You are likely to spend your free time brushing up your skills or thinking of ways to attract more clients. Entrepreneurs set up their businesses with their own money, loans, or by partnering with venture capitalists to fund their dreams. Because you set up your own business instead of working for someone else’s, you take responsibility for all the risks, but you also benefit from all of the rewards. Successful entrepreneurs have the potential to radically improve the world on multiple fronts.

Do you have the traits of a successful entrepreneur?

Think about what you’d do if a new competitor suddenly swallowed your market share. What if your industry doesn’t embrace your product or service—but a different industry does? Think about it, write it down, and turn it into a contingency plan.

• It’s a practical skill that helps you stay calm and productive when surprises pop up.
• Initiation of any business activity should come from the entrepreneur.
• The key is to keep growing, stay open to new opportunities, and never stop learning.

How to Develop These Traits

Entrepreneur April Mall, for example, never set out to start a plant business—it was an after-work escape from her full-time nursing job. But when plants began to overtake her apartment, April started selling propagated plants to cover the cost of maintaining her own. Unsolicited Plant Talks became so successful that April and her husband, Daryk, quit their jobs to run the business full time. Whether you’re exploring new opportunities, leveling up your skills, or navigating a major transition, coaching can help you gain clarity, confidence, and direction. Adaptability to shifting conditions is what makes a successful business.

• If you strategize well and outline metrics for tracking success, you can quickly make adjustments and find appropriate solutions.
• Flexibility in product development, marketing, staffing, and attitude is crucial to success.
• Entrepreneurs that are adaptable quickly adjust their tactics, modify their products, or react to consumer input.
• Yes, introverts can thrive as entrepreneurs by using their strengths in thoughtful decision-making and building strong one-on-one relationships.

Successful entrepreneurs balance managerial experience and industry knowledge.

You can have many great skills, but without proper wellness, you won’t be able to execute on your assets. According to research published in Frontiers in Psychology, curiosity is one of the top personality traits that leads to entrepreneurial intentions and behavior. It was also found to have a bigger influence on entrepreneurial outcomes than being open to new experiences. If you have a day job in addition to your startup, this could mean working long hours to give your business the attention it needs to flourish. You’ll sometimes need to get motivated to wake up early or stay up late as you start your new venture.

These financial relationships support our content but do not dictate our recommendations. Our editorial team independently evaluates products based on thousands of hours of research. Learn more about our full process and see who our partners are here. Carve out 10 – 15 minutes each day to sit down and plan for your business’ future. Jot it down in a calendar, set an alarm, cover your wall with post-its if you have to—just make sure you don’t forget!

Whether you enjoy being your boss, desire greater financial security, or have a passion that you dream of turning into a business, specific characteristics may help you succeed. Learn about the qualities of an entrepreneur and how you can hone those qualities to achieve your business goals. You can develop a growth mindset by changing your perspective on failure, understanding your limitations, and setting goals for self-improvement. Are you interested in learning the ins and outs of entrepreneurship? Explore our four-week online course Entrepreneurship Essentials and our other entrepreneurship and innovation courses to learn to speak the language of the startup world. If you aren’t sure which course is the right fit, download our free course flowchart to determine which best aligns with your goals.

Discipline

Goal-tracking tools, to-do lists, calendar apps, and myriad other tools and techniques can help anyone get and stay organized. Here are a few traits self-aware leaders should try to recognize, acknowledge, and change. Most entrepreneurs must wear many hats before they can afford to hire a team and delegate responsibility. While entrepreneurs often have unique specialties, a smattering of knowledge in multiple areas can be valuable. For that, you need to nurture one ability that will not only help you be a more successful entrepreneur, but it will also make you a better person.

Successful entrepreneurs understand that failure isn’t the end of a career. Persisting despite obstacles helps build confidence, resilience, creativity, and innovation. As an entrepreneur, you’ll constantly be presented with new tasks that challenge your skill set. Resourcefulness goes hand in hand with qualities of successful entrepreneur innovation and problem-solving.

You cannot expect to be effective and successful in business unless you truly believe in your business and in the goods and services that you sell. Far too many home business owners fail to take their own businesses seriously enough, getting easily sidetracked and not staying motivated and keeping their noses to the grindstone. They also fall prey to naysayers who don’t take them seriously because they don’t work from an office building, office park, storefront, or factory. There’s no one-size-fits-all recipe for successful entrepreneurs.

You can improve your emotional intelligence skills by practicing active listening, asking for help and feedback, and developing your communication skills. Each goal should build on the last, bringing your vision closer to reality. Invest time and persistence in finding what gets your creative juices flowing. To cultivate this entrepreneurial skill, lean on healthy habits that support creativity.

Risk Tolerant

The good news is that even if you feel like you lack some of the common characteristics of a successful entrepreneur, many of these qualities can be developed with time and practice. Being aware of these entrepreneurial traits can help you identify your strengths and weaknesses so you can intentionally direct your self-improvement efforts to overcome self-doubt. Empathy means understanding how others feel, whether it’s your team, your customers, or your partners. It helps you create products people love and lead teams people want to be part of. Most importantly, listening to others and seeing things from their point of view helps you make better decisions and build lasting relationships.

Let’s take a closer look at the 10 essential qualities of an entrepreneur. By exploring common personality traits of successful entrepreneurs and learning more about the types of entrepreneurs, you can get motivated to grow your entrepreneurial skills. To thrive in the entrepreneurial world, focus on cultivating these qualities, leveraging opportunities, and learning from every experience. Whether you are just starting or looking to refine your entrepreneurial mindset, developing these traits will help you build a thriving, sustainable business. Regardless of your definition of success, there are, oddly enough, a great number of common characteristics that are shared by successful businesspeople.

This often involves recruiting teammates through networking and investing funds to determine how they’ll deliver a product or service at an acceptable cost. These are the top common traits that I have come to see as making for great teams and long-term success. But develelping these eight key qualities of a successful entrepreneur is a way to improve the odds. The best things in life are often found on the other side of a worthwhile risk; in that way, the best business you can build may be on the other side of possible failure. While uncalculated risks can cause terrible consequences, calculated risks are the sweet spot of a new business venture. One might wonder, what does being an empath have to do with being a successful entrepreneur.

In many cases, it’s the entrepreneurial team, rather than an individual, that drives a business venture toward success. When starting your own business, it’s critical to surround yourself with teammates who have complementary talents and contribute to a common goal. Every great entrepreneur shares ten critical attributes, which I’ve witnessed during my time helping thousands of business leaders succeed. When starting a business, these key components should be at the forefront of your mind as they pertain directly to success. This inner drive helps you stay on track, push through long hours, and lead with energy and intention.

Entrepreneurial Environment: Characteristics, 8 Importance

Regardless of the type of business you build, your reputation with clients and customers is important. Building solid customer relationships is rewarding in itself, but it also leads to repeat customers, valuable word-of-mouth referrals, and increased sales. Rather than settling for the status quo, curious entrepreneurs ask challenging questions and explore ways to better serve their customers.