Many dream of making a business empire, becoming an entrepreneur and leaders in their industry, standing shoulder-to-shoulder with the likes of Gates and Branson. However, it often only remains a distant dream. Those few who pursue their dream have something in them that sets them apart from the rest. Whether inherent or learnt, what is apparent is a set of traits that almost all of them comprise. Scholars and leaders in business say that entrepreneurs can emerge from any walks of life and at any time in life. You don’t have to be a straight-A student either, often it’s the C student who takes the leap into business.
What are these traits? Well, we have comprised 10 common characteristics that are present in business leaders. If you are lucky to have many of these traits, then it may be time for you to start thinking of your first venture. If you’ve yet to show signs of many of these, then don’t panic yet! Utilise the skills you do have, and nurture the skills and characteristics that you have yet to acquire, then maybe one day you will be the entrepreneurial man that you’ve dreamt of becoming.
Determination
As an entrepreneur, you are going to be in some tough situations, and that’s once you’ve succeeded. Without the grit to see through challenging situations as you build yourself to becoming an entrepreneur, there’s little hope of becoming a successful one.
Risk Taker
You are going to be given tough choices. Perhaps the biggest factor to becoming a successful entrepreneur is that you need to take a risks. Without taking risks you are unlikely to see favourable returns. However, successful entrepreneurs take calculated risks. They see opportunities as they arise, assess them, and act on them accordingly. They are not scared to put their hands in their pockets to spend their own savings, something that many people won’t do.
Confidence
Confidence in themselves and their venture. Even under stressful conditions, they get the job done. They see the reward through the challenges that face them and are focused not on the difficulty of the task, but towards the end goal or finishing line.
Craves Learning
“Invest in as much of yourself as you can, you are your own biggest asset by far” – Warren Buffet. Successful businessmen such as Warren Buffet says you should invest in yourself and should be continuously learning, as learning doesn’t stop when you leave school. He also reads about 500 pages of reports and newspapers every day. Even Bill Gates clocks up 50 books a year.
Understands Failure Happens
Fail to plan, then plan to fail. Often entrepreneurs fail their first three times. Even once they’ve become successful they can fail at ventures that they build. The key is to understand where failure can come from and prevent them from arising, but if they do come about, then you need to pick yourself back up, learn from your mistakes, and start again.
Passion
They do what they love. Choosing ventures that they have a passion for, gives them the energy to get up in the morning and the drive to see projects through with the utmost intensity. Passion turns ‘jobs’ more into ‘life hobbies’.
Highly Adaptable
They can’t know everything all of the time, but they work on the skill and knowledge they lack. While creating a well-rounded understanding of their business processes through continued learning and development, they have the ability to interject in all areas of the business. And remember that markets can be dynamic, and entrepreneurs need to have the ability to see the market’s needs and quickly adapt to the changes in the markets to stay relevant.
Good Money Management
As a business, cash flow is a critical aspect of getting a hold over, for this reason, they budget well and plan for current and future financial obligations and for a potential crisis.
Expert at Networking
They can’t do it by themselves. Whether financial investment, technical know-how, or sales; they need to branch out and reach the stakeholders that will make their venture a success.
Ability to Sell And Promote
They can not only sell a product or service but more importantly, themselves! Investors will not only be backing the business but the person who owns the business. They need to feel comfortable that their money is in good hands. The entrepreneur should have the best understanding of their product or service and therefore, be the best person to explain why the market should buy into it, and how it becomes a solution to a problem. If they can’t explain it, then who can?
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