Help Center

1. Getting Started

You can take the ETI at www.startease.app/assessment, which is where the home page's "Take the free ETI assessment" button leads, or through a partner institution's portal link. Once you're signed in, you can also start it from Assessment in your dashboard. The assessment works the same way regardless of how you arrive.

2. Starting as an Anonymous Visitor

You don't need an account to take the ETI. Choose "Take the free ETI assessment" on the home page, then "Begin Assessment." Your progress is saved in your browser, so you can close the tab and return later to continue where you left off: you'll be asked "Resume Assessment?" Choose "Resume Assessment" to continue, or "Start Over."

If you're signed in, your progress is also saved to your account every few answers, so you can pick it up on another device.

3. Answering the Questions

The ETI has four parts:

• Part 1: Your Type. 28 rapid-fire questions. Select the word or image that describes you best.
• Part 2: Your Attributes. 36 questions, each with two options. Neither may seem to fit perfectly, but choose the one that suits you best. You may also be asked a few unnumbered clarifier questions, which can make the progress bar jump a little.
• Part 3: Your Knowledge & Skills. Four questions where you rate your confidence in business areas, then 12 quiz questions that do have right and wrong answers.
• Part 4: Your Entrepreneurial Readiness. 18 questions about your current circumstances.

Select an answer, then choose "Next." You can change your answer until you choose Next, but you can't go back to an earlier question. There's no time limit.

Tip: In Parts 1 and 2, answer based on your instincts rather than overthinking. Your first reaction is usually the most accurate. In Part 4, answer based on your current situation, not where you hope to be.

4. Viewing Your Basic Results

After the last question, you may see a short "Calculating Your Results" screen. Choose "Continue to Results" when it appears.

Your results open with Your Entrepreneurial Type Profile: a radar chart plotting your four type percentages, your unique entrepreneurial subtype (one of 16 possibilities), your dominant type and influencer types, your Confidence and Yrnehtism scores, and your Ideal Business Partner. Further down are Your Attribute Polarities, Your Tension Summary, How Your Partner Lessens Your Tensions, Your Readiness Profile, and Your Strategic Roadmap.

5. Celebrity Entrepreneur Match

Each of the 16 subtypes is illustrated by a well-known entrepreneur. For example, Mark Cuban illustrates Opportunistic + Effective. You can see all 16 in "Four Types Become Sixteen" on the ETI page, and when you share your results, the Celebrity Doppelganger style names the entrepreneur who matches your subtype. This is for illustration purposes only: the match helps you quickly understand your type through a recognizable example.

6. Sharing Your Results

When you're signed in, choose "Share Results" on your results page. Pick one of three styles: Celebrity Doppelganger, Partner Search (Pro), or Sharing is Caring to invite others to take the assessment. Check the preview, then share by Copy, LinkedIn, Facebook, X, WhatsApp, Email, or SMS. Anyone can choose "Download as PDF" to save a copy of their results.

7. Why Create an Account?

While you can take the ETI without an account, creating a free one gives you permanently saved results, the ability to upgrade to Pro (which unlocks your full Strategic Roadmap), and training registrations. You can also retake and compare your results, share them, update your Readiness Rating, play Business Boo, and earn badges.

8. Registration

Choose "Sign Up/In" at the top of any page, then "Create an account." Enter your first and last name, your email, and a password (at least 8 characters), confirm the password, and choose "Create Account." You can also tick "I consent to marketing from affiliates." You can change this anytime in Settings.

We'll email you a verification link, valid for 24 hours. When you click it, we confirm your address and ask you to choose the password you'll sign in with. For your security, the password entered at sign-up isn't kept until your address is confirmed. This step's link lasts 60 minutes; if it runs out, use "Forgot password?" to set your password. Then sign in. You can't sign in until your email is verified. If your verification link has expired, the page it opens lets you choose "Send a new link."

If your institution gave you a portal link, register through it so your account joins that portal. Accounts registered through an enterprise partner's portal include Pro. If you sign up with a .edu email address, you get education pricing.

If you took the assessment before creating an account, see item 11, "Connecting Anonymous Results."

9. Logging In

Choose "Sign Up/In" at the top of any page, enter your email and password, and choose "Sign In." Tick "Remember me" to stay signed in on this device for up to 14 days.

