08. Two Kinds of American Business Heroes

Because of the many beliefs that connect business to the wealth and the traditional values of the United States, people who are successful in business have sometimes become heroes to the American people. Two kinds of business heroes have gained widespread respect: "the entrepreneur" and the "organization man or woman." Entrepreneurs provide examples of traditional American values in their purest form, and these people are most likely to be idealized by the American public. The second kind of hero, "the organization man / woman," is seen as a less perfect example of basic American values, but he or she still commands great respect. Here we will be discussing the first kind of hero.

The Entrepreneur as Hero

Entrepreneurs are the purest kind of business heroes for a number of reasons. The first reason is that they succeed in building something great out of nothing. The people who, more than 100 years ago, built up the nation's great industries, such as steel, railroads, and oil refining, were usually entrepreneurs. They started with very little money or power and ended up as the heads of huge companies that earned enormous fortunes.

The fact that these early entrepreneurs built great industries out of very little made them seem to millions of Americans like the heroes of the early frontier days, who went into the vast wilderness of the United States and turned forests into farms, villages, and small cities. The entrepreneur, like the earlier hero of the frontier, was seen as a rugged individualist.

Entrepreneurs made so much out of so little that they became heroes to the common people in America. Entrepreneurs often began as common people themselves; without the aid of inherited social title or inherited money, they became "self-made" millionaires. They were thus perfect examples of the American idea of equality of opportunity in action.

The strong influence of the success stories of the early entrepreneurs can be found in the great popularity of the novels of Horatio Alger which were published in late 19th- and early 20th-century America. About 17 million copies of these books were sold to the American public. The central theme of Alger's novels is that in the United States a poor city boy or a poor farm boy could become a wealthy and successful businessman if he works hard and relies on himself rather than depending on others. This is because the United States is a land of equality of opportunity where everyone has a chance to succeed.

In Alger's first published novel, Ragged Dick, a poor city boy who shines shoes for a living becomes Richard Hunter, a successful and wealthy businessman. The hero rises from "rags to riches" and fulfills the American Dream. Dick succeeds only partly because he lives in a land of equality of opportunity. His success is also due to the fact that he practices the American virtues of self-reliance and hard work. According to Alger, Dick "knew that he had only himself to depend upon, and he determined to make the most of himself ... which is the secret of success in nine cases out of ten." Dick was also a hard-working shoe shine boy, "energetic and on the alert for business." This quality marked him for success, explained Alger, because in all professions "energy and industry are rewarded."

Although few Americans today read Horatio Alger's stories, they continue to be inspired by the idea of earning wealth and success as entrepreneurs who "make it on their own." A final characteristic of entrepreneurs that appeals to most Americans is their strong dislike of submitting to higher authority. Throughout their history, Americans have admired entrepreneurs who conducted their business and their lives without taking orders from anyone above them. Americans have great respect for those who can say, "I am my own boss."

Today, many Americans are willing to take the big financial risk that is necessary to start their own small business. Although one out of every four new businesses fail within the first two years (and half of them within the first four years), small businesses account for three out of four of the new jobs created in the 1990s. The overwhelming majority of these jobs employ one to four people. Inspired by entrepreneur heroes like Steven Jobs, who started Apple Computer in his garage, Bill Gates, who developed Microsoft into a global giant, and Ross Perot, a self-made billionaire who ran for President, risk-taking entrepreneurs still launch their businesses with high hopes of "making it big."