As an entrepreneur, what makes you roll your eyes every time you hear it?

“Aren’t you lucky. You don’t answer to a boss.”

I roll my eyes before pointing out to these misguided folks that every entrepreneur creates as many bosses as they have customers, and their most demanding boss, aka customer, is themselves. So customer and boss are synonyms for employees as well as entrepreneurs.

The first part of the question, “aren’t you lucky”, is right on. Yes, I was incredibly lucky — as I am convinced many entrepreneurs and executives will admit if they are honest — when I first went into business to write corporate gargle. I miraculously (maybe serendipitously or accidently are better descriptors) found a handful of customers who appreciated my talents and sent checks to prove it. Then I miraculously found customers who wanted to teach their employees to improve their writing, and I started a teaching career, and then customers who wanted to publish books so I became a publisher. I somehow became an entrepreneur/conglomerate.

I roll my eyes a second time when a person says with a straight face, “I hear that you are a publisher. I have a book in my head…”

That’s when I hand that budding author my card (never leave home without one) and reply. I’m sure it’s interesting and I’d love to read it. When you have completed a proposal and manuscript, please contact me.”

“I hear that you are a publisher. I have a book in my head…”

Most of these wannabe authors disappear, but two didn’t. One sent me the manuscript of her ordinary life, which I rejected; another sent me the manuscript describing her life as a child during World War Two. I published it as Mushrooms for Dinner.