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ESO Y4B · Economics and Entrepreneurship
The profile of an entrepreneur · The entrepreneur

Entrepreneurial attitudes

Aitana suggests to the class representative an idea for recycling in the canteen without anyone having asked her to. She hasn't set up any company: she has shown an attitude. This section analyses which attitudes make up the entrepreneurial profile, why they are regarded as trainable skills and how to assess them rigorously.

Entrepreneurship as an attitude, not just a business

Flow diagram of the entrepreneurial process: spot a problem, imagine a solution and carry it out. You spot aproblem You imagine asolution Youcarry it out
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Explain in your own words what an entrepreneurial attitude is and how it differs from 'starting a business'. Give two examples of entrepreneurial behaviour that have…

Explain in your own words what an entrepreneurial attitude is and how it differs from 'starting a business'. Give two examples of entrepreneurial behaviour that have nothing to do with making money (at school, in a sports team, or in your family).

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Explain what initiative is and how it differs from 'waiting to be told what to do'. Describe a situation at your school where someone could take the initiative to…

Explain what initiative is and how it differs from 'waiting to be told what to do'. Describe a situation at your school where someone could take the initiative to improve something specific, and what small first step they could take this very week.

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The five attitudes of the entrepreneurial profile

Conceptual diagram representing the five attitudes of the entrepreneurial profile: self-confidence, initiative, empathy, perseverance and responsibility. Self-confidence Initiative Empathy Persever-ance Respons-ibility
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Match each situation with the entrepreneurial attitude that best describes it: self-confidence, empathy, perseverance, initiative, or resilience. a) Aitana suggests an…

Match each situation with the entrepreneurial attitude that best describes it: self-confidence, empathy, perseverance, initiative, or resilience.

  1. a) Aitana suggests an idea for recycling in the canteen to the class rep without anyone asking her to.
  2. b) Bruno fails the first project exam, reviews his mistakes, and tries again.
  3. c) Carla puts herself in the local elderly residents' shoes before designing a simple app for them.
  4. d) Darío believes he is capable of organising the breaktime tournament and offers to do it.
  5. e) Elisa has spent three weeks rehearsing her oral presentation, even though it was already good in the first week.
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Your school's reading club has lost half its members in one term. Match each reaction with the attitude it shows — self-confidence, resilience, empathy or passivity —…

Your school's reading club has lost half its members in one term. Match each reaction with the attitude it shows — self-confidence, resilience, empathy or passivity — and say which one would help most to bring the club back to life: (a) 'people just don't like reading any more, there's nothing we can do'; (b) 'I'm going to ask the ones who left what wasn't working for them'; (c) 'we've had a bad term, but we can try a different format'; (d) 'I can organise the next session, I feel up to it'.

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'Persevering is not about always sticking obstinately to the same thing.' Distinguish perseverance from stubbornness using a school example: at what point does…

'Persevering is not about always sticking obstinately to the same thing.' Distinguish perseverance from stubbornness using a school example: at what point does persisting stop being a virtue and changing strategy becomes advisable?

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'Empathy is not agreeing with everyone.' Explain what it means to put yourself in someone else's shoes without giving up your own judgement, and apply it to this…

'Empathy is not agreeing with everyone.' Explain what it means to put yourself in someone else's shoes without giving up your own judgement, and apply it to this conflict: your team wants to sell personalised mugs at the fair, but half the students asked say they wouldn't use a mug. What would you do with that information without giving up at the first hurdle?

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Self-assessment: a personal SWOT

Personal SWOT matrix that classifies strengths and weaknesses as internal factors, and opportunities and threats as external factors. depends on me depends on the environment Strengthsconsolidated capability Opportunitiesfavourable condition Weaknessescapability not yet developed Threatsadverse condition
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The diagram shows a self-assessment tool that separates what depends on you from what comes from outside, but one of the boxes is covered with a question mark. a) State…

The diagram shows a self-assessment tool that separates what depends on you from what comes from outside, but one of the boxes is covered with a question mark.

depends on me comes from outside Strengths what I already do well Opportunities the good things I can take advantage of Weaknesses what I still struggle with ?
  1. a) State which box is missing and explain what kind of things are written in it.
  2. b) Write two of your own examples for each of the four boxes, thinking about a class project.
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Carry out an honest self-assessment: choose three of your strengths and two of your weaknesses that matter when working in a team. For each weakness, write down a small,…

Carry out an honest self-assessment: choose three of your strengths and two of your weaknesses that matter when working in a team. For each weakness, write down a small, concrete action you could take this month to improve it (for example: "I find public speaking difficult" → "I will volunteer to read the summary in the next presentation").

