There are a tiny number of people who wake up every day and say that they are excited to go to their job. There is an even smaller number of people who wake up and declare that they are happy to work for “the man” and listen to a boss. Most people dream of working for themselves and running their own business. They want to be an entrepreneur, and they want to be able to work for themselves. However, not everyone is cut out to lead the life of an entrepreneur.
To be an entrepreneur you have to think differently than everyone else. While most people tend to seek refuge in their daily lives, entrepreneurs like to seek out risks and challenges. They don’t want to work at a 9 to 5 job; they want to create jobs and help to better the lives of those around them. Their primary goal is to think outside the box. They don’t follow the market; they work to define it. This is what is often referred to as the Entrepreneur Mind. So, the question is how does one develop an Entrepreneurial Mindset?
The belief that successful entrepreneurs are born, not made, is absurd. Contrary to what many think, entrepreneurship can be learned by anyone. Successful entrepreneurs all possess a standard set of characteristics. If you want to begin to develop an entrepreneurial mind, you’ll need to make sure that you start to develop some of the same traits if you don’t already possess them.
Successful people have certain habits and ways of conducting themselves compared to most people. This allows them to get more done during the day and allows them to have the right mindset that is needed to be more successful. Some people are lucky enough to be born with these characteristics, while others find a way to incorporate them into their daily lives.
Here are the seven traits that you need to have if you want to be more successful in your life.
1. Tenacity
The first characteristic that successful people possess is tenacity. What does tenacity mean? When someone has tenacity, it means that they don’t take failure personally and they will keep working, sometimes for years, to get the things that they want in their life. When you have tenacity, you will never give up and will always bounce back when things get in your way and not quit when you run into obstacles or experience setbacks. Instead, when you possess tenacity, you always try something that is new, or you try to find another, more straightforward, way to do something.
When others get frustrated, they often just give up and return to their old, comfortable way of doing things. This is not the case with successful entrepreneurs. When entrepreneurs get frustrated or fail, they merely shrug their shoulders and continue to move forward with their plans. You may be thinking that that’s because successful people don’t fail. However, it’s not that successful people don’t experience failure in their daily lives; in fact, they are much more likely to have continuous failure because they continue to try and try again, even after experience setbacks and failure. The difference is that those who are successful have an understanding that failure is a fundamental part of the game, and not something to warrant giving up on their dreams.
2. Passion
No matter what you believe or what you’ve been told, you will never be able to find success if you aren’t passionate about what you do. Think about it this way; when you continually show up to a job that you don’t like, what usually happens? Do enjoy the work that you do daily? Are you given raises every year? Are you given the opportunities to advance? Are you given promotions? If you aren’t passionate about the work you do, the answer to these questions is usually no. For most people, they don’t enjoy their jobs and don’t like to spend time at work. This results in them not being able to see any improvements or changes in their situation, keeping them stuck in the same position as before.
Alternatively, when you are more passionate about what you are doing, the chances are higher that you will go the extra mile when performing your work. You will be more excited to go to work every day and be more willing to get things done. You will be much more excited to see what can happen, and nothing will stop you in your pursuit to accomplish your goals.
This is even true if you are stuck working for a company that you aren’t necessarily happy with because the thought that you will one day be somewhere better will help you to stay motivated and keep going. Your coworkers and supervisors will notice your enthusiasm and passion for what you do, which will lead to you either being promoted or allow you to strike out on your own with the skills and training you’ve developed in your job.
Without passion for what you do, your productivity will suffer, and you’ll never be happy with where you are in your life. Only when you are genuinely passionate about what you do will you be able to find success.
3. Acceptance of the Unknown
The unknown can be scary. It can make it difficult to know what is going to happen or if something is a good idea. The unknown means that there are risks involved in everything that you do and that everything has the possibility of going completely wrong. Most people dislike the unknown, making it easier to stay in a job or at a company they don’t like just to avoid the risk of the unknown. They want the security that goes with never making a change, knowing that everything will always be taken care of for them. This mindset, while safe, will never help them become successful.
