Before knowing about the characteristics of a successful entrepreneur, it is very important to know what the difference between a businessman and an entrepreneur is. While the base is same for both businessman and entrepreneur as they both generally own an enterprise or venture, it is the method of realization that is different. The businessman may have acquired the enterprise by purchase, donation or inheritance; while an entrepreneur creates his own idea and realizes it as a business. Entrepreneur is basically an innovator and takes risks. Businessman has a sole objective of earning profit from his business, whereas an entrepreneur is more concerned about the quality of his products and the satisfaction of his customers. In simple terms, we can say that an entrepreneur finds, creates and works upon an idea to institute an enterprise. When the enterprise will be ready and a system set up, an entrepreneur will organize businessmen and leave the enterprise to them to further enhance it. This way entrepreneur makes way to meet them, interact, transact, and earn from them too. In general we can say that a businessman works for the company but the company works for the entrepreneur. In this process, while the businessman remains distressed and experiences sleepless nights and even does not have enough time for family, an entrepreneur enjoys leisure time with family and loved ones. Now you may have got a basic idea about the qualities of entrepreneurs. In the following lines, we have detailed them further for an explicit understanding of the characteristics of a successful entrepreneur.
Characteristics Of Entrepreneurs
Integrity
We generally hear all sorts of the news stories about corporate greed and corruption. But in reality, successful entrepreneurs and millionaires are considered “being honest with everyone” and this integrity makes them successful in business.
Self- Discipline
One of the very important characteristics of a successful entrepreneur is that the person should be highly disciplined. Sometimes while establishing a business from the ground level, a person has to do all the job functions of a company, such as accounting, marketing, designing, and customer service. Even when he/she does not feel like it, he/she has to develop the ability to get things done. Self- discipline can be learned with the right information and conscious effort.
Composure
There are times when things go wrong in business. Most entrepreneurs face severe crises in their businesses, while few others meet direct failures. But as an entrepreneur, since the person is responsible for a business, he/she has to remain calm in any situation. By any chance, losing temper or getting flustered will not solve problems. One of the major characteristics of an entrepreneur is the ability to keep cool in an emergency or crisis situation. Calmness may not help to solve the problem, but it certainly won’t make it harder. Any entrepreneur, who can handle failure without frustration or anger, would definitely acquire success.
Confident
Every business involves risks, and successful entrepreneurs are always ready to take risks when it comes to their business. It is generally seen that the best and most profitable investments require the most risk. It is advisable that an entrepreneur who is trying to succeed and want to attain greater heights should be bold enough to take risks, calculated and otherwise.
People Skills
One important characteristic of being a successful entrepreneur is possessing good people skills. Successful entrepreneurs are those who have this innate quality in them to genuinely like, respect, and appreciate other people. If you want to be a successful entrepreneur, learn the ability to win people. It will carry you far in all walks of life, especially your own business.
Passion
What is a business without passion, same like a pizza without cheese! No business can thrive without having a passion for it. As such, to be a successful entrepreneur, it is extremely important to be passionate about the work. Whatever work is taken in hand, be it an idea or some profitable market; putting heart and soul in it is absolutely essential. Loving your business will help you to get through the start-up phase, and other future obstacles.
Good Leader
Qualities of a good leader include communicating effectively, motivating others, selling ideas, and being decisive. To become a successful entrepreneur it is very essential to become a good leader first, for without being able to lead, you'll take your business to a no man's land. As such, developing leadership skills and abilities is quintessential.
Competitiveness
In today’s scenario, the competition in business is really tough and it’s the survival of the fittest that works for all. A successful entrepreneur surely knows how to out-market and outperform his competitors. The key is to try to win the game, but not at the hands of sacrificing integrity for the sake of a few bucks!
Well Organized
Successful entrepreneurs are known to be great organizers. They live a well organized life. Organized people have increased productivity and efficiency. They are prepared for obstacles and remain updated with their goals and objectives. Organizational skills can be learned through hard work, practice, and persistence and are necessary for an entrepreneur.
Adapting to Changes
An important characteristic of successful entrepreneurs is that they are always keen on adapting to changes, specifically in terms of new technologies. Every day there are numerous technical advancements taking place and it is important for an entrepreneur to not expect things to be as they used to be and be ready for changes.
Remember, anything for which you have complete faith and belief, you can achieve. Hope these characteristics of successful entrepreneurs will help you in your way of achieving success.