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Your team wants to set up a charity second-hand sale of clothes and books. Do a personal mini-SWOT for that project: two strengths, two weaknesses, one external…

Your team wants to set up a charity second-hand sale of clothes and books. Do a personal mini-SWOT for that project: two strengths, two weaknesses, one external opportunity you can take advantage of, and one threat that worries you. Then write how you will use one strength to seize the opportunity.

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Attitudes are trained, not inherited

Diagram showing how to turn a weakness into a capability by designing an action plan and practising deliberately. Choosean attitude Measurableaction Repeatand evaluate
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Marta says: 'I'm no good at entrepreneurship, I'm more of an obedient type.' Explain what self-image lies behind that sentence and write two alternative sentences that…

Marta says: 'I'm no good at entrepreneurship, I'm more of an obedient type.' Explain what self-image lies behind that sentence and write two alternative sentences that stay honest but open the door to improvement (for example, changing 'I'm no good at it' to 'I haven't practised it yet').

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Choose an entrepreneurial attitude you struggle with and design your four-week 'training plan': what you will do each week (one small, concrete action), how you will…

Choose an entrepreneurial attitude you struggle with and design your four-week 'training plan': what you will do each week (one small, concrete action), how you will measure whether you are improving, and who can help you stick to the plan. Explain why attitudes are trained like a muscle and not learned just by reading about them.

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'Entrepreneurs are born, not made.' Take a stance on this statement, backing it up with two examples: one of an attitude that you believe can be trained (and how), and…

'Entrepreneurs are born, not made.' Take a stance on this statement, backing it up with two examples: one of an attitude that you believe can be trained (and how), and another of a situation in which an individual's personality genuinely plays a role.

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Responsibility, confidence and self-fulfilling prophecies

Comparative diagram showing how blaming others destroys the team's trust, while taking responsibility and correcting mistakes strengthens it. blaming others acknowledging and correcting the team stopstrusting you with tasks the team trusts you moreover time
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Define what it means to take responsibility for your actions within a team and give a school example of each of these two attitudes: blaming others when something goes…

Define what it means to take responsibility for your actions within a team and give a school example of each of these two attitudes: blaming others when something goes wrong, versus owning up to your share of the mistake and suggesting how to fix it. Why does the second attitude make the team trust you more?

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At the science fair, your group's volcano failed to erupt in front of the judges. Write the follow-up dialogue of two versions of the team: one in which they blame each…

At the science fair, your group's volcano failed to erupt in front of the judges. Write the follow-up dialogue of two versions of the team: one in which they blame each other and another in which they analyse what went wrong without pointing fingers. Highlight which specific sentences make the difference and explain what attitude lies behind each version.

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Vera was part of the team organising the school's entrepreneurship fair. After an argument in which her idea was rejected, she stopped attending meetings and says that…

Vera was part of the team organising the school's entrepreneurship fair. After an argument in which her idea was rejected, she stopped attending meetings and says that 'this isn't for her'.

  1. a) Analyse which entrepreneurial attitudes are lacking in Vera and which ones she should work on.
  2. b) Write down what you would say to her to help her return to the team without giving up on her ideas.
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Bruna's team has had two failed attempts at organising the school's e-sports tournament: the first was cancelled for lack of permits and the second for lack of sign-ups.…

Bruna's team has had two failed attempts at organising the school's e-sports tournament: the first was cancelled for lack of permits and the second for lack of sign-ups. Bruna wants to try a third time, but her teammates say 'it's obvious it just won't happen'.

  1. a) Distinguish which part of the previous failures depended on the team and which part came from outside, and explain why that distinction matters before deciding.
  2. b) Write the analysis Bruna could present to the team to decide with data whether a third attempt makes sense: what she would change, what she would keep, and what signal would tell them it is time to give up.
Solve

Back to the beginning: Aitana showed initiative and empathy by acting on her own decision in the face of a real problem at her school, confirming that an entrepreneurial attitude does not require setting up a company or pursuing financial profit.

Summary

See all the exercises in this section