[ant5]

Am I the only "founder" / "entrepreneur" that doesn't really appreciate these special labels? They're generally something I only hear from the VC tech startup crowd, and usually in the context of breathless veneration.

I'm running a business. I'm not special, a new breed of business man, and I don't need a special startup-glorifying vocabulary for what I do. I'm just another person running a small business -- something people have always done, and it's something that parents (and everyone else) understands.

A neighbor recently started a coffee shop. She puts in long hours, manages the books, orders food, directed the installation of the sound system and kitchen, manages the kitchen staff, makes and serves coffee, and works the cash register.

Nobody is calling her a "founder". She's just a small business owner. She had to raise capital, her business could expand into a large chain, she could (but isn't likely to) become the next Starbucks, or even get bought out by Starbucks. She could also fail miserably. Is it really all that different from what we do?