CBC’s hit television show Dragons’ Denhas brought entrepreneurship into the primetime spotlight. Aspiring venturists present their ideas to the Dragons—some of Canada’s brightest, most successful entrepreneurs—in the hope of striking a deal that will bring their product to the marketplace.
One of those Dragons is Bruce Croxon, a digital pioneer who co-founded the online dating service Lavalife. He now invests in digital startups and owns a chain of holistic spas, while also partnering with promising ventures he encounters on the show. He talked with Career Options Magazine about what young entrepreneurs need to know to succeed.
Career Options: What is a typical day like for an entrepreneur?
Bruce Croxon: I would say the answer is there really is no typical day because I think by its nature, you have to be ready to adapt to changing situations depending on the size of the business you’re involved with. But if you’re just starting up, there really is no typical day. You’re usually underfunded, doing everything yourself. It can be a scramble. The challenge is to take that chaos and the temptation to lose your focus, and try to bring some focus to what you’re trying to do. So the short answer is there is no typical day.
CO: What are the risks and hazards of being an entrepreneur?
Croxon:The challenge of being an entrepreneur is that it can be a very lonely existence. You’re taking responsibility for the success or failure of whatever it is that you’re being entrepreneurial about. The risk is that you can work and work and work—and there’s no doubt that it’s more work than a more conventional career path—and the risk is you can work really hard and not get the results that can be considered a success. You have to let go of the notion that you put in eight hours of work and therefore should get this much money. The reality is you’ll have to work really hard, and the amount of money you get for the amount of effort you put in may not be equal. You have to keep grinding until things start to happen.
CO: What are the benefits?
Croxon: It’s a very personal journey. You acutely feel every victory and you acutely feel every defeat. If you’re the kind of person who can live with the ups and downs of it, and not let it keep you awake at night, and if you’re still a nice person to be around and the rollercoaster doesn’t eat you up, there’s no better feeling than working hard at something and having the fruits of your own labour come out the other side. It’s a very rewarding experience.
CO: What are the qualities needed for a successful entrepreneur?
Croxon: Stamina and stick-to-it-ness. You need to work harder than the next person. You need to be comfortable [with the fact] that you need to be thinking about your business seven days a week, 24 hours a day. In this competitive environment, if you’re not doing that, someone else will be. I think the other quality of a good entrepreneur is the ability to look in the mirror once in a while and realize that you don’t have all the answers. It’s a fine line because you need enough ego to have enough confidence to do it on your own, but your ego can’t be so big that you ignore the mistakes you make or the learning you get from other people and situations. So introspection would be a quality you need. The ability to work with others, too, unless you’re an exceptionally bright person—of which I’ve met very few in my life.
CO: When is a good idea really a bad idea?
Croxon: It depends on what area you’re working in. I work in the digital world. The good and bad thing is you get feedback very quickly. You know how people use the service and respond to what you’re doing. You just really need to listen to your customers and pay close attention to how they’re adapting to the service. In most industries today, because things move a lot quicker than they used to, if you’ve got your eyes and ears open, that feedback comes pretty quickly.
CO: How do you know when to quit?
Croxon: I would say live at home for a bit longer—it’ll save you some rent—and get to work. When you have something that’s worth backing and worth getting behind, the best vote of confidence you can get is from your friends and family. Investors like me, if you’re looking at early-stage ideas, look at whether your friends and family have supported you the best they can. They probably have the best idea of what your odds of success are.
CO: What advice would you give to a young entrepreneur in postsecondary or just graduating, especially in terms of money?
Croxon: I would say live at home for a bit longer—it’ll save you some rent—and get to work. When you have something that’s worth backing and worth getting behind, the best vote of confidence you can get is from your friends and family. Investors like me, if you’re looking at early-stage ideas, look at whether your friends and family have supported you the best they can. They probably have the best idea of what your odds of success are.
CO: What do you wish you knew when you were a young entrepreneur?
Croxon: Looking back, I wish I had known a little more about financing and the right time to bring capital into a business. So the balance sheet and financial part of things, I could’ve used a bit more knowledge about. The other thing is it’s probably as easy to go with a big idea as it is a small idea. It’s the same amount of work, so you might as well go for the big one.
Also check out these resources to advance your entrepreneurial goals.
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Career Options magazine is a vital resource for university and college students aiming to join the workforce. It includes job opportunitiesfrom top employers across Canada, the latest employment trends, information on key industries and career paths, tips from experts and recently hired grads, co-op and internship information, advice on graduate studies, and much more! Career Options is published by the Canadian Association of Career Educators and Employers, a national, not-for-profit organization that brings together employers and career centre staff working in postsecondary institutions.
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