Successful entrepreneurs have come to accept the things that they don’t know. They understand that risk is merely a part of life and they see how those risks will help to make them more successful in the long run. They aren’t scared of the unknown. Instead, they see it as an excellent opportunity for them to make a difference in their lives.
Entrepreneurs who are successful, also understand that not all risks are created equal. They know that there is a substantial difference between taking a foolish risk and a calculated risk. A foolish risk is one that is undertaken without performing any due diligence or accounting for the possible negative consequences that could result. While foolish risks have the potential to deliver a positive return, it requires you to go into the situation blindly without knowing what will actually happen.
4. Vision
One defining trait that all successful entrepreneurs possess is that they have the vision to see an opportunity and then see something in that opportunity that others are not able to see. People that have vision will always possess a curiosity about the world around them. This curiosity leads them to spend their days looking at the world around them to figure out how they can change things; making them different, unique and better. They seek to improve the world around them and find easier, more cost-effective ways of doing things.
They are also able to take a risk and take action on their vision. This is because they know that what they are trying to accomplish will be something big, even if they aren’t yet knowledgeable about the entire process needed to make their vision a reality. Many times, these individuals will come face to face with others who believe that they are making a horrible decision, or that they don’t have the first idea about what they are doing. This does not affect people who are successful because they know they are right and they will make the most out of every situation they encounter to ensure that their vision becomes a reality.
5. Time Management
It’s rather simple to get to work each day only to discover that you are wasting a ton of time on meaningless tasks. You might be someone who spends a lot of time online checking your emails, taking unnecessary time answering phone calls, chatting with those around you when you need to ask a simple question, or spending too much time searching for the things that you need to accomplish your daily tasks. Focusing on menial tasks throughout the day, which don’t move you toward completion of your essential job duties, is a waste of your time and will cause you to have to put in extra time at work, just to complete your daily responsibilities.
The difference between successful people and the rest of the population is that successful people know how to manage their time correctly. They are extremely organized, which allows them to find what they need without wasting valuable time. The shut their doors and turn off their email so that they can accomplish what they need to without any interruptions. They can get more done during the day, and still leave work on time. Learning how to become better organized and developing excellent time management skills will help you accomplish more and become more successful in life.
6. Self-Belief
The next thing that you need to have in your life if you want to be successful is self-confidence. If you don’t believe that you can accomplish anything you put your mind to, the chances are high that you will continue to sit at your desk and do precisely what you’ve been doing your entire life. However, if you have faith in your ideas, opinions, and abilities, you will be able to accomplish your goals and have the life you’ve always dreamed of having.
Successful people know that they are right and that they are capable of making the right decisions for their lives to find the success that they seek. They see something that is great, or they come up with a brilliant idea, and they take action to turn that vision into a reality, rather than sitting around second-guessing their decisions. They understand that things are going to be hard at times and that they will have to deal with setbacks and challenges, but they know that they can overcome anything.
7. Flexibility
When you have the dream of being a successful entrepreneur, you have to learn how to be flexible. When you are pursuing success, you will not always know what’s coming and have to be flexible and willing to change course when roadblocks appear and when you experience setbacks. Successful entrepreneurs know that things won’t always be perfect and that they will have to deal with issues as they arise. They know that things can go wrong. The difference between successful people and others is that successful people can take a step back, analyze the path they’re on, and make necessary adjustments when needed so they can get back on track.
Successful entrepreneurs have to be flexible in every aspect of their business. They have to have the flexibility to change when things aren’t going their way to avoid throwing good money after bad ideas. They have to be flexible and adapt when things are going well, and not succumb to the philosophy that if it isn’t broke, don’t fix it. This allows you to stay ahead of the competition and provides you with the opportunity to find better ways to compete and exceed the expectations of your customers.
Conclusion
Being successful is not something that is unattainable. If you dream of becoming a successful entrepreneur, you have to begin to develop the seven characteristics of the entrepreneurial mindset. You don’t have to be born with this mentality, however, it does take time for it to be developed. Anyone can be successful with the right attitude. Take charge of your life, and you will find that you can be as successful as you desire. The only one standing in your way is you.
