Entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurial qualities

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maIN PoINTS IN CHaPTER 3
48                                                  
Entrepreneurship in farming
Entrepreneurial Qualities
There is a difference between farm business management 
and entrepreneurship. Farm business management is 
about better planning, implementation, control and 
managing risk. Entrepreneurship is about looking 
forward – identifying opportunities, creating a vision 
of how the business will grow, innovating and taking 
risks. A farmer who thinks of the farm as a business that 
has potential to grow and develop is an entrepreneur. 
Entrepreneurial farmers look at their farms and see 
ways to make them more profitable; they develop ideas 
and then translate them into action. They need self-
motivation, perseverance and confidence with an ability 
to plan and organise the farm business. These qualities 
enable entrepreneurial farmers to seek-out business 
opportunities, conceptualise and initiate new business 
ideas and guide the farm business to accomplish the 
goals set.
Knowledge
Entrepreneurs need more than just their personality 
or personal traits. They need ideas, opportunities, and 
resources. Knowledge allows farmers to make informed 
choices. It puts them in a better position to compare the 
current practices being used with alternatives. Farmers 
obtain knowledge through experience and observation 
- from listening to and learning from other farmers, 
observing how things are done and then practicing 
it themselves. Extension workers are another source 
of knowledge. Information and its communication 
is an important aspect of knowledge creation and 
accumulation.

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Entrepreneurial qualities 
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Farmers need knowledge in each of the key areas of farm 
management: planning, implementing and controlling. 
They also need information about primary production, 
harvesting, processing, wholesaling and retailing 
and  about  input  supply,  financial  services,  transport, 
packaging, promotion and advisory services.