Entrepreneurship isn’t something you fall into and out of like a bad habit. It isn’t something you turn on and off at will. Rather, it’s more like a special “E” chromosome that certain people begrudgingly accept when they’re born. You either have it, or you don’t. As humans, we are capable of putting entrepreneurship into a state of dormancy (much like my personal battle, being addicted to Smarties), but rest assured, it will rear its ugly head again sooner or later.

As you can imagine from the tone of this post, the ugly head has officially been reared.

You see, three years ago, I had the big idea. You know, that one idea that manages to claw its way through all of the various layers of my entrepreneurial idea filter, and leaves me thinking of little else at the end of the day. The idea consumed me, and thus, I had to consume it. I stumbled across a “perfect storm” - a big problem, with the right solution, and the right timing within the market. And finally, after three years of bootstrapping, it is finally about to see the light of day.

I am surrounded by a fantastic support network. My good friends and fellow entrepreneurs have been there pushing, prodding, and occasionally shoving me along my path to righteousness. If you are an entrepreneur (at any level), do yourself a favor, and find other entrepreneurs who will challenge you every day. Don’t make the mistake of surrounding yourself with “yes” cohorts. Go for the type that stick their finger in your face and say “what the hell are you thinking?”, then in the next breath, ask you for help. You’ll learn a lot, and hopefully give back a lot as well.

If you are sufficiently bored, you should continue your journey of self punishment by reading my recent post called “Defend or Evolve” for more of my thinking on this front.

So, what is this big idea of which I speak? I’ll blog more on it, soon, I promise. Business planning is complete, development of the first release has wrapped up, and our newly assembled management team is as stoked about what we’re doing as I am. So for now, I am hitting the road raising a Series-A round of venture capital, and setting my sights on building a fantastic company.

And so, the cycle begins anew. The idea has fermented, the passions stirred, and my vision sufficiently blurred. Let the games begin!

By the way, the painting (and detail shots) shown within this post are from one of my “other” creations. Created in 2001, this piece is 24×18, oil on canvas, and entitled Birth of an Island. The piece illustrates the energy, eruption, and violence often associated when oceanic volcanos serve up small islands. Quite fitting, I thought!

Cheers.