Daring & Disruptive: Unleashing the Entrepreneur, by Lisa Messenger, is a mixture of several things. It is a memoir, a serial entrepreneur’s journey, an inspirational pep talk for aspiring entrepreneurs and an advice guide for the next generation of entrepreneurs who will face a disruptive and chaotic world. The key themes behind all of this are boldness and creativity, the two tools that Messenger believes will help every single entrepreneur conquer the obstacles they will inevitably face.
What is Daring & Disruptive About?
Messenger isn’t the kind of entrepreneur that you would expect to read about in a business textbook. As her book, Daring & Disruptive emphasizes, she doesn’t preach about creating a 50-page business plan, complicated financial valuations, or slick marketing schemes to reach customers.
In fact, Messenger regularly dives into new business ventures on gut instinct and a back-of-the-envelope business plan alone, fosters an environment where employees are able to bring their pets to work and launches into spontaneous acts of kindness whenever she comes across an opportunity.
This style of entrepreneurship, while nontraditional, may actually showcase what the future of entrepreneurship will be like as the next generation of entrepreneurs (Millennials and beyond) prepare for their own businesses. It has proven to be successful for Messenger, who launched a magazine that turned into a global online platform for distribution in over 30+ countries (without the need for outside investors), has written over 16 books, and started a publishing company that has assisted over 400 authors.
Messenger credits her successes with her life experiences which taught her about the core of entrepreneurship. At its core, entrepreneurship isn’t about designing fancy PowerPoint presentations for investors or creating an overly complicated business strategy. It’s about two things, being bold and being fearless. It’s about being open to opportunities to fill a customer’s needs and wants in your own way — rather than waiting for external validation. It’s about remaining in a continuous state of learning and experimentation so you can adapt your business as things change. This kind of entrepreneurship thrives from moving fast and furious since speed in a powerful asset in a competitive world. Those business owners who continue to develop, experiment and bring their ideas to market will have a greater chance of survival in the unpredictable future.
Messenger is a serial entrepreneur who currently serves as the CEO and creative director of the Messenger Group, a public relations agency, and is the founder and editor of Collective Hub, a global multimedia platform with distribution in more than 30 countries. Messenger, who describes herself as a child who never followed the traditional path, started out in the event marketing and sponsorship industry, eventually bootstrapping her own businesses to become a successful serial entrepreneur, speaker and mentor.
What Was Best About Daring & Disruptive?
The best part of Daring & Disruptive is the powerful feel-good message Messenger delivers throughout the book. Essentially, Messenger asserts that there is no plausible reason why an entrepreneur with a good idea can’t eventually succeed. She points to her own life as an example of a person who doesn’t follow the traditional rules when it comes to business. Yet, she argues that this tendency to steadfastly follow her own path and remain open to wherever it leads can serve as the perfect competitive strategy for entrepreneurs who don’t fit the traditional mold.
What Could Have Been Done Differently?
Daring & Disruptive is written for a particular type of entrepreneur, those who don’t fit the traditional mold. It focuses on providing inspiration and motivation for that kind of entrepreneur. It does not place extensive focus on testing your business idea, operating strategies or finances. This information isn’t crucial to the book’s message, but providing some resources in these areas (i.e. resources for setting up a landing page, etc.) might help beginning entrepreneurs who feel inspired by Messenger’s words and want to take the next step.
Why Read Daring & Disruptive?
It has been projected that a substantial number of Millennials possess entrepreneurial aspirations. If that happens to be the case for you (or someone you know), then Daring & Disruptive is the perfect motivational guide to get started. While the book is focused on helping entrepreneurs of any age break barriers, it resonates particularly well with Millennial entrepreneurs who may feel they don’t have what it takes to pursue their business dreams. Messenger, using her own life as an example, shows that the path to entrepreneurship isn’t set in stone. It is set in your heart and mind. Her book demonstrates how Messenger was able to use her heart and mind to create a business her way. In the process, she hopes to inspire others to do the same so they can achieve what they once thought impossible.
This article, “Why Entrepreneurs Need to Be Daring and Disruptive” was first published on Small Business Trends