Circle Back Season Bridge with Jane Allen

Once an entrepreneur, Always an entrepreneur
By: Jane Allen

We are honored to have shared the stories of some of Nashville’s most influential entrepreneurs on this season of Circle Back. We hope all who listened were able to walk away from each episode inspired, motivated, and educated on the movers and shakers that have built the entrepreneurial community we love today.

This group of entrepreneurs – Phase 4 entrepreneurs – play a special role in our community as they give back to the next generation of entrepreneurs with their time, resources and expertise, and we are so glad to have the privilege of continuing to help these entrepreneurs meet their goals. I think I said it best in our Annual Report:

Upon joining the EC, I talked with, and more importantly listened to, hundreds of people — entrepreneurs, business leaders, investors, alumni, academics and others — to understand the original mission of this organization, the role it plays in our community today, and its purpose looking forward. I wanted to understand the needs and where this organization can truly create significant impact moving forward. 

One thing became clear in this listening process: When someone takes the leap into becoming an entrepreneur, they never stop being one. Entrepreneurs are people who are wired to solve problems, to keep moving forward, to have a purpose and vision that drives decisions. 

Once an entrepreneur, always an entrepreneur, whether that means actively starting business after business, or reaching back to help those who are following behind them. 

Through listening closely to many entrepreneurs’ stories and tapping into this organization’s ten years of experience working with thousands of entrepreneurs, we created a new model of the entrepreneurial life cycle to make it easier for entrepreneurs to connect to the right opportunities at the right times. 

As we move forward, it is important that our community know that the Nashville Entrepreneur Center is here to support the entire entrepreneurial life cycle.

We will continue to listen to the needs in our community. We will continue connecting entrepreneurs with the support and resources needed to increase their probability of success. And we welcome any entrepreneur to join us on their entrepreneurial journey, whatever Phase that may be. 

You can learn more about the EC’s mission and our last ten years of serving entrepreneurs with our annual report here. Thank you for listening to season 1 of Circle Back, and stay tuned for a new set of stories coming soon in season 2.