The future within : Commitment, hope, and values in entrepreneurship

Abstract

This paper provides philosophical foundations for understanding the future as an internal space for entrepreneurial aspirations. Our argument is laid out in three premises. First, the beliefs underpinning conceptions of the future are best seen as hinge commitments, not subject to rational critique. Second, hope generates the power to make new beginnings and thus enable the pursuit of different futures. Third, the pull of a different future is enabled by the creation of new values that can act as a compass for its pursuit. By engaging with the existential side of the entrepreneurial pursuit of imagined futures, our work aims to expand our scholarly activity.