Today’s economy seems more uncertain that ever. Many people are out of work right now, and many others are worried that they may lose their job. Having a typical 9-5 job at a large company was once considered a sign of success and security for many. However, it seems today though that no job or position is secure.
You may be thinking about starting your own business. That way you can be in control of your own success and security. Maybe you feel secure in your current job, but are simply tired of working for someone who gets all the benefits of your hard work.
Either way, you may not be sure if working for yourself can be profitable, and whether or not it is the right thing to do. You may be asking yourself, “Do I have what it takes to be an entrepreneur?
If you’re thinking this, or have ever though this, it’s definitely worth looking into and figuring out if you have what it takes.
You Must Be Passionate About What You Do
If you want to succeed in business, you must be passionate about that business. If you go into a business with the thought that particular business is profitable, and you have the opportunity to make a lot of money in it, I would recommend that you not go into that business.
Owning your own business takes commitment. If you don’t like what you do every day, you’re not going to be the best at it. It will become a chore, and chances are you’ll tire of if rather quickly and give up before you have a true chance to make a go of it.
Successful entrepreneurs love what they do. They’re passionate about what they do, and it shows through in their business. A woman who loves beautiful, unique outfits may open an exclusive boutique. She would love to buy and sell such beautiful garments, and be immersed in them daily.
A man who loves golf, and could play golf 24/7 may open a golfing store. He could teach his customers tips and tricks he’s learned over the years, and it would give him a great excuse to go out and play, so he remains immersed in the sport.
The girl from the famous tongue-twister, “She sells sea shells by the seashore” could be either a successful entrepreneur, 
living on the beach and educating tourists on the various shells, or a miserable woman who hates the heat and would rather be inside in the air conditioning. Which one do you think would be more successful?
Self-Discipline Is A Must
If you want to become an entrepreneur, you must have the ability to overcome your weaknesses, and you must be able to pursue your goal and stay committed to it even though every reason to abandon it has been thrown at you. You must have self-discipline.
Self-discipline makes it easier for one to get through the hard times. A beginning entrepreneur is going to have hard times; I’ve yet to read or hear about any successful entrepreneur who hasn’t experienced failure and thought of giving up.
Self-discipline is what kept them going. Self-discipline is seeing the big picture, and keeping your eyes on your goal. Self-discipline is a must if you want to be a successful entrepreneur.
Be Prepared to Change Course
A successful entrepreneur is flexible. When they see that the particular path that they are on is headed towards a dead-end, they backtrack and try a different way.
They need to be open-minded about changing market conditions, and be ready to adjust their goals accordingly. This doesn’t mean that strong goal setting isn’t important. It simply means that sometimes your goals will need to be adjusted.
This is a fast-moving world, and change is inevitable. Successful entrepreneurs react quickly to change.
Work Like Your Life Depends on It
A successful entrepreneur works like their life depends on it. That’s because it does. Becoming a successful entrepreneur takes a lot of work. A lot of hard work.
When everyone else calls it a day at 5 pm, the successful entrepreneur says “no” to happy hour, and keeps working. If you have the desire to be an entrepreneur you have to be committed 100% to your work. You have to be ready to answer the phone when it rings, you have to do whatever it takes in order for you to succeed.
If you quit when the clocks turn five, if you know that you have a lot of work sitting at your desk, but it’s such a beautiful weekend you want to be at the beach with your friends, then being an entrepreneur isn’t for you.
A successful entrepreneur works like their business depends on it, because it does. While others are celebrating the end of the week at happy hour, the successful entrepreneur is still working, and making sure that his business is on the right track. This is what separates the successful from the unsuccessful.
Delegate
Delegate simple tasks that others can do just as efficiently as you, or delegate to a professional that can do much better than you at a certain task.
No matter how smart, or how well-rounded you may be, ultimately you will need help in your rise to success. If you want to be successful, you will at some point need others to help you along the way.
There are three reasons why it’s good to learn how to delegate:
- As an entrepreneur, your time is valuable. Simple tasks can be delegated out in order for you to use your time more wisely by focusing on areas of your business that you bring the most value to.
- Hiring out specialized work can not only free your time for other tasks, but it can make your business stand out even more than it would by simply doing it yourself. You may be able to create a website, but there’s someone out there that can make it stand out.
- You need a break. Yes, you will need to skip happy hours and days on the beach in order to succeed. However, you don’t, nor you should, skip all of them. Everyone needs a chance to recharge and get away from it all. Many times, getting away from your work will give you a chance to view a whole new perspective of things when you get back. I believe this is the principle behind working smarter, and not harder.
Understand Money Management
A successful entrepreneur understands money management, and needs to take control of their money. Most businesses fail within their first year because they fail to plan financially.
You will need to plan financially at least for the first two years of your business. You will need to keep in mind that you will need more money than what you plan, and it will take longer to get that money than what you realize.
You can’t simply open a store, or create a website and expect people to come. You have to have money to make money and even though I used to try to downplay that theory, I’ve always found it to be correct.
When you have money, you will need to know how to spend it wisely. You will need to decide if each purchase is worth what you receive in return in respect to your business.
If you don’t have a lot of financial smarts, this is a good task to delegate out to a financial advisor or other accounting professional.
You Must Persevere
The most important thing you will need to do if you want to become an entrepreneur is you must persevere.
There will be many times you will want to give up. You will get tired, you will get frustrated, and you will feel that you will not be able to make it work. All entrepreneurs have been in this exact place.
The difference between a successful entrepreneur and someone who doesn’t make it is perseverance. The successful entrepreneur has the same frustrations, the same failures, and the same doubts as everyone else. The only difference is that the successful entrepreneur keeps going through all the frustrations, failures and doubts.
You never know how close you actually are to success if you quit trying. But if you stay determined and don’t ever give up, you’ll make it.
Do I Have What It Takes to Be an Entrepreneur?
So, after reading this, ask yourself, “do I have what it takes to be an entrepreneur”?
Do you have passion, self-discipline, flexibility, commitment, the ability to delegate, the ability to manage your money, and perseverance? There are websites out there that can give you more insight, and things to do to help with your success, but these are some of the basic traits that you will need to make it succeed.
If you’re ready to try, keep these traits in mind as you begin your journey. And even if you falter from some of the basics, as long as you persevere, you can do it!
Ah, this is a very good post and after reading this, I find myself wanting in some of the the critical areas and qualities that are very much needed. All the same, it is very good to know about the things that I need to become not just a business owner but a successful entrepreneur and I will out all this in mind. Thanks
Hi,
I do like this very informative post. I am one of those people who turned to the internet in this uncertain time to gain financial independence. I do agree that people need to do what they are passionate about. When you do what you are passionate about everything is so much easier and time flies. Also, no one has to remind you to do it. However, when you don’t like what you do every minute can seem like an hour and it’s always a chore.
I can relate the need for self-discipline too, not just to ensure that the job is done and the goal for the day is achieved to ensure you set that example for your employees.
The hardest one is expecting failure. No one wants to fail especially in business. It usually means a loss of both time and money but there is a lesson in failure too. When you fail, you learn what not to do and that is also a valuable lesson.
Candy Benn.