Creative Talents Languishing at Your Job? Be an Intrapreneur

You know how you’ve always dreamed of building, creating, or inventing that thing? Or sharing your big idea with the world? Or maybe you just dream of finding ways to infuse bits of creativity into your work.

And you know how you also love the sense of security and community you get from having a full-time job? Or how you like going to work without having to figure out how to build a business?

And you know how those two voices are like the angel and devil sitting on your shoulders, whispering furiously into your ears?

If any of this resonates, then let's teach those seemingly competing voices to compromise. The answer they're both seeking is something called "intrapreneurship." It offers a beautiful blend of the comfort of full-time employment with the excitement of building, creating, and innovating.

Companies need big ideas. So if you’re committed to finding and delivering on them, and you want to stick with an established company, then get ready to be a superstar.

So let’s talk about what intrapreneurship is, why you may want to consider it, and the steps you can take to proudly wear the “I’m an intrapreneur” T-shirt.

What is intrapreneurship?

The MIT Sloan School of Management describes intrapreneurship as “acting like an entrepreneur within an established company.”

While entrepreneurs build new businesses on their own, intrapreneurs develop new programs, products, services, innovations, and policies within an existing organization.

Both use many of the same skills—creativity, agility, leadership, and persistence.

Sloan professor Michael Cusumano says:

[Intrapreneurs are] not building something entirely from scratch, nor are they risking their own money. They’re creating something that hasn’t been done before or done quite the same way.

So basically it’s behaving like an entrepreneur but in the confines and safety of an established company.

Why should you consider Intrapreneurship?

In short, being an intrapreneur may benefit you in two ways:

1. It can lead to personal fulfillment
2. It makes you a valuable asset at work

You might consider intrapreneurship if you feel you have untapped talents or passions that you could use to make an impact at work. It can be a way to highlight your creativity, or assume a leadership role, or establish credibility amidst the safety and security of your current job ... without making a career change.

Further, when you show members of leadership that you have an...

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