Not surprisingly, successful entrepreneurs approach problem solving very differently than do their equally successful large company peers. It all boils down to something called effectual reasoning.
In plain English that basically means that entrepreneurs are “brilliant improvisers” and create their goals along the way, based on specific situations and the tools available to them at the time. Their corporate counterparts, on the other hand, excel at deliberately setting goals to solve specific problems and then creating plans to achieve those goals.
Saras Sarasvathy’s fascinating study findings were summarized in a great Inc. magazine article, How Great Entrepreneurs Think. Read the full article.