In your dashboard, if you're inactive for 19 minutes, a "Session Expiring" message counts down. Choose "Stay Logged In" to continue; otherwise you're signed out after 24 minutes.

10. Forgot Password

Choose "Forgot password?" on the sign-in page, enter your email, and choose "Send Reset Link." Check your inbox for a reset link; it expires after 60 minutes. Once you've set a new password, sign in with it. Resetting your password signs you out everywhere else, including saved logins.

11. Connecting Anonymous Results

If you finish the assessment without signing in, your results are kept in this browser only. A banner above them says so, with "Create a free account now" and "Log in." When you sign in on the same device and browser and open the Assessment, your results are saved to your account automatically: you'll see "Saving your results..." and then your results. If you switch browsers or clear your browser data first, those results can't be recovered.

12. Reading the Radar Chart

The four-pointed chart, "Your Type Spread," plots your score on each axis: Altruistic (service-oriented), Effective (mastery-focused), Inventive (innovation-driven), and Opportunistic (growth-focused). The further your score extends toward a corner, the stronger that tendency. Pro members can also tick "Your Business Partner's Radar Chart" to overlay their ideal partner's shape.

13. Confidence Score

Confidence shows how sure the ETI is of your subtype. The more your answers span the four types, the lower it is, because it's harder to say exactly where you fall within the ETI framework. A lower score isn't a bad result; it can mean you have a more balanced profile. When confidence is low, your Yrnehtism score helps clear things up. Select the "i" beside the score for a short explanation.

14. Yrnehtism Score

Think of Yrnehtism as "magnetic reluctance." It measures how reluctant you are to stick to your subtype: the probability you'll "waffle" between other subtypes covered by your overall type spread, as best seen in the radar chart. It helps clear things up when your confidence is low.

15. Dominant vs. Influencer Types

Your Dominant Type is your primary entrepreneurial drive, shown with its percentage. Your Influencer Types are your other three types, listed from strongest to weakest with their percentages. They are secondary tendencies that modify and shape how your dominant type expresses itself.

16. The 16 Subtypes

Your subtype has a name, such as "The Catalyst," and a combination, such as "Inventive + Opportunistic (I+O)." The first type is dominant; the second is your strongest influencer. If your dominant type is at least twice as strong as your next type, your subtype is a "pure" one, such as Altruistic + Altruistic (The Humanitarian). Each of the 16 combinations has distinct characteristics, described on your results page.

17. Understanding "Tensions"

Your Tension Summary flags places where your answers pull in different directions, for example when your dominant and influencer types are nearly equal, when your behaviors don't match your subtype, or when an attribute is nearly balanced. Each flag comes with an explanation. These tensions aren't weaknesses to fix; they're signals pointing you toward complementary partnerships. "How Your Partner Lessens Your Tensions," just below, explains how your ideal partner offsets each one. If none are found, you'll see "No significant attribute tensions detected."

18. What's Included in Pro

Pro is a one-time purchase: $24.99, or $19.99 if you signed up with a .edu email address. A partner portal may set its own price, and accounts registered through an enterprise partner's portal include Pro. Pro doesn't expire. It unlocks:

• your full Strategic Roadmap, all nine steps across three phases;
• your Ideal Business Partner's subtype, why the pairing works, and their radar chart overlay;
• Your Attribute Descriptions;
• Recommended Resources (including discounts) in Your Readiness Profile, and Curated Resources on your Workbooks page;
• the Partner Search share style; and
• five assessment attempts instead of three.

If you don't have Pro yet, registering for a training with "Pay with PayPal" or "Free — Enroll Now" includes it.

19. Purchasing Pro

Sign in, then choose a "Go Pro" button on your results page (under your radar chart and on each locked section), "Upgrade to Pro" on the Profile tab of Settings, or "Upgrade to Pro" on the Pricing page. You'll be directed to PayPal to complete the purchase. When you return, you'll see "Welcome to Pro! Your account is being upgraded." Pro unlocks as soon as PayPal confirms your payment.

On the Offer page you can also enter a promo code, or choose "Go Pro + Gift One Free" and enter a partner's email address. They'll get an email to claim a free Pro membership.

20. Ideal Business Fit

Your Strategic Roadmap opens with your subtype's business fit: the kinds of ventures that naturally align with your entrepreneurial profile ("Likely Models") and why. It's free: you don't need Pro or an account to see it. You can also read the fit for all 16 subtypes in "Four Types Become Sixteen" on the ETI page.

21. Ideal Collaborative Match

Your results name your "Ideal Business Partner": the subtype whose strengths cover your tensions. Their dominant type is the opposite of yours (Altruistic and Opportunistic are opposites, as are Effective and Inventive), and their influencer is whichever of your two remaining types you score lower on. Pro members see the partner's subtype, why the pairing works, and the partner overlay on the radar chart. Everyone can read "How Your Partner Lessens Your Tensions." In your dashboard, "Invite a potential partner" takes you to Games, where Business Boo lets you invite them.

22. The 256 Partner Combinations

With 16 subtypes, there are 256 possible partnership pairings. Your results focus on the pairing that matters most to you: your ideal business partner.

23. The Three Phases

Your personalized roadmap is structured in three phases: Phase I, Launching (Problem-Solution Fit); Phase II, Accelerating (Solution-Market Fit); and Phase III, Positioning (Market-Pivot Fit). On your results page they're titled Launching, Accelerating, and Positioning; select a phase to open it.

24. The Nine Steps

Each phase contains three steps that build on each other, nine in all: Shift, Unfold, and Conceive; Critique, Execute, and Evaluate; and Develop, Establish, and Discipline. The roadmap provides specific guidance tailored to your subtype: each step opens with a short introduction, followed by its tasks.

25. The Four Business Disciplines

Within each step, tasks are grouped under four color-coded disciplines: Operations & Logistics (orange), Marketing & Retaining (purple), Products & Services (green), and Legalizing & Accounting (yellow-green). Compare them with your Primary and Secondary Discipline, shown in Your Readiness Profile, to see which tasks fall outside your natural strengths.

26. Free vs. Pro Roadmap Access

Without Pro, you see your business fit and Step 1 (Shift) in full, and Phases II and III appear blurred behind "Unlock your full roadmap." Pro members get all nine steps with all their tasks.

27. Browsing Trainings

The Training Hub (Training in the top navigation, or Training in your dashboard) shows available training programs in two groups: VentureEase Academy Programs and Partner Institution Programs. You'll see VentureEase Academy's programs and any program a partner has made available to everyone. If you came in through a partner institution's portal, you'll also see that institution's own programs. Search, or filter by delivery type, pacing, price, and date range.

28. Training Details

Choose "Learn More" on any training to see its full details, such as delivery, pacing, sessions, duration, start and end dates, price, spots remaining, location, schedule, registration deadline, a description, the session schedule, the instructor, and prerequisites and program milestones.

29. Pricing Tiers

A training shows its price, and some also list an education price. You get the education price automatically if you signed up with a .edu email address. Before you pay, the Price Breakdown shows the training's price, any Education Discount, any discount code you've applied, any Pro Membership Credit, and the Total Due.

30. Registration

On a training's page, choose "Register Now" (you'll be asked to sign in first). This opens the training in your dashboard: a paid training shows its Price Breakdown and "Pay with PayPal," and a free one shows "Free — Enroll Now." If you have a discount code, enter it and choose "Apply" before you pay. Confirmation emails are sent automatically.

Some programs ask you to "Apply to This Program" instead, and some register you on the partner's own site ("Register via ..."). Your registrations appear under My Enrollments, where you can choose "Cancel Registration" until the program starts. A paid registration you cancel before the start is refunded in full.

31. Waitlists

If a training is full and has a waitlist, choose "Join Waitlist" (you'll be asked to sign in first), then enter your name and email; a phone number is optional. You'll see your position, such as "You're on the waitlist! Position: #3," and get a confirmation email. When a spot opens because a registration is canceled, the next person on the waitlist is emailed, and the spot goes to the first person to register.

32. Micro-Learning Posts

The Training Hub also features Micro-Learning Posts: short educational articles that are free to read, even without an account. Search them, or filter by discipline, series, tag, and published date. When you're signed in, you can join the Discussion under a post in your dashboard's Training Hub and delete your own comments.

33. Dashboard Sections

Your dashboard has a sidebar; open it with the menu button. It lists Dashboard, Assessment, Results (saved assessments), Training (programs and registrations), Readiness (the readiness questions), Games, Badges (achievements earned), Workbooks, and Settings. Settings has four tabs: Billing (transactions), Profile (personal info), Settings (password, preferences, and account deletion), and Support (your support tickets).

