Chronological History

Entrepreneurial behavior is perhaps the most conspicuous behavioral style in management, and it’s widely advocated; yet, it remains vague, complex, and abstract because of its subtleties. Entrepreneurship stands out because it epitomizes the drive to progressively meet man’s material, social and psychic needs. Entrepreneurship manifests itself in the inspirational leader (the snake-oil salesman, the preacher, the general and the martyr), as well as the mundane leader (the inventor, the innovator and the day-to-day manager). Entrepreneurship’s ubiquitous nature has also made it one of the most controversial behaviors to be studied relative to its philosophical, rational and ethical impact on mankind. Entrepreneurship in free and capitalistic markets has thus inspired writers and scholars in every advancing, industrialized society. These writers have emerged from almost every discipline, hoping to describe, promote or criticize the freest of all approaches to managing human economic affairs. Furthermore, entrepreneurial events, behaviors and thoughts have been most often portrayed as heroic, fascinating and inspired, deserving to be studied and romanticized. Although, there have been many critics of entrepreneurship through the ages. Capitalism’s history generally paints a picture of the entrepreneur as exceptional, sassy and smart. Entrepreneurship has therefore been studied, written about and defined colorfully and often times capriciously; so much so that it has always been a loosely employed concept, whose meaning too frequently has been taken for granted. I therefore will fall prey to the temptation that Gartner (1990) warns all students of entrepreneurship about; that is, to believe that “organizing things” will shed some conclusive light on understanding and defining entrepreneurship.

“If I claim to be a wise man; it surely means that I don’t know (Kansas - Carry On Wayward Son, 1976).”