PORTLAND, OR--(Marketwired - Jan 28, 2015) - After more than 20 years in the biopharmaceutical industry as an entrepreneur, executive, and consultant, Mark Ahn has learned a thing or two about what it takes to succeed as a budding entrepreneur in the dog-eat-dog world of business. In the spirit of giving back and wanting others to enjoy the same success he has achieved, Mark Ahn has shared his top three tips for entrepreneurial success in 2015.
1. The foundation of all entrepreneurial endeavors should be caring. Through his own experiences, Mark Ahn has found that the most solid foundation of entrepreneurship is caring about the difference one's product or efforts is going to make. Ideas, innovation, and eventual success bud and grow from caring about things as small as whether or not an individual enjoyed their meal, to problems as big as climate change and global warming. "If one does not base their endeavors on the foundation of caring, there really is no foundation at all," Mark Ahn explained. Mark Ahn went on to say, "One cannot succeed in innovating the biopharmaceutical industry, or any industry, if they do not care about the individuals their efforts will eventually help." This idea goes hand in hand with Mark Ahn's second tip about measuring success.
2. Do not measure success with money or fame. According to Mark Ahn, "All entrepreneurship is social entrepreneurship. One should measure their success based on how many people they have helped or how much they have improved the world. Money and fame are poor measures of success because they are fleeting." Mark Ahn believes that satisfaction with one's work and efforts comes from a sense of fulfillment and purpose. Money and fame are rarely fulfilling in the long run, and are poor motivators. There is rarely success without motivation.
3. Entrepreneurship requires courage. Muhammad Ali once said, "He who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life." More than 20 years in the entrepreneurial trenches have taught Mark Ahn that, everything associated with entrepreneurship is a risk. Entrepreneurship is a risk to career, personal life, reputation, and sometimes even emotional and physical well-being. Changing the world is a huge responsibility, a responsibility that future entrepreneurs must be ready face head-on without fear. Entrepreneurs must also be ready to potentially fail and be unafraid of starting the process from scratch all over again. One of Mark Ahn's favorite quotes is by C.S. Lewis in which he says, "failures, repeated failures, are finger posts on the road to achievement. One fails forward toward success."
"If budding and future entrepreneurs keep these three simple principles in mind, they can achieve anything. I look forward to seeing the ideas and innovations this new generation of entrepreneurs will bring to the table," Mark Ahn said.
About Mark Ahn, Ph.D.
Mark Ahn, Ph.D. is a founding Principal of Pukana Partners, a strategic consultancy for life science companies. During his twenty year career, Mark Ahn has held leadership positions in both small and large biopharmaceutical companies and throughout academia, and is the author of over 50 peer reviewed journal articles and books.