Dashboard shows your Action & Summary Panel. Its buttons change with your progress: "Start Test"; "Resume Test" and "Start Over"; or "View Latest Results" and "Retake Test." Below them is a Latest Results summary: Subtype, Confidence, Primary Discipline, Leans, Tensions, and Readiness. If you're an administrator, your admin tools appear under Admin in the same sidebar.

34. Badges Tab

Choose Badges in your dashboard to see "You've earned N of M badges. Keep going!," a progress bar, and every badge grouped by category. Badges are awarded for activities like completing assessments, playing games, reading articles, and maintaining login streaks. Earned badges show their icon, description, and the date you earned them; the others show your progress.

35. Viewing Saved Results

Results shows your latest assessment in full. Below it, Past Results lists your earlier results with their dates, subtypes, and confidence. Choose View to open one, Compare to see it side by side with your current result, or Delete to remove it. On your Dashboard, "Show History" lists every result with its date and time. "Export CSV" on your results page downloads your result history.

If a portal administrator asks to see your results, the request appears on your results page under Result Sharing. Nothing is shared unless you choose Approve, and you can Revoke access later.

36. Readiness Rating

Readiness holds the 18 readiness questions, the same ones as Part 4 of the assessment. They evaluate your current circumstances, experience, and resources in five areas: Domain Advantage, Education & Training, Resource Readiness, Team & Validation, and Commitment & Support. Your answers generate a Readiness Rating, a score out of 100 with a band from High Readiness to Needs Foundation, which appears in Your Readiness Profile on your results. Update it as your situation changes: choose "Update My Answers," then "Recalculate My Score." Updating doesn't use up a retake.

37. Managing Consent Settings

In Settings, on the Settings tab:

• Analytics Preferences: tick "Allow analytics cookies" to allow Google Analytics, or untick it to refuse. Your choice is saved to your account and applies on each device where you're signed in. If you decline, we'll ask again after 30 days.
• Marketing Preferences: "Receive occasional offers from trusted affiliates via email." When it's on, we share only your email address with carefully selected partners offering relevant products or services. You can also tick this when you create your account.
• Testimonial Preferences: shows your latest comment from a "Yes" answer to your results' Quick Check. Allow it to be used as a public testimonial on the About page, or withdraw it, which removes your testimonials from the About page. Our team approves a testimonial before it first appears.

38. Changing Email or Password

For your email address, open Settings, then the Profile tab, and choose "Change Email." Enter the new address twice and your current password, then choose "Send Verification Email." We email a confirmation link to the new address, valid for 60 minutes, and let your old address know. The change takes effect when you use the link, and you can change your email once every 24 hours.

For your password, go to the Settings tab in Settings. Enter your current password and a new one (8 to 72 characters), confirm it, and choose "Update Password." You stay signed in here; your other devices are signed out and saved logins are removed.

39. Deleting Your Account

At the bottom of the Settings tab, choose "Delete My Account." Read the warning and choose "Delete Account," then enter your current password and choose "Confirm & Delete." This cannot be undone.

We delete your assessment results and history, readiness answers, feedback and testimonials, support tickets, comments, activity, waitlist entries, and Business Boo invitations, and we empty your account so it can't be used to sign in. Payment and training records are kept, as the Privacy Notice describes. Portal and enterprise administrator accounts and StartEase staff accounts can't be deleted this way; contact us instead.

40. Accessing Game Mode

Choose "Games" in the top navigation, or Games in your dashboard, to open ETI Game Mode. Here you can test your knowledge of entrepreneurial types through interactive games while competing on leaderboards. Guess Who is free to play without an account.

41. Guess Who? - ETI Edition

In this game, you identify a mystery entrepreneur subtype by asking strategic yes/no questions. Choose a question in "Ask a Question" (questions ask about the mystery subtype, such as its dominant or influencer type), then choose Submit to get a YES or NO. Click any card to eliminate it; click it again to restore it. When you're ready, pick your answer in "Make a Guess" and choose Submit. You can ask only a few questions, and "Questions Left" shows how many remain. Your score starts at 1,000 and drops by 100 for each question you ask. Guess right to keep it; a wrong guess scores 0.

