Entrepreneurial Traits By Tai Goodwin
Some people know from their very first job, that working for
someone else isn’t for them. Some of us are forced into entrepreneurship either
through lay-off or impending infrastructure changes. Then some of us are led on
a professional journey full of twists and turns before we that no job will ever
allow us to live our purpose in a way that’s meaningful to us.
However we come to this exhilarating yet anxiety-laden fork
in the road, we come to a place where we have to decide: Do we pursue our
entrepreneurial passion or settle for and in the cube?
No one forces us into launching a business. More than likely
people will try to talk you out of it, especially when you have what’s
considered a “good “job. In fact it’s very easy to keep dreaming of being your
own boss – many people talk about starting a business, fewer actually go from
dream to action.
Being an entrepreneur isn’t easy. Before you start the
process, it makes sense to consider whether or not you really have what it
takes.
Are You Willing to Take
Risks, Sometimes Really Big Risks
Are you willing to risk everything you have on your
business? Sometimes that’s what’s really necessary in order to get your venture
off the ground. Many entrepreneurs have had to sell their homes to fund their
business. Some have had to leverage enough of their corporate equity that
they’d lose control of their own company if anything went wrong, in order to
fund the next stage of their growth. To really succeed in running your own
business, you’ve got to be willing to take risks. Sometimes those risks will
feel humongous, but you’ve got to be willing to take them anyway.
Can You Listen to
Advice, While Making Your Own Decisions?
An entrepreneur needs to be able to listen to people who
have more experience, their peers and their customers. An entrepreneur needs to
fully and deeply understand their market, their customers, their current
situation, their problems and their potential solutions. That said, no matter
how much experience your advisors have, you ultimately have to be the one to
make the decision. An entrepreneur must be willing to call their own shots,
sometimes even if it goes against what their advisors who have more experience
suggest – if that’s what your gut tells you to do.
Can You Trust Your
Instincts Especially When it Comes to People and Deals?
A business person needs to be able to trust their instincts.
The two most important instincts they need to possess and be able to rely on
are their instincts about people and their instinct about business deals. Ever
get the sense that you just can’t trust someone? Or the sense that you
genuinely want to do business with someone? Do you trust these instincts? When
a business proposition is presented to you, do you have a strong internal
compass that tells you “yes” or “no”? The best business decisions are not made solely
on numbers and projections. Although those are important, the real decision
often comes down to whether or not your instincts tell you go forward. Your
instincts will usually be right.
Are You Oriented
Towards Action
Great entrepreneurs are action oriented. “Ready, fire, aim”
rather than “ready, aim, fire.” Instead of spending two years writing a
business plan and conducting market research, a real entrepreneur just goes for
it. They take the results they get from the real world, rework their plan in
real time and keep moving forward. MBA-types who study businesses
hypothetically without actually building businesses tend to think about
business a lot. Entrepreneurs on the other hand are much more apt to just do
something and see what the results are. In order to really create results in
the world, you’ve got to be strongly action oriented.
These are some of the most important aspects of succeeding
as an entrepreneur. Do you have what it takes? If you think the answer is yes,
then you’ve got an incredibly exciting and potentially highly lucrative journey
ahead of you.
Learn more from and follow at @TaiGoodwin
Wow, this is so informative!!
ReplyDeleteI believe I have what it takes. By the way, I'm a new follower because I feel your site will give me a lot of inspiration and power to keep my dream alive. Thanks for all that you do!
If you like mine, you are more than welcome to follow too :)
Cathy Trails
Keep in touch!
Thanks so much for following us Cathy,.
ReplyDeleteGreat insight. It is important to take risks and go for it at times. There are also times when you need to think before implementing your strategy. Knowing when is the key. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDelete