Satisfied Self-Starters

From the Blog

Creation and Re-creation: That’s Entrepreneurship

There are a lot of apt analogies that can be drawn between entrepreneurship and parenting, writes Meredith Grelli, assistant professor of entrepreneurship at Carnegie Mellon’s Tepper School of Business and co-founder of Wigle Distillery and Threadbare Cider & Mead. 

While happiness ebbs and flows in cycles punctuated by stress, studies show that entrepreneurs report, overall, exceptional life satisfaction. Entrepreneurs work more and stress more than the rest of the workforce. And while there are negative impacts to personal lives, research shows that these cons are outweighed by the deep meaning that entrepreneurs find when they successfully build their enterprises. 

That satisfaction is also dependent on the mindset of those who strike out on their own, Grelli notes. On one hand, she says, are the “wantrepreneurs,” who dream of money and recognition. On the other hand are true entrepreneurs who want to build something. Studies show that the latter are most likely to find meaning and purpose in their work, says Grelli. 

Hardships fuel and inform the entrepreneur’s future growth, she notes, adding that “the relentless cycle of creation and re-creation … is the nature of entrepreneurship,” adding that Pittsburgh “is one of America’s great entrepreneurial cities.” 

Three Companies Split $1.05 Million in Inaugural Social Impact Pitch Competition

The Richard King Mellon Foundation has awarded a total of $1.05 million to three companies in its inaugural social impact pitch competition, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported. 

The three winners are Fabric Health, Gus Gear and Module, which were selected from a total of 108 companies that submitted pitches. 

First-place finisher Fabric Health uses idle time at laundromats to teach people about health care options and, in partnership with local providers, arranges on-site health care services such as mobile breast cancer screenings. The company plans to use its $500,000 prize to expand into landromats in the Pittsburgh region. 

Gus Gear, the second-place winner, produces accessories that protect medical devices such as a central line or an ostomy pouch so children can move more freely. It was awarded $300,000.  Module, which won third place, sells energy-efficient modular homes designed to last a century. It plans to use its $250,000 prize to open an advanced manufacturing facility in the region and launch an industry-specific workforce development program.

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