42. Do You Know Your Business Boo?

Predict a partner's, friend's, or colleague's entrepreneurial type before they take the assessment. This game requires a logged-in account. Select your prediction on the grid and choose "Lock In My Prediction," then enter their name and email and choose "Send Invitation." They get an email inviting them to take the free ETI. When they complete it through that invitation, you're emailed their result, and they see whether you predicted correctly. You earn 500 points for an exact match and 100 points otherwise. "My Invites" lists your invitations and their results.

43. The ETI Fantasy League

The ETI Fantasy League is coming soon; you can't play it yet. Choose "Preview" on its card to see what's planned, and enter your email and choose "Notify Me" to hear when it launches.

44. Leaderboards

View rankings for all games combined (Overall), or for Guess Who? - ETI Edition or Do You Know Your Business Boo?. Switch between This Quarter, This Month (the last 30 days), and This Week (the last 7 days). Signed-in players appear by their first name, or as "Anonymous" if they haven't added one on the Profile tab of Settings. Players who aren't signed in appear as "Player_" followed by a short code.

45. My Stats

Once you've played, My Stats shows your Points, Rank, Games, and Best score for This Week, This Month, This Quarter, and All Time. You don't need to be logged in: your scores are kept for this browser, and when you open Games signed in on the same browser, they move to your account. Create an account to save your scores permanently.

46. How Badges Work

Badges are achievements you earn by completing various activities on StartEase. They're grouped into five categories: Account & Profile, Assessment Milestones, Game Mode Achievements, Community Engagement, and Training & Learning. When you earn a badge, a "Badge Earned!" notification appears celebrating your achievement. View all your badges under Badges in your dashboard. You need an account to earn badges.

47. Assessment Badges

First Steps: complete your first ETI assessment. Self-Aware: retake the assessment to track your growth; you earn it once two earlier results are in your history. Deep Diver: analyze or compare your results on Results: open your results, view a past result, or compare one with your latest.

48. Game Badges

Mind Reader: win your first Guess Who game. Guess Who Champion: score 800 or more points in a Guess Who game. Psychic: win 5 Guess Who games in a row. Clairvoyant: guess correctly without asking any questions, for a perfect 1,000. Matchmaker: make your first Business Boo prediction. Perfect Match: correctly predict a Business Boo result. Top 10 and Top 3: reach the top 10 or top 3 of this quarter's leaderboard, all games combined; they reset every quarter and can be won again. Gamer: play all three ETI games; it can be earned once the Fantasy League launches.

49. Engagement Badges

Scholar: read all the Micro-Learning articles while signed in. Advocate: share your ETI results with Share Results (SMS doesn't count). Contributor: leave written feedback in your results' Quick Check. Networker: invite 3 friends through Business Boo. Conversation Starter: post your first comment on an article. Engaged Reader: comment at least twice on the same article.

50. Loyalty, Account, and Training Badges

Determined: log in 7 days in a row (a day counts when you open your dashboard). Anniversary: be a member for one full year. Verified: verify your email address. Pioneer: for early members who joined before April 2026. Pro: have a Pro membership. Next STEP: register for a STEP training. STEP Grad: complete a STEP training.

51. Badge Progress

For badges you haven't earned yet, progress bars show how close you are, such as "Progress: 1/2." Some badges have specific numeric requirements, such as 7 days in a row for Determined. Top 10 and Top 3 show your current rank this quarter and when they reset, and count how many times you've won them. Badges you haven't started say "Not started."

52. Accessing Workbooks

Workbooks are available to members registered for training programs that include companion materials. Choose "Workbooks" in your dashboard's sidebar to see your training enrollments and their workbooks. A workbook opens right on the page, with a "Download PDF" link.

53. Workbook Purpose

Each training workbook is a companion resource for its associated training program. Workbooks contain exercises, worksheets, and materials aligned with your training sessions. Some programs also include an insert for your subtype: if yours does and you've completed the ETI, a second tab, "Your Subtype Insert," appears next to the workbook.

54. Training Registration Required

To access a workbook, you must be registered for a training program that includes one; a canceled registration no longer opens it. If you have no enrollments yet, Workbooks says "No workbooks yet." Choose "Browse Trainings" to visit the Training Hub, browse available programs, and register.