What makes a Successful Entrepreneur?

https://www.thebalance.com/traits-of-world-s-most-successful-entrepreneurs-1200703


This article outlines eight characteristics of a successful entrepreneur. An entrepreneur is the brains behind a business. They are the creator who launched their business idea.

Eight key traits:
-    They listen more than they talk
-    Embrace failure
-    They are curious
-    Follow their passions
-    Admit to what they don’t know
-    Not afraid to say no
-    Keep a work/life balance
-    Importance of a good team

The two characteristics that I want to focus on are the embrace of failure and curiosity. In the article, the authors use the example of Steve Jobs, who was one of the most successful and worldly recognizable entrepreneurs. At first, Steve Jobs was overthrown as CEO, whereby he then had to work hard in gaining the Apple board’s trust back. When forced to leave Apple, Jobs went off on his own, developing NeXt. When Apple began to go under, Jobs returned to save the company with his innovative ideas.  Therefore, while failure is bound to happen within the competitive and uncertain tech industry, successful entrepreneurs learn from their mistakes rather than allowing them to finish their career. By embracing your failures, you are acknowledging the wrong you did, allowing it to make you stronger.

The second one I will focus on is curiosity, which I believe relates strongly to the innovative process. Entrepreneurs innovate by continually advancing their ideas and products to keep up with the changing environment and society. In the article, “The Theory of the Innovative Firm,”  William Lazonick suggests the importance of innovation and how it is changing our economy to become more collective, cumulative, and uncertain.

I believe that those two characteristics are essential for individuals who are starting a new business. Do you agree with these eight traits that the authors outlines? Can you think of any other aspects that go into creating a successful entrepreneur? Provide an example, similar to Steve Jobs, of someone who exemplifies the elements of a great entrepreneur.

Comments

  1. Kaelan De Bellefeuille20 February 2018 at 20:10

    I do certainly think that the 8 characteristics that the author presents are valid traits that entrepreneurs would have. I feel like drive and vision are two very important traits that any entrepreneur would have. Drive and vision would be invaluable to anyone that would like to start a new business venture.

    One example that comes to mind for another great entrepreneur would be Elon Musk. Elon Musk first gained his fortune from founding PayPal then subsequently started Tesla and SpaceX. I feel that Elon Musk perfectly embodies the idea of an entrepreneur that is innovative and a risk-taker.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Unknown21 February 2018 at 16:35

    I think another important characteristic in the article is "Admit to what they don't know". People often say the expression "Fake it until you make it", meaning pretend you know everything until you do, or worse, until people believe you know everything. I think a crucial trait of being an entrepreneur is being able to ask question and taking feed back in return. I would add this to the list of traits and connect it to admitting to what they don't know.

    No one knows everything, and the people who know the most are the ones who ask questions to further knowledge, hope to create a conversation with others.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Sarah Cumming25 February 2018 at 21:34

    I think another key identifier of what makes a successful entrepreneur is their ability to be flexible and adapt to change. They need to pay attention to the environment around around them and recognize that when it changes, so will their original ideas and their future strategies and goals.

    Since talking about innovation throughout the last few weeks, it is clear that innovation occurs at such a fast pace, and it is important to evolve with this change and not get stuck on a certain path. Although change can be unpredictable, it is importance to embrace it and work with it instead of against it. Ultimately, it is important for an entrepreneur to not get caught up in the way they had planed for things to go. I think that change can often lead to growth, and it is important to recognize these changes so one can understand what it might take to be successful in a rapidly-changing environment.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Adam Kula24 March 2018 at 13:37

    This was a very well written and thought out blog post that offers interesting insight into the life of an entrepreneur. I agree with all of the eight traits listed that make a successful entrepreneur, but I can think of a few to add. One of which is being good at personal selling and thus possessing strong communication skills. Take something like Shark Tank and Dragons Den for example. Constantly the show features entrepreneurs hoping to receive financing for their ventures. While the product is always important, the venture capitalists are always either intrigued or thrown off by the presentations put together by the entrepreneurs. It's one thing to have a great product or process, it is another to know how to sell it and take it to the next level.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Shinjni20 April 2018 at 14:44

    Hey,

    I think for sure that having a good team really can lead to overall success of any venture. You can be the worst boss, but if you have a great team, you can achieve your goals. This is a fact, as I have worked in such environments and have friends who have been part of teams with poor management but they achieved overall success.

    To be honest, I'm tired of hearing about Steve Jobs, the man was smart and achieved so much because of his team. He was never one person who is made it happen, it was his team. There are stories that circulate saying he was a terrible boss, and arrogant and a big perfectionist. The man barely spent time with his family, but was a curious guy. I'm not saying he is the perfect entrepreneur but he did not embody all those characteristics. I don't think every successful entrepreneur can embody such a diverse set of values and characteristics, unless your superman. Each trait also is dependent on the situation, so it's hard to also note that these will make a person successful.

    As environments and teams evolve, one important trait is being able to adapt, which I think should be included in that list.

    ReplyDelete

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