Addiction and Entrepreneurship
Could one become addicted to the idea of being an entrepreneur?
Countries vary in terms of how their people view entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship as a career path. In some places, entrepreneurship may be viewed negatively or associated with corruption. However, the prevailing view of the entrepreneur in Western Media is the heroic entrepreneur meme.
These figures are often portrayed as outsiders who manage to disrupt incumbencies and are associated with ideas such as democracy, freedom, and liberty.
The Rise of the "Wantrepreneur"
Perhaps the highly idealized, media-driven view of startup culture has led to entrepreneurship becoming a desirable aesthetic and lifestyle pursuit for individuals searching for an identity to adopt, rather than a genuine economic challenge to tackle. Over time, scholars and cultural critics have coined specific, nuanced terms to describe these varying personas who chase the social prestige of the founder lifestyle:
- The "Wantrepreneur": This individual is deeply in love with the idea of being an entrepreneur, but consistently lacks the operational execution, risk tolerance, or discipline to launch a real venture. They frequently spend months or years optimizing pitch decks, registering domain names, attending networking mixers, and talking endlessly about prospective business concepts. However, they remain paralyzed in a perpetual brainstorming loop, never building a Minimum Viable Product (MVP), talking to real customers, or risking their own capital. For the wantrepreneur, the public identity of "building a startup" serves as a psychological shield against the vulnerability of actual market failure.
- The Veblenian Entrepreneur: Rooted in Thorstein Veblen's economic theory of "conspicuous consumption," this persona treats entrepreneurship as a mechanism for elite status signaling and performative luxury. Instead of focusing on capital efficiency or unit economics, the Veblenian entrepreneur prioritizes highly visible markers of prestige: securing an expensive, glass-walled office in a trendy downtown district, buying luxury corporate merchandise, hiring an excessively large team before hitting product-market fit, and aggressively seeking out press coverage and speaking engagements. Their primary motivation is to project an image of extreme affluence and disruptive genius to their social peers and investor networks, often burning through venture capital on superficial overhead.
- The "Untrepreneur" (or Lifestyle Anti-Founder): Operating on the opposite end of the spectrum, the untrepreneur actively adopts the founder aesthetic specifically to reject, subvert, or drop out of traditional corporate capitalism altogether. Influenced heavily by the "digital nomad" and solo-operator movements, their primary goal is not mass scaling, wealth creation, or market disruption, but absolute personal freedom, minimal operational footprint, and zero corporate overhead. They often build hyper-automated, single-person niche businesses or low-maintenance digital content engines designed solely to fund a decentralized, nomadic lifestyle, consciously refusing traditional venture growth to preserve their personal autonomy.
These labels refer to individuals who pursue entrepreneurship not with true innovative intentions, a desire to solve a problem, or to satisfy a need—but solely for the look and lifestyle.
The Science of Addiction
Interestingly, a recent study examining the dark side of entrepreneurship (Spivack & McKelvie, 2021) shows that entrepreneurship can become an addiction. The long hours and repeated trials of the entrepreneur can lead to destructive addictive behaviours.
The study highlights several specific symptoms:
- Obsessive thoughts
- Withdrawal/engagement issues
- Self-worth struggles
- Tolerance
- Neglect and negative outcomes
The Controversy: The "high" of closing a deal or launching a product triggers the same dopamine loops as drugs, leading founders to neglect their health, families, and finances. In a way, the theory pathologizes ambition. Founders find it insulting to be compared to addicts, while mental health advocates argue that ignoring the "addictive" nature of the startup hustle leads to the high rates of depression and suicide in the industry.
The Theoretical Cross-Section: Addiction vs. Drive
1. Addiction vs. Achievement Motivation
While McClelland argues entrepreneurs are driven by a healthy "Need for Achievement," Addiction Theory suggests this drive can metastasize into pathology. Whereas a healthy achiever enjoys the outcome, an addicted entrepreneur becomes dependent on the striving itself, mirroring physiological tolerance.
2. Addiction vs. Uncertainty-Bearing Theory
Frank Knight’s Uncertainty-Bearing Theory posits entrepreneurs bear uninsurable risks for profit. Addiction Theory reframes this: the entrepreneur may be a dopamine-seeking agent addicted to the "rush" of uncertainty, requiring higher stakes to feel stimulated.
3. Addiction vs. Withdrawal of Status Respect
Hagen’s theory focuses on regaining lost social standing. Addiction Theory warns that this can lead to a hollow obsession with the social signal of disruption—being addicted to the image of entrepreneurship rather than the reality of value creation.
4. Addiction vs. Childhood Adversity Theory
Adversity Theory suggests hardship fosters resilience. However, the connection is double-edged: the same trauma that builds "grit" can create a void that entrepreneurial addiction attempts to fill, making the business a primary coping mechanism.
5. Addiction vs. Effectuation Theory
Where Sarasvathy’s Effectuation relies on adapting to contingencies, an addicted founder often fixates on a rigid, grandiose vision. While the effectual founder pivots based on feedback, the addicted founder obsessively clings to a high-risk fantasy.
Entrepreneurship Addiction: Shedding Light on the Manifestation of the 'Dark Side' in Work Behavior Patterns
By April J. Spivack & Alexander McKelvie • Published: August 2018 • Source: YouTube
This presentation explores the "dark side" of organizational and entrepreneurial behavior, examining how high-stakes, high-passion work environments can cross the line into behavioral addiction, affecting decision-making, well-being, and long-term venture health.
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