Marks of a successful entrepreneur
Do you have what it takes to be a cut above the rest?
KEOY SOO EARN highlights the essential traitsThe Business Times, September 15, 2005

SUCCESSFUL entrepreneurs generally share common characteristics. Do you have similar traits?

Envisioning power and persistence
Many successful entrepreneurs visualise their success even before it happens. As an entrepreneur, you must be able to envision your desired goals, and persistently focus your energy on executing the activities that are necessary to achieve your goals, even in the face of harsh conditions.

'Contented not' (Discontented)
Successful entrepreneurs seldom stay long in the state of contentment after achieving their goals. They tend to continue to set new and more challenging goals for themselves and their enterprises.

Risk-taker
If you are worried about failure, you should probably think twice about quitting your job. Setting up your own business requires you to take risks, and the opportunity cost is not having an employer and the more certain, regular pay cheque.
Successful entrepreneurs must have the ability to identify and realistically assess opportunities against related risks, and choose to act on those opportunities that provide the greatest returns to their enterprises.

Self-confident
This, in fact, should be the most basic attribute of a successful entrepreneur. Your self-confidence has a significant impact on the success of your enterprise and your employees.
You may want to build your business around your interests, abilities and experience in an area that you are familiar with, and thus most confident at. You should find it easier to grow this business and this should in turn further help boost your confidence.

Persuasive communicator
As an entrepreneur, it is equally important to appreciate that believing in your own ideas is insufficient. Sharing your goals and belief with your team effectively, selling your products and services to your customers successfully, convincing your financiers to part with their money, etc, require strong communication skills.

It is crucial to learn the art of communication, including negotiation. You should also take time to listen to feedback and learn to interact well with many different types of people.

Positive
Successful entrepreneurs see problems as opportunities and learning experiences. They take time to learn and make use of their creative problem solving skills to explore innovative ways to transform problems into opportunities for the enterprise.

Strong character
Starting and running a business takes a lot of energy, endurance and time. Successful entrepreneurs are usually persons with strong character. A person with strong character shows drive, energy, determination, self-discipline, will power and nerve. He sees what he wants and goes after them.

In this competitive business environment, a successful entrepreneur must possess a competitive spirit to guide his enterprise forward. Your actions also set the pace of growth for your enterprise.

Love being a leader . . .
With the attributes of a leader, an entrepreneur usually attracts followers. Entrepreneurs with leadership attributes will guide their enterprises into the future and show their staff that they can be trusted.

To be an effective leader, your people must trust you and share your vision. They want their leaders to be ethical and convey a strong vision of the future. These behaviours will win trust, loyalty and ensure your enterprise's continued vitality.

. . . but not being the boss
An entrepreneur is usually de facto, the boss. However, the two are not necessarily the same or equal.

A boss orders while a leader asks. Where a boss tends to depend mainly on authority, a leader builds and uses good will. While most bosses control people through invoking fear, a leader inspires them with enthusiasm. A boss reacts; a leader responds. A boss takes credit while a leader gives it. When things go wrong, the boss tends to apportion blame, while a leader fixes the problem.

Team builder
Entrepreneurs, who are individualists by nature, have to recognise that every successful enterprise requires a team of good people.

A good team is a living, constantly changing, dynamic force in which the team members complement each other to achieve the team's objectives.

Building a reliable and capable team is a key foundation to grow your enterprise. Building and managing teams is a major and stimulating challenge for any entrepreneurs.
When this is done well, the level of satisfaction and the positive impact on the enterprise can be tremendous.

The above are selected common key characteristics of successful entrepreneurs. You may not need to posses every one of these characteristics to be a successful entrepreneur. Being aware of your own strengths and weaknesses is already a positive step forward. Where you are lacking, take heart and learn from others by attending classes. Also, build on your experience.