Are You Cut Out To Be An Entrepreneur

01.24.19

It is true, running your own business and being an entrepreneur can be quite amazing. You get to set your own hours, call all the shots and generally work from home in your PJs (if that’s your thing). But the truth is it is not an easy road and it might not be for everyone. There are some key character traits to being a successful entrepreneur. Before you think about getting into business or taking that fantastic idea you have and creating a brand, there are lots of questions you should ask yourself. The last think you want to do is to invest time AND money into something that is really not feasible, viable or worse yet, sellable.

The statistics don’t lie. 1 out of 5 businesses don’t even survive the first year and within 5 years over half of the businesses will have failed. That is quite a staggering number.

Inspired by this article in Entrepreneur magazine, we decided to dig deep into what are some of the things you should consider in terms of personality traits to be an entrepreneur.

#1 Do you listen to your intuition?

Chances are, you know exactly what is best for you and your business. But the biggest question is whether you consistently listen to your inner voice – the one that knows you unlike any other. Our guest from Season 01, Alicia Isaacs Howes is an intuitive business coach and she talks about how listening to your intuition is one of the best life gifts you can give yourself. She even walks us through exercise to help develop that intuition. This is particularly important when running a business. Getting advice and learning from others is good tactics, but make sure you don’t get stuck in a vicious cycle of researching, getting advice and then not taking action because of information overload. It is always good to be assertive and go with your gut.

#2 Are you clear on your mission, purpose, vision and your ‘why’?

At the end of the day, it always goes back to your why. Your story, the reason why you want to do that what you want to do. It is easy to loose sight of this when you are in the thick of things and continuously producing or trying to keep it all together. Knowing your purpose, who you are serving and why is going to get you thought all the ups and downs of entrepreneurship. Especially those tough times when things get tough and you want to quit. Write out your vision, who it is you serve, how you want to do that and make a difference in the world. Keep this manifesto front and center of everything that you do. Being clear on this one thing will make all the difference when things get hard or you want to quit.

#3 Are you ready to give it your all?

Do you get frustrated because friends and family haven’t recognized your business as a business? They think it’s a cute hobby and not a real business? Is it because you don’t appear to be giving it your all. It is true that most people have great ideas and actually have lots of them. But very few people take the initiative and actually do something with it. Or worse yet, start and then give up when the first road block occurs. It is a given that there are going to be plenty of roadblocks. But the reality is that unless you are fully committed to this thing that has consumed you night and day, it is probably not the thing for you.

#4 Who are your helpers?

Entrepreneurship is a lonely profession. Many times we feel like we are all alone at the helm and a storm is coming but there is no one around to help us. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Often times we don’t notice the help that is waiting in the sidelines or worse yet, we don’t want to ask for help in the fear that we will be judged for being weak. Find a community or at least people who believe in what you’re doing. The people you surround yourself with are going to make a major impact on the success of your business. Make sure you’ve got a group of people behind you that understand your passion and your why in pursuing the life of an entrepreneur.

#5 Do you believe in yourself enough to overcome mindset blocks?

No matter how strong you are, you will get some mindset blocks along your entrepreneurial path. These blocks can be debilitating at times. It is important that you develop the skills to not only recognize these blocks but also overcome them. Most mindset blocks occur in terms of scarcity, completion, self-worth, confidence and a ‘why me’ attitude. You have what it takes, you can make it and you are worthy – it is important to always have that attitude and mindset to move past these blocks.

Sure, money, connections and skills are also on the list but these are not as important as the right mindset and attitude to be a successful entrepreneur.