7 Traits of A Good Entrepreneur

Every entrepreneur has their own reasons for launching their business, however, there are some common characteristics which can be found amongst them. 

 

What Makes A Good Entrepreneur?

Here at Kiwili, we believe that these are the 7 key personality traits and habits that will make you into a good entrepreneur, helping you to succeed in an entrepreneurial environment characterized by significant change and strong competition. 

 

1) A Good Entrepreneur Must Have the Soul of A Leader

When starting a new project, you’ll often find yourself alone, at least in the early stages when you’re getting everything set up. You might be the only one who believes wholeheartedly in the success of this “baby”, yet a good entrepreneur knows that motivating those involved in the project directly or indirectly from the get-go is key. A leader must convey the core ideas of the business, and therefore make sure that those helping to carry out the project adhere to these ideas as much as they themselves do. Generally, being a natural leader goes hand in hand with having an entrepreneurial spirit, although learning to lead a team effectively at work takes time and experience. 

 

2) Starting Up A New Business Means Taking Risks Within Reason

Every new business is a challenge, a challenge which requires a comprehensive study of exploitable opportunities before taking the risk of starting up. A risk taker doesn’t act as instinctively as you might think. It takes someone capable of identifying threats to their environment and then seizing opportunities as they come in order to minimize the risk of failure. Zero risk simply doesn’t exist, for an entrepreneur the challenge lies in anticipating the risk and channeling it.  

Note that risk taking also plays a part during a company’s innovation period, not only when you’re just starting out. 

 

3) An Entrepreneur Must Have A Strong Work Ethic in Order to Succeed

Yes, yes, every entrepreneur can testify to this one… Setting up your business requires a strong work ethic. Launching a company takes passion, but also the energy and good health to be able to devote many working hours to its development. The long hours and hard work are part of the process. Consequently, you need to learn to maximize your time and clearly define your objectives to be able to reach your targets efficiently. You might be interested in our latest blog post, all about the SMART method for defining clear objectives.

 

4) Know How To Delegate

It’s likely that in the beginning, for budgetary reasons, you’ll find yourself doing most of the work on your own. However, it’s important to know how to delegate your work, as you can’t take care of everything. As a result it’s essential to surround yourself with people you trust who you know you can count on. Your very first employee and those who follow must be able to work in the same way as you, in order to create an authentic company culture. From the early days of your business, it’s important to create a professional image. Establish and reinforce this image all throughout your work and transmit it to your employees. 

 

5) An Entrepreneur Must Be A Good Manager and Communicator

Whatever sector you’re in, the competition is ever-present and requires you to prove your worth. With the Internet, and more specifically on the Cloud, there are connected management tools which help you optimize your company’s workflow. Ranging from free applications to quality paid services; there are a wide variety of solutions. We recommend Kiwili, an excellent tool that is 100% online and will help with the organization and management of every aspect of your business. 

From the moment you launch your business, every entrepreneur becomes more mobile and flexible. Mobility has become essential in the process of launching a business. It is most vital at the beginning: getting your first clients or meeting up with investors requires you to be on the move constantly. 

Today, remote working has become the norm for many businesses. Through Skype or other tools of its kind, remote workers can keep in contact with the various company departments from anywhere. Similarly, the Cloud offers new forms of online communication. Advanced online communication solutions support businesses with their virtual communication in many ways, for example by redirecting incoming mobile calls to one single ‘virtual number’ for the business.

 

6) Launching A Business Means Being Innovative: Reinventing Yourself, Finding A New Direction

Innovation is another personality trait essential for starting a business. Due to the strong competition out there, it is vital to know how to reinvent yourself in order to take advantage of new market opportunities. To remain competitive, an entrepreneur must know how to reinvent themselves, modify or even radically change their strategy. In an entirely free market economy the competition, whatever sector you operate in, is constant, and you will need to proactively take risks. 

 

7) An Entrepreneur Knows How To Persevere After Failure

The success of a good entrepreneur comes from the fact that they know how to protect themselves and persevere despite their failures and doubts. Perseverance and resilience are key for lasting success, in other words, never give up! Learn to face the unexpected and find a means to get around and overcome these challenging circumstances. You need to have nerves of steel and be ready to take some risks.

 

Of course, these 7 characteristics are not the only traits required for being a good entrepreneur. A talent for sales, good negotiation skills and passion for what you do are also worth mentioning, as they appear in a good number of business success stories. Whether you want to get your business off to the right start or grow your activity, we recommend our blog for more posts on entrepreneurship but also on project management, accounting, invoicing and much more. 

Kiwili is the best all-in-one online project management software for small businesses and entrepreneurs. Let us make things easy for you and your team, find out more about Kiwili on our blog for entrepreneurs, businesses and freelancers.