I recently talked about my dad and the role he played in me being the entrepreneur I am today. This morning, I stopped by B&N to rest for a short while and noticed a book called Instinct. It’s a book about entrepreneurship. I saw this quote and had to write it down:

People who exhibit entrepreneurial behavior may or may not be successful, and entrepreneurial behavior isn’t necessarily passed on. The entrepreneurial spirit can be expressed in many ways that have nothing to do with starting a business.

“Nobody’s yet found [a specific genetic link], but anecdotally you sort of see it. Even though children of entrepreneurs tend to regress to the average, they probably are more entrepreneurial than the standard average, at least for a few generations,” says Kinnear. “Of course, if they get too rich, then they become Paris Hilton.”

Where biology may play a role is in creating a genetic foundation for personality. Instinctively, pouncing on opportunity, being unstopable in pursuit of a vision, being able to persuade others of the value of your idea — those are some of the marks of thinking like an entrepreneur.”

Source: Instinct: Tapping Your Entrepreneurial DNA to Achieve Your Business Goals, Thomas L. Harrison

This really goes at the Nature vs. Nurture arguments that never really get answered all that definitively. Personally, I don’t know how to tell where my guts come from, but if it’s hereditary then I’m happy to have that edge (if any).

What about you? Do you have entrepreneurial behavior or personality? Do you come from a long line of entrepreneurs?