It’s important to state from the outset that there is no magic bullet that can transform you into a rich and successful entrepreneur overnight. However, for those prepared to work hard to succeed, there is an almost formulaic blend of entrepreneurial skills that can help set successful businessmen and women apart from the rest:
1. Don’t take ‘no’ for an answer
2. Learn from the best
3. Stay hungry and ambitious
4. Never stand still; evolve with the times
5. Nurture long-term business relationships
6. Inspire those around you
7. Trust your gut instinct, not just your spreadsheet
Becoming a successful entrepreneur doesn’t just happen overnight; but you’ll find the following characteristics are typical in the majority of businessmen and women that have navigated their way to the top:
Don’t take ‘no’ for an answer
No matter how many knock-backs and refusals successful entrepreneurs receive, they are always prepared to dust themselves down and find an alternative route to the summit. It’s this kind of tenacity which is required to take a business idea from the realms of the mind and transform it into a profitable business.
Fear of failure of is one reason that many entrepreneurs fall by the wayside. Successful entrepreneurs view failure as a positive experience – something to learn from and overcome in the future. All entrepreneurs inevitably make mistakes along the path to success. But what matters most is that you own your failures and take full responsibility for the knock-backs and move forward quickly.
Learn from the best
Even the very best entrepreneurs of our time worked with other experts in their industry before going it alone. Finding a suitable mentor is a great way to learn more about your sector as a whole and, more importantly, the various facets of running your very own business. Your mentor may even have made mistakes in business themselves, but equally that makes them the perfect person to learn from, giving you the chance to understand where they went wrong.
Stay hungry and ambitious
Running a successful business is not an ego trip for successful entrepreneurs. It’s their desire to grow and provide a better product or service for their customers that keeps them hungry and ambitious. The moment that an entrepreneur stops wanting to learn new things is the moment that complacency sets in, allowing others to overtake you and leave you behind. Which leads us nicely into…
Never stand still; evolve with the times
Any successful entrepreneur requires business agility, with the ability to learn and adapt to new methods, processes or technology that can make their business stronger and more efficient. Market needs have always been dynamic: both the business and consumer worlds are ever-changing and what worked years, even months ago might not work tomorrow.
Successful entrepreneurs are never too proud to accept when there are new opportunities to enhance their offering and better satisfy the needs of their customers and the market as a whole. A product developed strictly for your own needs would be classed more like a hobby; however, a product developed for the market must be designed to satisfy evolving market needs.
Nurture long-term business relationships
There are no two ways about it, business relationships matter. Almost always businesses will prefer to work with companies they like and trust. Your ability to nurture long-term working relationships with like-minded entrepreneurs within your industry will be one of the key factors in the long-term success of the business. Most entrepreneurs would agree it’s far easier to secure work from repeat customers than it is investing time and money into securing new customers.
Business relationships also include access to finance too. Every entrepreneur wants the very best opportunity to see their business proposition become an established company. This means entrepreneurs have to become highly investable. By nurturing relationships with angel and seed investors, venture capitalists, private investors and even banks, you can set the wheels in motion to secure that all-important entrepreneur funding.
Inspire those around you
Even the richest, most experienced entrepreneurs cannot be good at everything! All entrepreneurs require a team of people around them that complement their skills. The real skill is not only hiring the best possible team to support you, it’s about hiring people who share your vision and passion. By inspiring and investing in your team, not only will they succeed but the business itself will too.
Trust your gut instinct, not just your spreadsheet!
Sometimes entrepreneurs can be found guilty of being wedded to their spreadsheets and the data. However, in the real world of business it’s never quite as black and white as that! In some cases, your gut instinct and heart are still your very best guide for decision-making. Ultimately, no-one knows as much about your business as you do!
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This article first appeared on the British Library’s Business & IP Centre website: View.
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