year-old, and, after your two to three years of education, you will both start at the same level.

During the transition when you learn a new job, you will have to prepare yourself both financially and mentally. It will be necessary to act entrepreneurial – whether you have an entrepreneurial talent or not. In their book The 100-Year Life (2016), Lynda Gratton and Andrew Scott describe five competencies needed to live in a future where 50% of all people will live to be a 100. Lets look at 1 that is vital for those who will need to become Entrepreneurs, the transformational competence.

Transformation competence

  • The ability to continue to discover and challenge yourself over and over again and to learn a whole new profession (in the transition period of two to three years).
  • Self-reflection, self-knowledge and autonomy.
  • An extensive and diverse network to help you obtain a position in a new professional environment.

Tips to grow while transitioning to Entrepreneur:

  1. Make a list of things you need to let go of in order to embrace your profession as entrepreneur. Ask these questions:
    • What do I need to let go of?
    • What are things/thoughts that hold me back?
  2. Make a list of things you need to embrace and take hold of.

The hardest thing for people who navigate becoming an entrepreneur is the process of transitioning into being entrepreneurial. Letting go of old habits and patterns takes time. Give yourself time to let go of old habits and to build new habits that will empower you as a professional entrepreneur.

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