Very Short Interview No. 1, Week 3

       The entrepreneur I chose to interview was Steve, the owner of Leonardo's pizza, that owns other styles of pizza restaurants in Gainesville. Some are more formal pizzerias that offer jazz nights and Sunday brunches while the others are selling single slices of pizza to college students. He is constantly looking for more ideas to make his pizza better and attract more customers. I asked him a few questions after I had a delicious lunch at Leonardo's.
        1) What does it mean to be an entrepreneur to you?
Steve: "It makes me my own person where I have my own goals and can accept my own standards. I have worked for people, and I felt confined in my own job. I have the opportunity for self-actualization."
           He continued to explain how he makes decisions by sitting down with his employees to see what ideas they have to contribute. He claims that there is more legitimacy and his business thrives under this practice. He enjoys what he does because he doesn't have to answer to a company, he can answer to himself, and experiment his ideas on a daily basis.

         2) What do you think I should learn in a Principles of Entrepreneurship class?
Steve: "Can it really be taught? My father was in the liquor industry, he was self educated, and he became an entrepreneur by necessity. No one would hire him because he did not have a resume. Entrepreneurship is about experience and not even the best program could prepare anyone for life. "
           He talked a lot about how important it was to be a people person and to understand them. He said it was very important to branch out and do as much as possible to gain new forms of experience.
        3) What do you wish you would had been taught in school before going off on your path as an entrepreneur?
Steve: I was a Literature major, so I didn't learn much about the important skills in entrepreneurship. However, I left home to go to college and learned many valuable life lessons. I always worked growing up, and I had experience with people. I think being an entrepreneur is a lot about being a people person as well. You have to be grounded and know how to motivate people. Anyway, half of what you are selling is yourself." 
            He continued to tell me how he learned everything he knew by experience as well is growing up away from home while working. He says he learned a lot about people while he was in college and was able to turn that into valuable knowledge to be an entrepreneur.

Interviewing Steve was one of the most enlightening experiences. I learned how important it was to put yourself out there because only then do you get the best results. I was surprised when he told me how he was a literature major in college. I was expecting that he studied business because he was running such a fine establishment and was so successful. I was also surprised when he said when it came to entrepreneurship, those who stuck their heads in books would be the ones to not be as successful as the people who were doing everything they could to experience it. I think it is true how the most successful entrepreneurs are the ones who can motivate people, find balance, and take risks to sell.