A drive for entrepreneurship develops with the success of the first venture and it can be cultivated over time, says a study.
"In our eyes, the widespread assumption that only those who possess enthusiasm for entrepreneurship from the word go should become entrepreneurs is just wrong," said one of the researchers, Michael Gielnik from Leuphana University of Luneburg in Germany.
"The passion for entrepreneurship develops with the first entrepreneurial activity and success," Gielnik said.
The researchers collected data for their project in two different studies. In an eight-week field study, they surveyed 54 German entrepreneurs at weekly intervals, enquiring about the actions they had taken.
All responses showed a clear correlation between these two variables: the efforts put in during the past week influenced perceived entrepreneurial passion, which proved to be higher the greater the efforts.
In the second study, the researchers examined the impact of sense of achievement and freedom of choice on entrepreneurial passion. They conducted an experiment with 136 students from Singapore and Germany and asked them to develop a business idea.
They found that experiencing success on a regular basis and the possibility of free choice are two factors that play an important role in developing entrepreneurial passion.
"Our results show that entrepreneurial passion is not a rigid personality trait, but a characteristic that may develop over time under certain conditions," Gielnik concluded.
The findings were published in the Academy of Management Journal.
