Sometimes you read a book that makes you realise that many of your preconceptions are just plain wrong. The Illusions of Entrepreneurship by Scott A. Shane was one such work for me. Although it is written about the US, most of the conclusions it offers apply just as well in other countries.

I always thought that, in general, the more entrepreneurs the better, as far as jobs and national prosperity went. While I accept that not every entrepreneur becomes rich, and that plenty of start-ups fail, I nevertheless felt that, as a group, they were an irreplaceable source of wealth and progress. But it seems that there really are two distinct sorts of start-ups and entrepreneurs.