7 Qualities that Define a Successful Entrepreneur and How to Strengthen Them

To be a successful entrepreneur and to run a start-up, you need some very specific qualities that not everyone possesses. Some people are born with them, some have to develop them – and nobody is perfect. Even the most successful business people have started at some point and have had to work on their mindset and their skills to get where they are today. That is why in this article “7 Qualities that Define a Successful Entrepreneur and How to Strengthen Them” we want to talk about the seven qualities that define a successful entrepreneur and how to strengthen them. 

Creativity

Creativity is one of the most important qualities that a successful entrepreneur needs. Creative minds think up new solutions and innovate – and often, it is an innovative product that is needed to become successful with a start-up. 

Many people only think about artistic creativity when they hear the word, but it definitely is not limited to that. It also needs creativity to be able to tackle a specific task with limited resources or to think of solutions that no one has ever thought of before. 

So how can you strengthen or enhance your creativity? There are a couple of ways, the easiest and most fun one is to work in a team. If you work with others, you will experience different perspectives and will have to work with people with different viewpoints. This definitely will stimulate your brain to come up with more creative solutions. To develop more creative ways of thinking about a specific issue, it is also advisable to unplug every now and then – you will be surprised about the new ideas that will pop up in your head. It also helps when you do something you love and enjoy. This leads us to the next quality that defines a successful entrepreneur. 

Passion 

When you are a start-up entrepreneur, you need a passion for what you want to sell. Without passion, you will not get through the dry spells that will definitely come and you will not be able to influence and convince others to work with or invest in you. 

You do not only need to feel passion for your ideas, your product, and your start-up, but you also need the skills to communicate that. In the end, that is probably the reason why you founded your start-up – you had an idea and are so convinced by it, that you just have to implement it. Let everybody know that your heart is in this business – and you will see how your passion will become infectious. 

It is not always easy to feel passionate about a business at all times though. Maybe you have run into some trouble and have hit a wall and don’t feel it like in the beginning. In these moments, visualize your vision and your mission. Where do you want to go? What do you want your life to look like in ten years? What impact do you want to have with your business? When you have a clear picture of this in your mind, your passion will come to the surface again. 

Professionalism 

If you want to be a successful entrepreneur, you need to be professional. There is no way around that and if you do not possess this quality already, you need to learn it. Being professional does not necessarily mean to be tense and stuck up, it just means that you regard your start-up as a business from day one and treat it this way. 

You can be friends with your employees but keep a professional distance. You can be colloquial with your customers, but make sure everything is spelled out professionally in a contract. If you treat your company like a business, it will grow like a business. 

If you have issues with this, there are many resources that can help you to learn business management and professionalism. Take the time to learn what you are doing and to become more confident.

Self-Discipline

Many people want to have the perks of being a successful entrepreneur, they want the money, the respect, and the flashy tasks. But unfortunately, especially in the beginning, the development of a successful start-up with demands a lot of work. This is why a very important quality that defines a successful entrepreneur is self-discipline. 

Sometimes this means you have to work long hours to finish a contract on time. Sometimes it means you cannot spend money on fun things because you need to save it for a business expense. And it also might mean that you have to cut back on your free time for a while. To be able to do all these things, self-discipline is key. 

If you are afraid that you don’t have enough self-discipline to become a successful entrepreneur, practice to visualize the result you are aiming for. It is no fun to stay late at the office today, but if you know what you are doing it for in the long term, it will help. Also, establishing routines is helpful to learn self-discipline, as the brain likes routines and will fall into them quite easily. 

 Responsible Risk-Taking ability

Starting a business or a start-up is not possible without taking risks. Staying in a contract and not changing anything is always the safer option, but going it alone is an adventure. Every great entrepreneur has taken substantial risks at some point in their career. Sometimes this means making decisions that are scary. Sometimes it means to pass on short-term gains to invest in long-term success. And it can make you nervous. But in the end, it is all worth it. 

But obviously, risk-taking does not mean throwing out everything on a whim. Successful entrepreneurs only take risks after carefully analyzing the pros and cons and deliberating if it is worth it. 

If you are averse to risk, try to understand this saying: Only when you are scared of something, you will learn a lot. Only when we leave our comfort zone, we can grow. Start with small risks with low implications and work yourself up – responsible risk-taking is something you can learn and become comfortable with.

Social skills

A very important quality that defines a successful entrepreneur is social skills. There is no business that does not have at least a little human dimension, and often the way you are able to interact with others will define the outcome of your endeavor. This means dealing with employees, customers, and investors. 

If you are not confident in your social skills, practice them – there is no way around that. Even introverts can find ways in which social interaction is comfortable through practice. And if you still feel like you are lacking in this field, you can assemble a team that can help you with this. 

Knowing how to deal with failure

For some people it sounds weird to say that it is a crucial quality of a successful entrepreneur to be able how to deal with failure – in the end, we are talking about success, right? But the road to success is almost never a straight one. There will be failures, there will be roadblocks, and there will be devastating events. What differentiates a successful entrepreneur from an unsuccessful one is how they are dealt with. 

If a failure leads to depression, despair, and anger, nothing will be learned from it and nothing will change. But if it leads to a careful re-evaluation and a learning experience, failures can actually be very important lessons that will determine the long-term outcome. 

If you feel overwhelmed by a roadblock or a failure, make sure to look at it in context. Is it really that bad? Is there anything positive you can take from it? Do you know how it happened? Which lessons can you learn from it and how can you avoid it in the future? If you take these steps, you will be able to deal much better with rejection and failure. 

What are some other qualities that you associate with successful entrepreneurs? Please share with us in the comments.

Related: Everything You Need to Know About the Business Plan for Your Startup