Being an entrepreneur is like living in a jungle where your passion and opportunities thrive in the same place. You need to know how to apply your skills towards garnering and making the most of those very opportunities. Towards this end, we have created a mind map that charts and talks about the 7 key characteristics of every entrepreneur must have in order to have great business and life. Here is the list:
1. Taking Risks
If you are an entrepreneur, you cannot play safe – at least not all the time. Being an entrepreneur means being able to take risks. This may sound like a daunting task where you can only follow your instincts. Yet, towards this end, a lot of research and homework will most definitely help. In such cases, you will need to see where the market has not gone yet, and take a chance on the same, instead of following the crowd and hardly getting your chunk of the market share. This will also include coming up with innovative products and services; and taking the risk to actually put them out there in the market.
2. Being Motivated
This is a big one in the world of entrepreneurship. Becoming an entrepreneur and being successful are two different things, and many years may go by before the two meet. So, in order to be a successful entrepreneur, you need to patiently persist with an eye on the long haul. To be able to do this successfully, it is imperative to remain utterly motivated at all times.
Being lazy or getting demotivated when you hear a number of no’s at one time, is not really the answer. You need to find the best way to keep being hopeful and positive. Write yourself a speech and read it out before you sleep and after you wake up, or listen to peppy music on the way to a meeting – pick and choose your options to remain motivated.
3. Get ready to Network
How you network will define your net worth! When you get into the world of entrepreneurship, you need to know that you will have to become a people’s person from the get go. This includes talking to customers and employees and everyone in between, in the most effective way possible. The results of your business and the profits that you bring home will depend on how well and how much you network. Do not miss out on an opportunity to get customer feedback, and to attend meets where you can increase your email database.
Then, you must remember to follow this up with phone calls and an emailer campaign to chase that niche. Networking can bring you a number of opportunities that you would not have thought possible.
4. Being Open
This is a trait that brings in the risk-taking ability along with the networking skills that you will need to learn. When you take risks, build a product and pitch it to an unknown crowd of people, day after day, you will have to remind yourself to be open. What happens when you do this is something that can transform the way you do business.
Not only will you learn new things everyday about your capabilities and your business, but you will also be able to improvise and fill in a market gap that you may not have seen before. Being open helps you take risks effectively and completely even as it helps you recognize the various people and opportunities that your business can benefit from.
This is one of the reasons it is important to remain open – otherwise, you can easily miss a great opportunity! This trait also includes being flexible so that you can adjust your roster of goods and services, as well as your pitch, to match an exact requirement of a customer.
5. Knowledge of Finance
Some rudimentary knowledge of finances and taxes is required before you get into the game of entrepreneurship. This is imperative so that you can keep an eye on what is coming in and what is going out. Because that is where your profits lie. You should also be able to take a long, hard look at your finances in an objective way, every month or so. This will ensure that you know which areas are working for you, and which ones are not. This includes niches in which you are operating, as well as the expenses you are incurring.
Also, the knowledge of taxes is very important so that you know what you have to pay at the end of the financial year, and how you can get tax benefits in your niche. You will need to read up on this subject regularly to keep up with the constant adjustments being made to government and fiscal policies.
6. Managing Stress
When you are indulging in your great passion and turning it into an enterprise, you do not merely look after that passion. You are also required to look into every aspect of running the business and dealing with things that you may ideally not want to deal with. This can bring about a lot of stress. So one of the most important things that you will need to learn as an entrepreneur is the art of managing your stress.
Form a daily routine and work some relaxation into it. Take one task at a time and learn it well so that you can do your best in that area – that can really cut down on stress levels. Further, remember to switch off and take a break so that you can come back and give your best again.
7. Leadership
Being an entrepreneur is not just about selling your product and making a killing. You will also need to lead a team – and you will need to lead them well. You will have to infuse them with the passion you feel for your product or service and keep them motivated at all times, even as your exercise a firm hand. This is all about a balanced approach that will take your business places.
So remember to take these 7 traits into account before you dive into the art of entrepreneurship!
