Lord dennis stevenson

Lord Dennis Stevenson: Setting up your own business is a decision about a way of life

30 October 2012

The article at a glance

‘Gradualism’ is the way forward, according to Lord Stevenson of Coddenham, Chairman in Residence at Cambridge Judge Business School, as he warns …

Lord Dennis Stevenson‘Gradualism’ is the way forward, according to Lord Stevenson of Coddenham, Chairman in Residence at Cambridge Judge Business School, as he warns entrepreneurs against running before they can walk.

Launching a new series of Cambridge Leadership Seminars, Lord Stevenson, in an interview for Cambridge Judge Business School’s website, said he felt there are a number of issues around entrepreneurship that are incorrectly talked and thought about.

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“Too many people think about entrepreneurship and say ‘hey, I’m going to be like Bill Gates’. Actually very few of us are going to be Bill Gates; perhaps we don’t want to be Bill Gates.

“One of my key messages is that setting up your own business is a decision about a way of life. Yes, you hope it’ll make money it’s got to make you some money to help you survive.

“There’s the whole issue of how you do it where I preach the gospel of gradualism of not rushing into a great deal with venture capital or angel industry selling a great chunk of your shares for a mess of pottage but recognising that businesses need to evolve they change as they go along.”

Lord Stevenson is a former Chairman of HBOS and the Pearson publishing group and is associated with numerous business and corporate ventures.