Zero to 1 Million

by Zachary Bottorff
(Middleton Wi)

When you begin to walk into your entrepreneur role, make sure you understand the true definition of what makes an entrepreneur great.

I've watched too many people try on the role of entrepreneur without taking entrepreneur definition into account.

They start and fail because they didn't do what it takes to push their vision through the end.

In order to succeed in business, it's crucial to have an underlying understanding of the definition of what a successful entrepreneur is, as well as what a successful entrepreneur does.

I've watched my mom fail time and time again at start up companies or being an independent contractor.

I, myself, have found the few marketing companies offers were tempting but too hard to follow and extremely time intensive for what I can give up then.

What I've learned from the above experiences is that entrepreneurial success is a result of strategic persistence.

Out of millions of people looking to turn their ideas into money, only a few have what it takes to make the grade.


And those few who happen to make the grade, do so because they embody the definition of an entrepreneur: someone whose heart and soul powers their determination to stick it out and do whatever it takes to make their entrepreneurial dream a reality.

Periodically some non-entrepreneurial types get lucky without having to invest too much of their own heart and soul into a project, however, that's a rarity.

Oh, and I am not knocking down rarities...

It's said that it is rare that lightning can strike twice.

However, every so often it does.

So don't ever give up on your shouldn't give up on the idea of making it big.

But if you ever want to tilt the odds more in your favor, then I invite you to learn more about the art of entrepreneurship by studying persons who embody the definition of an entrepreneur.

One such person is Ryan Allis, who I read about in a recent article that profiled his entrepreneurial journey from Zero to One Million.

Ryan Allis, founder of iContact, talked candidly about what it actually took to get his company off the ground.

His success is a result of him holding out hope, and fighting diligently to break the odds and fight for his company to take off.

He spent a large portion of his entrepreneurial life, scrambling to get enough capital to keep his company afloat.

Ryan Allis's entrepreneur profile gives us a glimpse of what is required for an entrepreneur to reach greatness.

He didn't treat his start up like playing the lottery, and he probably put in $5 million dollars worth of work to get his company running.

Hopefully for that, he will begin to see his blood, sweat, and tears paid back completely in the very near future.

Allis's entrepreneurial persistence and determination is what made him what he is today.

And when I compare his story with my mom's story: one very concrete thought occurred to me:

The only difference that really exists between Ryan's entrepreneurial approach and my mother's entrepreneurial approach is that Ryan was willing to live off the Raman noodle diet to save pennies for the good of his start up company.

When you stop to look at what it is that defines a great entrepreneur, you will find that they achieved success because of their determination, character, and sheer determinedness to make it happen.

Plenty of people go on to make millions either on their own ideas or through a marketing the ideas of another company, yet the majority of them fail by giving up well before they even had a chance to earn the big bucks.

I learned a lot about the definition of an entrepreneur by reading Ryan Allis's story...but one thing he said REALLY caught my attention:

Ryan spoke very candidly about dropping out of college.

And, while he did drop out of college, he said he really wanted to go back to get his MBA.

• I was baffled.

Ryan's back-to-school statement further showcases to me just how dedicated Ryan Allis is.

You see, I'm back in school myself.

I'm completing my engineering degree...but to hear that someone who has achieved success, has plan to go back to school is mind-boggling.

• Many people value the credentials of a degree, however Ryan's proven that it means less than the determination required to build a company.