The future of any country depends upon its students. They need to keep pace with the fast-changing world to build careers and a better society. In the 21^st century, entrepreneurship has emerged as a revolutionary phenomenon that holds the key to the progress of a country. Considering its magical effect and huge potential in the overall development of an economy, Higher Education Institutes (HEIs) have realized how crucial it is to develop an entrepreneurial mindset among students. Realizing the need, even the draft National Education Policy 2019 (NEP) of India has also outlined some special steps that need to be taken to incorporate it into the school curriculum.

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How to inspire entrepreneurial thinking among students

1. Project-based learning: Colleges or educational institutes can encourage students to chart their own courses as students are used to pre-packaged ideas and linear thinking. It has been seen that students are not used to exploring or thinking creatively. Educators can instead help their students develop an entrepreneurial mindset through team-based projects to challenge this linear pattern. Such project-based learning models can help them identify a problem or job to be done and conduct market research. This will help them to create a new product or service that addresses the issue.
 
In a classroom setting, a teacher can send students on an unstructured journey, without giving them a blueprint. The educator can then ask the students to identify a challenge and encourage them to work in teams to find a solution. This exercise will also hone their problem-finding skills.

2. Inspire and encourage students to take bold actions: The industry is full of challenges as well as risks. There is no escape from occasional failures or setbacks. Especially in a start-up world, young entrepreneurs have to build profitable businesses from scratch. Young students can be encouraged to take calculated risks in the right direction, without fear of failure. Failure is the essence of entrepreneurship and even great brands, or businesses have come across difficult situations at some point in their journey. This approach can be met by instilling resilience among students and inspiring them to come up with new business proposals, presentations, and an investor-ready business plan at the end of a semester.
 
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3. Unleash their creativity by helping them think ‘broadly’: Some students can be good at solving problems, but they may find it difficult to find a problem to solve. In some management schools, professors are teaching their students to unlearn traditional ways of thinking and unleash their creativity. Getting students out of their comfort zones is the key to accomplishing this approach. Basically, when students start to question rules and think about new possibilities, then they are thinking ‘broadly’ and creatively.

4. Show students what they are capable of: The key to launching students on a successful path is setting the bar high. For instance, educators will never know if their students can jump sex feet unless they set the bar at six feet. This kind of entrepreneurial approach can be met by setting high expectations, but also adequately guiding students.

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An entrepreneurial mindset allows individuals to identify and benefit from opportunities, review mistakes when the situation requires them, change course, and learn and move forward. There is no doubt that developing this mindset may provide a foundation for students to begin their journey in life or career. Be it beginning a business project or excelling in a job, early exposure to entrepreneurship can nurture unconventional talents and skills among students.

The good part is that today entrepreneurship is not restricted to limited fields like engineering or medicine; it has evolved and covers almost all industries or sectors, from arts to culture, from entertainment to tourism and travel. This makes an education base enriched in entrepreneurship education a must for all students, irrespective of their education specification or stream.