Are You Born an Entrepreneur?

Success isn’t defined by how well you did in school or how many degrees you have.

I’m 100% living proof of this.  I was a straight-A student during High School and my father pushed me to be the best, from an academic perspective so that I could get accepted into University and get a good-paying job.

The typical industrial age view of the world you could say.I could be so that I could get a good job.

I’m sitting here now writing this post after successfully completing three university degrees including a Bachelor of Biological Science, Graduate Diploma of Information Technology, and a Masters Degree of Business and Information Technology.

I’ve failed in several business ventures which after much kicking and screaming I have finally taken responsibility and accepted that I was the reason behind the failures.

I’m not listing out the number of university degrees to impress you, rather I’m listing them out to demonstrate that just because I hold three university degrees definitely does not equate to being a successful entrepreneur.

Success isn’t based on where you grew up or who your parents are.  I have learned It comes down to your personality, your mindset, and your outlook on life.

You don’t have to be a type-A person to be a successful entrepreneur. In fact, it’s better if you’re not.  As an entrepreneur, you need to be more “street smart” than “book smart.”

The top two personality traits entrepreneurs possess are being

1. intuitive and
2. willing to change

This is because success doesn’t come to those who are smartest. Success comes to those who see opportunities and take them.

Do you think you may have what it takes to be an entrepreneur?

Here are other personality traits entrepreneurs should have:

A Vision

Successful entrepreneurs always keep one eye on the big picture, and this ability can make you a better employee. Vision is about possessing a strategic plan.

Here are some questions to ask yourself

• Can you see what direction the industry is going?
• Can you identify challenges for your company?
• Can you tackle your day-to-day job responsibilities, while staying focused on long-term goals and initiatives?

Tip

When we start coaching a new client we always begin to understand the reasons behind “WHY” they started the business ijn the first place.  After the “why” or the “Vision” is understood we then look at the “mission”.

Simply put what is the journey they are pursuing to realise their vision.

After the client has documented both their Vision and the Mission we then can move to the vehicle they have chosen to travel the journey to their vision.

We establish clear and concise goals and their priority, help them create an actionable plan to avoid shiny object syndrome and clear metrics to track their progress to hit their goals.

Versatility and Adaptability 

Entrepreneurs must be able to adapt to change.

Circumstances can change in the blink of an eye. It’s important that an entrepreneur isn’t confined to rigid, inflexible guidelines, but instead has the ability to adapt to unexpected situations.

Examples may include:

An upcoming special event in your local community could you use this event as a promotional opportunity?

Would the addition of more employees allow you to expand your current services, and grow your client base?

For example, as a restaurant owner, would the acquisition of 2 new chefs make it easier to comfortably expand the menu to include a wider range?

Technology standards are constantly shifting. What was cutting edge today is obsolete tomorrow. Is your implementation of technology up-to-date, convenient for your customers, and adding real value to your business?

Keeping an open mind to the limitless possibilities available to grow your brand is a critical part of successful entrepreneurship.

Resilience

The journey of owning your own business can be rewarding, however, there are times where you’ll stumble along the way.

A determined, resilient spirit is so important for an entrepreneur to keep focused during those difficult times.

Mistakes and failures should be viewed as priceless learning opportunities. Often times the deepest insights come from what seems to be an entrepreneur’s darkest hour.

Thomas Edison famously remarked about his 1,000 unsuccessful attempts to invent the light bulb: “I didn’t fail 1,000 times. The light bulb was an invention with 1,000 steps.”

Successful entrepreneurs share that same attitude towards miss-steps.

Flexibility

You have to be able to adapt to change and solve problems as they arise,

Successful entrepreneurs shift their priorities to help out whenever the team needs assistance. Thus, flexibility means being receptive to other people’s needs, opinions, and ideas and being open-minded to feedback.

Accountable and Responsible

Traits of successful entrepreneurs are accountable and responsible for the failure or success of the business.

They take on the responsibility of navigating the business through its hard times.

If they succeed, it’s a plus but if they fail, they will be held responsible.

Resourcefulness

Many entrepreneurs are faced with tasks and challenges they have never faced before. The ability to be resourceful is a mindset that helps entrepreneurs reach lofty goals without a clear way to achieve them.

Entrepreneurs tend to focus on the Who, Why and What rather than the How to achieve the desired result.

When entrepreneurs are able to work resourcefully, they can effectively problem-solve and grow and ultimately scale their businesses without having all of the answers or resources to do so.

Being resourceful requires a can-do attitude and willingness to work creatively to effectively manage a business without having the immediate know-how.

Self-Awareness

When an entrepreneur is self-aware they are able to own up to their strengths and weaknesses related to running their business.

With awareness, an Entrepreneur is able to zero in on the tasks and elements of running the business they can excel in and are more willing to delegate the areas they are not as strong in.

Another benefit of being self-aware is that it increases one’s ability to give, receive, and apply meaningful feedback.

What additional traits, to be a successful entrepreneur do you think are also needed on top of the ones mentioned in this post?

Leave you comments below…