Entrepreneurs fill a vital function in America by solving society’s problems, Janita Stewart told would-be business owners on Tuesday at JSU’s Global Entrepreneurship Week Conference.
The Mississippi District manager of the U.S. Small Business Administration said 98 percent of Mississippi’s businesses are small businesses and they perform an important role in society by identifying problems and solutions. If successful, she said, those solutions are profitable.
Stewart, a Natchez native who holds the highest statewide position in the SBA, said that not everyone is well suited to be an entrepreneur. A would-be entrepreneur must evaluate personal strengths and weaknesses “to determine if entrepreneurship is for you.”
Pointing to herself, Stewart said that she found she’s better suited for a wage job within an organization, although she said that several family members are entrepreneurs.
“Not all of us are entrepreneurs,” she said. “Some of us should not own a business.”
When deciding whether to embark on an entrepreneurial path, Stewart said, one must use planning and preparation to offset risks.
Those risks may include your own personal shortcomings, she said. So, evaluate your weaknesses as risks to determine how to solve them. Perhaps, you can hire someone to solve those weaknesses, she said.
Make a list, she said. Are you a self-starter? Work well with people? Good at making decisions? Are you organized? Do you have physical/emotional stamina? What type of business do you want? Franchise? Home based? Online? Brick and mortar?
Then, pointing to the “three Cs” of “counseling, capital and contracts,” she said that would-be entrepreneurs should look to types of assistance they will need, including services offered by federal, state, local and municipal agencies.
“The Small Business Administration helps people get into business, stay in business, grow and succeed,” she said, adding that Jackson State has a Small Business Development Center supported by SBA at the Mississippi eCenter @ JSU on Raymond Road. It provides business planning and loan preparation, among other services.
Titled “Unleashing the Entrepreneur Within,” the conference on Wednesday will highlight women’s achievements at a Women Entrepreneurs Day Awards Luncheon 11:30 a.m. in the JSU Student Center, Ballroom A.
Students may attend the luncheon free if they register on the third floor of the College of Business building beforehand, said Dr. Mary M. White, interim vice president of institutional advancement and chair of JSU’s Department of Entrepreneurship and Professional Development.
Registration is $50 for non-students ($75 at the door). To attend the awards luncheon only is $25.
White noted that Entrepreneurship Week is not only celebrated across the United States, but internationally.
The celebration is “a good opportunity to get a student thinking about wealth creation,” she said.
“If you have an entrepreneurial mindset, it doesn’t matter where you are,” White said.
Lee Allen, CEO of Diversified Business Network of Denver, Colo., said that he travels to a lot of universities “pushing entrepreneurship for students” and Jackson State University “stands tall” for entrepreneurship.
Later, young entrepreneurs shared their experiences with a packed crowd during a panel discussion titled “Imagination + Creation = Innovation.”
Panelists included Jessica Simeon, owner of Jessicasimeon.com Entertainment and Lifestyle Blog; Regina Toney, COO of Good as Gold Enterprise; and Kris Campbell of The Kris Campbell. It was moderated by Avi’Yam Jordan of Good as Gold Enterprise.
For more information about the conference, call 601-979-2541 or visit https://www.jsums.edu/entrepreneurship/2014-entrepreneurs-conference/