BUSINESS ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Five Things Every Entrepreneur Should Know Marc Steren has made a career out of founding companies. Here’s his best advice. BY JULIE RASICOT Ever since entrepreneur Marc Steren started his first business—mobile tick-
less risk-averse by going through entrepreneurship. You’re willing to try new things. That’s what life’s about.” Here are five things Steren says every entrepreneur should know.
so one of you is going to have to go.’ You need to bring on people who have a skill set that you just don’t have.”
“ENTREPRENEURSHIP TEACHES YOU EMPATHY. IT TEACHES YOU TO LISTEN; IT TEACHES YOU TO GET FEEDBACK.” —MARC STEREN, CEO OF UNIVERSITY STARTUPS
PHOTO COURTESY MARC STEREN
eting company ZebraPass—in the late 1990s, finding solutions to problems has been his “life’s work.” Find a mentor. “People think of entrepreneurs as peo“One day you think you have a unicorn ple out there just earning dollars,” Steren Don’t partner with a buddy. company and you’re going to be on a prisays. “The reality is that great entrepre- “Many people will say, ‘I’m going to work vate island, and another day you think neurs, and I certainly don’t consider with someone who has the exact same you’re going to go out of business. So you myself one of these, are out there need someone to just talk to, to get advice from. But you need for just that smile and that service when they see the solution someone who you trust, who will making someone better off in life. give it to you straight, be sympaThat is really exciting, captivating thetic and empathetic, but someand gets you up in the morning.” one who will listen to you.” The Gaithersburg resident, 53, has founded companies involvYour speed is your secret weapon. ing technology, real estate and franchising. He is the former “Speed of action is the really comco-director of the Georgetown petitive advantage of any startup. University Summer Launch proImagine an organization that goes gram and in 2020 was named into a community, listens, underdirector of the Lab for Entrestands their problems, builds solupreneurship and Transformative tions quickly, gets feedback from Leadership at The Universities at the customer as to what works Shady Grove in Rockville. He’s and what doesn’t work, and builds also the author of three books, something out within a week.” including The Student’s Guide to Entrepreneurship. Investment is not validation. Steren’s latest venture, with “People confuse the two. Valilongtime business partner John dation is customers using and Jabara, is University Startups, a paying for your product. People Bethesda-based tech company think, I’ve raised $5 million from that offers an online curriculum ‘X’ investor. That’s not validato help students from low-income tion—it’s a belief that you may Marc Steren of Gaithersburg has founded a host of companies. communities. The idea is to build turn it into validation.” personalized pathways to college, job opportunities and career success by fos- skill set as me, thinks like me.’ That can be Keep learning. tering an entrepreneurial mindset. a recipe for disaster for two reasons: One, “I read or listen to over 100 books a year. “Entrepreneurship teaches you empa- there’s no pushback. Two, when a venture I’m a junkie for learning. It is the expothy. It teaches you to listen; it teaches you capitalist comes in, he says, ‘You guys are nential competitive advantage that I have to get feedback,” Steren says. “You become exactly the same, I don’t need both of you, as an entrepreneur.”
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