Are entrepreneurs born or made?
It’s a question that has become extremely important in today’s economy, where the entrepreneurial mindset is becoming more and more dominant.
Many people believe that entrepreneurs are born. The reality, however, is quite the opposite. And this is something I can say from own experience: entrepreneurs are made.
Contrary to what people might believe, the qualities of a successful entrepreneur are not inherent. Rather, they are acquired and developed through education, experiences, and a genuine willingness to constantly learn and improve.
The success of Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, and Warren Buffet has been a driving force for many people to start their own businesses. But it is the relatively younger and equally, if not more, successful present-day entrepreneurs such as Mark Zuckerberg and Neil Patel who serve as the motivation for several individuals to create a startup.
Each year, thousands of ambitious ‘entrepreneurs’ start new businesses. Unfortunately, around 20% of them fail within the first year, whereas more than 40% don’t make it past the fifth year. And this is what gives rise to the idea that entrepreneurs are born, or that it is mere luck that determines who gets to be successful in their new business ventures.
However, if you take a closer look at the most renowned entrepreneurs, you will realize that they all have certain traits in common. And these traits are exactly what you need to develop in order to be victorious in the corporate world.
So, what are the qualities that will help you become a successful entrepreneur? Read on to find out.
1. Passion
This is the most important thing you will need to ensure success for your business. Although passion is not something that you can ‘develop’ per se, it is something you need to identify before starting out on your new venture adventure.
The road to success is anything but smooth. Being passionate about your work helps you suppress the impulse to jump ship when things get tough, and keeps you motivated enough to achieve your end goal.
2. Far Sightedness
Successful entrepreneurs have a clear idea of what their business can and will become with the passage of time. They use past and present-day facts, statistics, and data to articulate their future goals. This also helps them predict their market position in the coming years and adjust their ways accordingly if they feel that things are not going as planned.
Take notes from Fraser Doherty, a teenager-turned-millionaire who saw the potential for selling homemade jams. Although selling fruit jams isn’t something out of the ordinary, the 14-year old knew that food products that support local farmers will strike a chord with customers – and he was indeed right. His jam bottles were an instant hit and helped him earn millions in revenue.
3. Willingness to Work Hard
If you think that running your own business means unlimited vacation days and taking an off whenever you want, you are already setting yourself up for failure. Not many people realize this before starting a company, but being an entrepreneur is much harder than being an employee.
Forget all about off-days and waking up late in the morning, you are quite likely to find yourself burning the midnight oil even on weekends. However, none of this would really matter if you are keen to achieve the goals that motivated you to pursue this path in the first place.
4. Strong Work Ethic
The autonomy and freedom that comes with being your own boss can be overwhelming. But while you can come to the office and leave whenever your heart desires, you need to maintain a strong work ethic at all times.
You can make the workplace environment as casual as you like but a certain level of professionalism is always necessary to keep things in order.
5. Ability to Take Risks
This should be a no-brainer. You must have heard it a hundred times already that entrepreneurs are risk-takers. From starting a new business to discovering new avenues, launching new products, and everything else in between, entrepreneurship sure is about doing things that haven’t already been done before.
However, there is a misconception about this trait of successful entrepreneurs. Many people commonly associate risk-taking ability with the readiness to dive headfirst into unchartered watersThat is not really true. Yes, entrepreneurship does entail taking risks every other day, but successful entrepreneurs only take calculated risks. Putting everything at stake without giving it proper thought is gambling, not entrepreneurship.
6. Confidence
Whether you are conducting meetings with your employees or proposing new ideas to the target audience, confidence is one thing that you cannot do without.
You not only need to be confident in yourself and your business ideas, but also in your team and your combined efforts to turn your dreams into reality. Successful entrepreneurs know the art of effective communication. They are aware of the power of words, and can use that power to sway the minds of their audience in any direction they want.
Moreover, when you are confident in your ability to make your new businesses grow and prosper, investors will also be confident in funding your startup.
7. Resilience
As Winston Churchill said, ‘Success is the ability to go from one failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm.’
Mistakes can occur even after paying attention to every fine detail. As an entrepreneur, you are bound to fail at some point or the other, no matter how carefully you might have planned things out. Maybe the product launch didn’t go as expected, or a potential investor didn’t approve of the plan. The key is to not let such setbacks deter you from achieving your goals.
Focus on what went wrong and learn from your mistakes. After all, failure is nothing but a stepping stone to success. If you need proof of how important it is for new business owners to be resilient in their efforts, look into the stories of famous entrepreneurs like Walt Disney and Henry Ford. Despite facing rude remarks and many failed attempts, they came out swinging.
So, now that you know the qualities of a successful entrepreneur, work on those that you feel you need to strengthen.
