Richard Branson dubs 2014 ‘The year of the entrepreneur’

In a recent blog post on LinkedIn which features in 2014’s Big Ideas category, Virgin Active entrepreneur Richard Branson shares his thoughts on what he believes to be the most influential ideas of next year in shaping entrepreneurship.

Referring to his predictions for 2014, Branson writes that because of a general growing access to technology, more entrepreneurs across the globe are becoming more capable of leveraging powerful tools to compete with greater markets.

“I believe 2014 will be the year of the entrepreneur more than just in California. When visiting Africa, Australia, Europe, South America and the US this year, there was a real appetite for entrepreneurship wherever we went,” he says. “From being a dirty word in the past, now entrepreneurship is increasingly being celebrated and encouraged — as it should be.”

Branson argues that the playing field is being leveled meaning that entrepreneurs from across the globe are becoming more innovative and active in their cause to become the next best thing. In a visit to South Africa last month at the South African Success Summit, he exemplified inspiring success stories of entrepreneurs in South Africa, finding innovative solutions to turn challenges into opportunities.

Branson notes, “In South Africa and the Caribbean the Branson Centres of Entrepreneurship are overflowing with talented individuals eager to unleash their ideas onto the world. With the right support (financial and otherwise) they can and will.”

Though aspiring entrepreneurs are in desperate need of things ranging from financial aid, mentoring and exposure. Improvement in infrastructure, more specifically ICT development can open up a whole world of necessary tools and therefore create more opportunities.

“Technology is helping every business, large and small to move forwards, which will only increase in the coming year. Now, entrepreneurs can build companies at a fraction of the cost in the past,” writes Branson.

He further writes that in the years to come, entrepreneurs will have more time to think about the bigger picture and work out how to grow their business, rather than fretting about every detail. Instead of working in their businesses, entrepreneurs can work on their businesses:

“All of the little things that used to add up to big headaches for new businesses, from accounting to website development, are now available to small businesses, giving them the same capabilities as large enterprises at a cost they can afford.”