Megan,

You left out one component. The entrepreneur is also taking the financial risk. As much as you want to consider yourself an entrepreneur, you are not taking the finacial risk of operating a business or depending on your abilities to produce profits or income to meet your needs.

An employee by definition cannot be an entrepreneur unless you are allowed to change the meaning of the word in every dictionary published.

My Funk and Wagnalls dictionary only offers one definition for entrepreneur - n. One who undertakes to start and conduct a business or enterprise.

It has nothing to do with it being a government position, it has to do with your status as an employee. The guaranteed salary and benefits you derive from a job negates your claim of taking risks, as you are not risking any capital or your weekly pay.

If you were to make your living as a private teacher or tutor, then you could say you are operating an enterprise. The franchisees of Sylvan Learning Centers qualify by definition.

Maybe you can get those people who add new words to the dictionaries each year to consider your educational entreprenerialship as a secondary definition, but I wouldn't hold my breath.

Not just my opinion, but the dictionary's as well.

Dennis Bevers


My risk taking enterprise that has kept me self-employed for 19 years!