Welcome to the world of startup! Everyone in Stanford seems to be involved in startups one way or another. Want to be an entrepreneur? Before getting into real stuff, let us first look at the meaning of the word entrepreneur.

en·tre·pre·neur –noun
1.    a person who organizes and manages any enterprise, esp. a business, usually with considerable initiative and risk. (cited dictionary.com)

The explanation seems obvious, but take note of these words "organizes", "manages", "initiative", and "risk". These are four very important words that you have to remember in your journey as an entrepreneur.

As an aspiring entrepreneur, learn to organize. You have to first organize your own life before even stepping into the exciting but busy world of startup. Time management is the first step into organizing your life, especially so as a Stanford student when you have CS107 or ME101 among your classes. "As a college student, if you are not busy, there is something wrong." Once you are confident in organizing your life, you can then learn to organize a company.

Besides organizing and structuring a company, you also need to learn to manage it. Management skill is often overlooked, but is an extremely important skill needed to lead any company, big or small. It is a skill that takes many years to learn.

Skipping past the technical skills required for an entrepreneur, it is very important to have initiative and to be excited. As a founder or inventor, you have to be very excited and active about your own project. No successful entrepreneur starts a company with a goal of earning as much money as possible. Successful startups start with an idea they have passion in, an idea they believe in, an idea they are proud of.

Lastly, starting up requires considerable risk. Be prepared to sacrifice, including your time, efforts, and money. Not all startups are smooth sailing. In fact, many successfully entrepreneurs fail many times before succeeding. You may be emotionally attached, but be prepared of hardships ahead.

Stanford Startup Society provides information and resources for you to better prepare you in your journey as a startup, but there is no magic formula that will make you successful. Ultimately, it is still up to the individual determination. Remember, while running a startup is exciting, it is a journey of hardship and failures.