|
Running a one-person business is a creative, flexible and
challenging way to become your own boss and chart your own
future. It is about creating a life, as it is about making a
living. It takes courage, determination and foresight to decide
to become an entrepreneur. From the relatively safe cocoon of
the corporate world, where paychecks arrive regularly, you will
be venturing into the unchartered territories of business.
(article continued below ...)
Is there a way to determine whether you can be a successful
entrepreneur, or you are better off to work for somebody
else? Alas, there is no formula for success. However, most
successful entrepreneurs share these ten characteristics. Check
if you possess any one of them:
1. Think success.
To
attain the kind of success that you want, you need to dream big.
Every success story starts with big dreams. You need to have big
dreams for yourself - which you want to be somebody rich, famous
or fulfilled. You need to have a clear vision of what you want
to achieve. But it doesn't stop in dreaming alone. You should
actively visualize success in your mind that you can almost feel
it, touch it or it is within your reach. Play this image back at
every opportunity. What does it feel to triple your current
income? How will your life change? What will your business look
like if you achieved the million-dollar mark?
Successful entrepreneurs possess an attitude of openness and
faith that you can have what you want if you can simply envision
it as the first step on the path of action to acquiring it.
Management gurus have taught us the power of visualization -
seeing yourself in your mind as having accomplished your dreams.
If you want to be a successful writer, envision yourself signing
books for a throng of people who have lined up to have your
autograph. If you want to be rich, picture yourself in luxurious
surroundings holding a fat bank account. And the process of
envisioning success for you should be a constant activity! You
need to think that you are successful (or will be one) every
single waking hour. A personal development coach shared me her
secret to help her continuously visualize her goals for the
moment: when climbing stairs, recite your goal with every step
you take. So if you want more money, say "I will have
money" in every step of the stairs. This technique will
reinforce your goal and keep it fresh in your consciousness.
2. Be passionate with what you do.
You start a business to change any or all part of your life. To
attain this change, you need to develop or uncover an intense,
personal passion to change the way things are and to live life
to the fullest. Success comes easily if you love what you do.
Why? Because we are more relentless in our pursuit of goals
about things that we love. If you hate your job right now, do
you think you will ever be successful at it? Not in a million
years! You may plod along, even become competent at the tasks,
but you will never be a great success at it. You will achieve
peak performance and do what you have to do to succeed only if
you are doing something that interests you or something that you
care about. Entrepreneurs who succeed do not mind the fact that
they are putting in 15 or 18 hours a day to their business
because they absolutely love what they do. Success in business
is all about patience and hard work, which can only be attained
if you are passionate and crazy with your tasks and activities.
3. Focus on your strengths.
Let's face it; you cannot be everything to everybody. Each of us
has our own strengths and weaknesses. To be effective, you need
to identify your strengths and concentrate on it. You will
become more successful if you are able to channel your efforts
to areas that you do best. In business, for example, if you know
you have good marketing instincts, then harness this strength
and make full use of it. Seek help or assistance in areas that
you may be poor at, such as accounting or bookkeeping. To
transform your weakness to strength, consider taking hands-on
learning or formal training.
4. Never consider the possibility of
failure.
Ayn Rand, in her novel The Fountainhead,
wrote, "It is not in the nature of man - nor of any living
entity, to start out by giving up." As an entrepreneur, you
need to fully believe in your goals, and that you can do it.
Think that what you are doing will contribute to the betterment
of your environment and your personal self. You should have a
strong faith in your idea, your capabilities and yourself. You
must believe beyond a shadow of a doubt that you have the
ability to recognize and fulfill them. The more you can develop
faith in your ability to achieve your goals, the more rapidly
you can attain it. However, your confidence should be balanced
with calculated risks that you need to take to achieve greater
rewards. Successful entrepreneurs are those who analyze and
minimize risk in the pursuit of profit. As they always say,
"no guts, no glory."
5. Plan accordingly.
You
have a vision, and you have enough faith in yourself to believe
that you can achieve your vision. But do you know how to get to
your vision? To achieve your vision, you need to have concrete
goals that will provide the stepping-stone towards your ultimate
vision. Put your goals in writing; not doing so just makes them
as intangible fantasies. You need to plan each day in such a way
that your every action contributes to the attainment of your
vision. Do you foresee yourself as the next Martha Stewart of
hand-made home furnishings? Perhaps today, you need to see an
artist to help you conceptualize the new line of hand-made
linens that you hope to launch. Intense goal orientation is the
characteristic of every successful entrepreneur. They have a
vision, and they know how to get there. Your ability to set
goals and make plans for your accomplishment is the skill
required to succeed. Plan, plan and plan - because without which
failure is guaranteed.
6. Work hard!
Every
successful entrepreneur works hard, hard and hard. No one
achieves success just by sitting and staring at the wall every
single day. Brian Tracy puts it out this way, "You work
eight hours per day for survival; everything over eight hours
per day is for success." Ask any successful businessperson
and they will tell you immediately that they had to work more
than 60 hours per week at the start of their businesses. Be
prepared to say goodbye to after-office drinks every day, or a
regular weekend get-away trip. If you are in a start-up phase,
you will have to breathe, eat and drink your business until it
can stand on its own. Working hard will be easy if you have a
vision, clear goals, and are passionate with what you do.
7. Constantly Look for Ways to
Network.
In business, you are judged by the company
you keep - from your management team, board of directors, and
strategic partners. Businesses always need assistance, more so
small businesses. Maybe the lady you met in a trade association
meeting can help you secure funding, or the gentleman at a
conference can provide you with management advise. It is
important to form alliances with people who can help you, and
whom you can help in return. To succeed in business, you need to
possess good networking skills and always be alert to
opportunities to expand your contacts.
8. Willingness to Learn.
You do not need to be a MBA degree holder or PhD graduate to
succeed in your own business. In fact, there are a lot of
entrepreneurs who did not even finish secondary education.
Studies show that most self-made millionaires have average
intelligence. Nonetheless, these people reached their full
potentials achieved their financial and personal goals in
business because they are willing to learn. To succeed, you must
be willing to ask questions, remain curious, interested and open
to new knowledge. This willingness to learn becomes more crucial
given the rapid changes in technologies and ways of doing
business.
9. Persevere and have faith.
No
one said that the road to success is easy. Despite your good
intentions and hard work, sometimes you will fail. Some
successful entrepreneurs suffered setbacks and resounding
defeats, even bankruptcy, yet managed to quickly stand up to
make it big in their fields. Your courage to persist in the face
of adversity and ability to bounce back after a temporary
disappointment will assure your success. You must learn to pick
yourself up and start all over again. Your persistence is the
measure of the belief in yourself. Remember, if you persevere,
nothing can stop you.
10.
Discipline yourself.
Thomas
Huxley once said, "Do what you should do, when you should
do it, whether you like it or not." Self-discipline is the
key to success. The strength of will to force yourself to pay
the price of success - doing what others don't like to do, going
the extra mile, fighting and winning the lonely battle with
yourself.
|
