Is it smart and effective to learn how to program if you want to become an entrepreneur?

Do a couple things: http://www.16personalities.com/  Take a personality test here - see what you come back with Work out what your strongest skillset is Communication, organization, technical stuff Ask your friends If you were going to hire me - what kind of role would you say I'm best suited to? Put all of this together into an answer as to whether you could do one of these BEST and which comes naturally to you. Programming Sales Operations Once you have your answer. Start learning aggressively in that area.

Well it depends actually,if you are good at marketing,stratagies & operations..it is better if you concentrate on them and outsource the technology(only if your website is not purely technology specific). That said,its always better to know the basics like WordPress installation,customization etc with which you can easily start a website. Simply put, spend more time on what you are good at than learning everything in detail.

Successful startups require a team that includes technical, business management and marketing skills. You need them all.

If you are naturally inclined towards programming, good at math, and have at least some interest in it, yes. Otherwise, I'd focus on the million other crucial elements of entrepreneurship, especially those that you are naturally gifted in.

No, i think good business model is more important. It is undeniable software tech is easier to setup, but million of people like you also has the same mindset. Most failed, those who survive will be highly glorified, typical survivorship biased behaviour. IMHO, i think good business model is more important. You can aim for service-first industry if you dont have the right tech skill. Once you get it right, scale it using technogy. Otherwise, find the co-founder with tech skill to complement your strength. Again, find the right business model before doing this

Certainly programming skills may be useful to you when you set up as an online Entrepreneur but they certainly are not vital unless you are setting up as a programming expert. If you are building a business that has nothing directly to do with programming then there are plenty of people around the web that you can pay to do your programming relatively cheaply whilst you focus on building leads and money. If you are looking to build a high paying business for yourself then I have some complimentary training videos which could help you (just message me if you want them) if your focus is a business built around programming I am sure there is plenty of education available

yes I think so. programming is getting easier and easier to learn while getting more and more important to know. The combination of these two things makes learning it more critical than ever not just for entrepreneurs, but for everyone.