There Is Never A Bad Time To Be An Entrepreneur

　　 Economics It affects all of us, but if you have a really great idea and believe it, then any time is a good time to set up a business.

A friend once said to me, "If you tell me something is impossible, my weekly working hours will increase by 20 hours, and my IQ will increase by 20 points.". In other words, I like good challenges.

The one we live in now times , full of challenges for entrepreneurs. The recession has caused many victims. But this does not mean that you should not consider starting a new business, nor does it mean that you are doomed to failure.

　 Economics It affects all of us, but if you have a really great idea and believe it, then any time is a good time to set up a business. Keep in mind that when you start a business, especially a technology business, it may take several years before you really bring the product to the market. Therefore, once your business starts, it may be pointless to worry about the current economic climate.

Regardless of the economic environment, many people believe that I should not set up my two companies. When I founded my first enterprise, Amati Communications, the mainstream view was that telephone lines could never transmit video. Although most people think I'm crazy, I believe correctly that high-speed and high-volume transmission can be achieved through telephone copper wire.

Eventually, the copper DSL (digital subscriber line) technology really came true, and Amati Communications finally sold it to Texas Instruments at a price of 440 million dollars.

As for my current enterprise ASSIA, people also think I am too crazy, although some people should have more brains than doubt me. The common criticism of ASSIA is that optical fiber is taking over the world now, and it is a waste of time to do DSL.

My response: People have been talking about fiber to the home for 30 years, but this idea is far from being realized. In contrast, DSL is a $120 billion global market, accounting for 70% of the global broadband - beating the sum of cable and optical fiber. ASSIA's software helps DSL service providers make more efficient use of their DSL networks.

As a successful entrepreneur, people often ask me how I know my ideas are good. How do I know that they are strong enough to support a profitable enterprise? My belief is that many good ideas never come true because they do not have proper economic motivation. What I mean by this is that you don't know if anyone really needs what you sell or is willing to spend money on it. If this is the case, then, no matter how hot the market is, no matter how cool you think the idea is, don't start this enterprise.

Another important consideration is time. Timing is very important, but entrepreneurs often ignore it. Is your idea correct but appears at the wrong time? What skills do you need to turn your idea into a product? Are these skills available? How long does it take for your idea to take off?

Even the best technicians and the brightest entrepreneurs tend to underestimate the time it takes to turn their vision into a profitable enterprise. As an old saying goes, if you count the number of arrows in the back, you will know who is the pioneer.

One of the most important lessons I learned as an entrepreneur is that entrepreneurship has no fixed program. No business or technology degree can make you a business leader. But this does not mean that I am against entrepreneurs receiving formal education. On the contrary.

I taught electronic engineering at Stanford University for many years.

I told the students that as an entrepreneur, I used everything I learned in school. In fact, I hope I can learn more so that I can use more. The truly excellent engineers and entrepreneurs will use everything because they know how to apply what they have learned in school.

Another thing entrepreneurs need to learn is to trust their intuition. Never let others tell you that you are wrong, especially if you don't believe it. If you believe that what you are doing has scientific and commercial significance, don't stop pursuing it. Don't doubt yourself just because the economic situation is bad, or because others say you are going the wrong way. In my experience, people listen too much to traditional wisdom, which is often incorrect. You can only stop when you think your idea will not work.

I have a lot of time with engineers - both within the company and as an active member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. Engineers are particularly good at understanding what is possible and what is impossible - what will work and what will not. However, as a group, we are not so good at some other things that outstanding entrepreneurs have. For example, engineers are often control freaks. They like precision. They like to do things in a specific way. This may be why engineers are so good at math. But the need to control the situation all the time cannot be well translated into entrepreneurship.

The best entrepreneurs can let go and trust others. They know they can't complete their own ideas alone. They can clearly state their goals, and then let the people they hire work hard and implement them without getting involved. In my opinion, engineers who can use their technical skills and have a high degree of creativity and openness are some of the best entrepreneurs in the world. Just look at David Packard, Bill Gates and Steve Jobs. They have created some of the greatest enterprises in the world.

There is another question that no one usually asks: Does the experience of entrepreneurs make me a better engineer? Yes, it forced me to think ahead about how to make the best use of my time and focus on those issues that are most likely to contribute to society. Nothing is more important than that.