The Entrepreneur's Checklist
I was asked the other day what personality traits I thought were
important to entrepreneurial success. I immediately gave my
preprogrammed reply about passion and dedication and hard work.
After taking some time later to ponder the question a little
deeper (I normally operate in shallow waters), I came up with a
more detailed checklist for entrepreneurial success. This is by
no means a definitive list, but I'd be willing to bet that if
you don't have at least a majority of these traits, your chances
of business success will be greatly diminished.
You must be self motivated.
If you don't have the wherewithal to bounce out of bed each day
without your spouse drenching you with cold water, chances are
you don't have the self motivation or discipline required to be
an entrepreneur. Business demands that you take action based
solely on your own volition. You have to do a hundred things
every day that will not get done unless you make yourself do
them.
You can't be afraid of hard work.
If you think working for someone else is hard work, try starting
your own business. You will be required to give every ounce of
blood, sweat, and tears you can muster and then some. You will
have to work long hours and be on call 24/7, at least in the
beginning. If the mere thought of hard work makes you tired,
maybe you should just keep your cushy day job.
You should have experience in the type of business you plan to
start.
If you can't locate your car's engine you have no business
buying an oil change franchise. The most successful business
owners have prior experience in the industry in which they have
set up shop. Consider working in an industry at least part time
for a year before jumping in with both feet.
You must be able to climb back on the horse.
I always say: "If business was easy, everybody would do it."
Starting a business is hard work and the odds for failure are
against you in the first few years. If you want to ride herd on
your own business, you must be willing to fall off your horse
and get back on a few times without giving up.
You need the support of your family.
When you start a business you may have to spend more time away
from the family than you like. The business may also put a
strain on you financially. You will have enough obstacles in
your way without having to worry if you have the support of your
family and those closest to you
You must have a thick skin.
If your feelings are easily hurt, keep your non-threatening day
job because business is not for you. Many days in business,
rejection waits around every corner and you must be able to
handle rejection without taking it personally.
You must interact well with others.
Being an entrepreneur requires interacting with a variety of
people, from your own employees to vendors to customers to
investors. You must have the ability to effectively manage
people without offending them; the ability to accept good advice
from mentors and politely discount the bad; the ability to
overlook mistakes or quietly rectify them; and the one I have
trouble with: the ability to tolerate incompetence without
losing your cool (at least not on the outside).
The deeper your pockets the better.
The number one cause of business failure is a lack of money.
Before you start your business you should have access to enough
capital to see you through until the business can sustain
itself.
You must be able to delegate.
Running a business requires the performance of dozens of
simultaneous tasks and it's foolish to try to handle them all
yourself. You must learn to put your trust in others. If you
can't dish out responsibility without worrying over the result,
your business growth will be limited.
Previous business ownership is a plus.
Prior business ownership is not a prerequisite, but it can't
hurt. Many successful entrepreneurs have the skeletons of past
businesses rattling around in their closet.
Another of my sayings:
Business is a lot like marriage: you learn a lot from the first
one that may come in handy the second or third time around.
With that kind of advice you can see why I didn't go into
marriage counseling.
Here's to your success!