One common business school approach to entrepreneurship is to identify people who have started a business from scratch and observe how they grew it. This will give students an opportunity to apply theory to real-world problems. Another option is to focus on studying a business from the inside out, so to speak. This allows the student to see what goes into the startup up close and get a sense of the motivation and excitement that drive the entrepreneur.
In a typical entrepreneurship class, students will learn about different concepts used in entrepreneurship. One of these is the theory of lassoing, which has to do with finding a profitable, low risk niche and exploiting it slowly. Entrepreneurs will learn how to identify opportunities that come at them and how to evaluate them to make sure there is solid reasoning behind the startup. The Startup class will cover funding sources, selling strategies, marketing strategies, sales and business development. Entrepreneurs will also learn how to determine whether a venture is likely to succeed based on the resources and expertise available.
A more novel entrepreneurship class offers a very hands-on approach to entrepreneurship. It is one of few entrepreneurial courses offered in universities. Under this class, entrepreneurs learn how to analyze market conditions, market trends and the viability of their ideas. This is a class that focuses on the entrepreneurial mindset rather than purely academic learning.
Entrepreneurship is very closely associated with the characteristics of creativity, innovation and hard work. All of these are essential for creating a successful business. Lassonde credits his entrepreneurship classes at the University of Utah to the “spirit of the university.” This is because when he was attending college, he had very limited finances and time to pursue a traditional degree.
Through his entrepreneurship class, Lassonde learned about the value of the entrepreneurial mindset and what it takes to become an entrepreneur. He attributes part of the success of his business to his ability to focus and put his energy into the class. Lassonde said that the people in his Entrepreneurship Class acted as if they were in a “concert together,” encouraging him and motivating him to succeed. He further states that although he was able to attend college and complete his degree online, the “psychological effect” of being in an entrepreneurship class made him “a much better human being.”
In addition to facilitating entrepreneurship training, Lassonde offers entrepreneurship courses on a self guided basis. Students who complete his entrepreneurship courses are then able to apply the theories to their own businesses. These online courses are designed to give students an overview of entrepreneurship. They will learn how to analyze the different aspects of entrepreneurship, how to build a business, and how to maximize profits. After they have learned these basic concepts, students will learn about marketing, management and finance.
Entrepreneurship is an important concept that is often overlooked by non-academics. When you think of all the incredible entrepreneurial leaders in the world, very few of them got where they started without attending a university or college of some kind. For those individuals who do not have the option of getting an MBA, taking entrepreneurship classes online is a great option. They can learn all that they need to know about the entrepreneurial mindset while they obtain valuable business skills that they can apply to their own ventures.
