Nine Key Entrepreneurial Qualities Necessary to Become a Successful Entrepreneur – Regardless of the differences in successful entrepreneurs, they all demonstrate the following nine qualities that set them apart from most people. According to Stephen Harper, all successful entrepreneurs possess the following nine qualities:
1. Opportunity seekers. Entrepreneurs who are opportunity seekers believe that within every problem lies a disguised opportunity. They understand that the marketplace contains an infinite number of opportunities. They constantly look for areas within the marketplace where people’s needs are not being met.
2. Future-oriented. Entrepreneurs who are future-oriented are far-sighted and able to visualize what is possible. They are willing to invest time and money in converting ideas into business. They not live in the past, but will be fully engaged in the present. They actively monitor market trends that may reveal business opportunities. And they are able to plan three to five years ahead and are prepared to make short-term sacrifices in order to take advantage of long-term opportunities.
3. Committed to being the best. Entrepreneurs who are committed to being the best are always looking for new ways to do things and new things to do. They good learners and listeners; they know that running a business is a continuous process of learning, experimenting, and changing. And they know that they will not succeed by imitating their competitors.
4. Market-driven and customer-oriented. Entrepreneurs who are market-driven and customer-oriented knoe that they are successful only to the extent that they are able to create and maintain customers for a profit. They know that businesses need to modify their approaches to fit the market. They know that they are not in the business of selling goods or services; they are in the business of providing satisfaction. They view themselves as customer problem-solvers, and treat each customer as if the business’s future is in his or her hands.
5. Value their employees. Entrepreneurs who value their employees recognize that a business will only be as good as its employees. They know that dedicated employees may be one of the business’s greatest competitive advantages. They know that the quality of customer relations is directly related to the quality of employee relations. They set the right example for their employees and try to involve them when making various decisions. They encourage employees to learn various activities so that the business will not be dependent on only one person. Too many businesses fail because the owner or
manager made all the decisions and failed to develop a successor.
6. Realistic. Entrepreneurs who are realistic know that the business world is not a perfect place and people don’t always play by the rules. They know that competitors may not be truthful in their promotional claims, employees will not always show up for work, employees may help themselves to inventory and supplies, and suppliers will not always honor their promises. They look before they leap. And they know the difference between a dream and a solid business opportunity.
7. Tolerant of the tedium. Entrepreneurs who are tolerant of the tedium know that being an entrepreneur is not that glamorous. They know that life is full of compromises and involves mundane activities and thankless tasks. They know that starting a business involves blood, sweat, and tears.
8. Resilient. Entrepreneurs who are resilient know that business success takes time and effort. Few new businesses are overnight successes. Resilient entrepreneurs accept that it may take two or more years to know if their business is a lemon, and more than seven years to know if it’s a pearl. They realize that they need the strength to hang in there when things get tough.
9. Focused and decisive. Entrepreneurs who are focused and decisive know that decisions must be made even when they don’t have all the information they want — and that the person who procrastinates will be passed by. They know that they must have the courage of their convictions and that they will also have to listen, to learn, and to be flexible. Success takes more than being street smart; it also takes an almost inexhaustible supply of energy and the ability to make the right things happen the right way at the right time.