Working passionately does not always pay off : the negative moderating role of passion on the relationship between deliberate practice and venture performance

Deliberate practice, an iterative process that leads to expertise, is found to be positively associated with superior performance in domains such as sports, education, and entrepreneurship. At the same time, deliberate practice is also seen as being less than enjoyable and difficult to pursue consistently. As such, passion is considered to be a vital motivator of engagement in and maintenance of deliberate practice. Despite the evident importance of passion, the relationship between passion and deliberate practice in entrepreneurship has not been subject to sufficient empirical evaluation. Therefore, in this study, we consider the way in which passion moderates the relationship between deliberate practice and venture performance. We hypothesize that deliberate practice is positively related to venture performance and that passion positively moderates this relationship. We find support for our first hypothesis, in line with previous studies. However, contrary to our second hypothesis, we find that entrepreneurial passion negatively moderates the deliberate practice-venture performance relationship. In response to this finding, we provide possible explanations as to why this negative moderation effect was observed by drawing on Kolb’s experiential learning cycle

Actions Speak Louder than Words: How Figurative Language and Gesturing in Entrepreneurial Pitches Influences Investment Judgments

International audienceA key challenge for entrepreneurs is to convince investors of their business ideas in a pitch. Although scholars have started to explore how entrepreneurs convey their passion and preparedness in a pitch, they have overlooked the possible variation that exists in the verbal and nonverbal expressions of entrepreneurs. We build on research in cognitive science and entrepreneurship to examine the nature and influence of specific forms of speech and gesturing used by entrepreneurs when pitching. In an initial qualitative field study we identify distinct pitching strategies entrepreneurs use, involving different combinations of verbal tactics (using literal and figurative language to frame a venture) and gesture (using different types of hand gestures to emphasize parts of their pitch and convey product and venture ideas). In an experimental study with samples of investors and students, we examine the impact of these strategies on the propensity to invest. We found that although variation in the type of language entrepreneurs used had limited effects, using gestures to depict and symbolize business ideas had strong positive effects. Our findings indicate that the skilled use of gestures by entrepreneurs helps potential investors imagine aspects of a new venture for themselves, enhancing perception of its investment potential.<br/