How to Become a Successful Entrepreneur – 7 Must-follow Steps
What is an entrepreneur?
Breaking it down to its simplest form, an entrepreneur is someone who identifies a gap in the market and does everything they can, to fill that gap. Entrepreneurs make their own decisions, actualize their visions and allow them something far more satisfying than money – the ability to build things and watch them grow.
According to Dictionary.com, an entrepreneur is “a person who organizes and manages any enterprise, especially a business, usually with considerable initiative and risk.”
Before you jump onto that crazy idea that you’ve had brewing in the back of your mind, consider if you have what it takes to be a successful entrepreneur. The first thing you’ll need to establish is whether you think like an entrepreneur. Some say that entrepreneurialism runs in your blood and is something that cannot be taught. But, that’s not to say that it cannot be encouraged.
Here we’ll take you through 7 must-follow tips to become a successful entrepreneur.
1. Think like an entrepreneur
Always think ahead and think BIG – successful entrepreneurs have huge vision.
To succeed in business you will need to
- Always persevere – even when others are trying to slow you down. Be proactive
- Be a go-getter – go get em’!
- Don’t fear failure – failure is an inevitable part of becoming an entrepreneur, and as a matter of fact, 20% of founders who failed on their first startup, succeeded on their second! Probably because they were lacking the above 3 qualities.
2. Find something that’ll get you out of bed
If you don’t absolutely love what you do and there’s no burning passion behind your vision, and the gut-wrenching need to see it through, then it’s very unlikely that you’ll succeed.
As an entrepreneur, you’re going to have many sleepless nights and have to put in a tremendous amount of effort to build something from the ground up.
It’s simple, if you’re not passionate about what you do, you’ll lose motivation. So be sure to find that something before you leap for the sake of leaping. Have you found something you are passionate about?
You may be interested in this: signs you’re ready to start your own business
3. Be an optimist
Sorry pessimists, but there’s no room for you here.
Becoming an entrepreneur means taking risks. But in order to become a successful entrepreneur, you’ll need to understand the risks you should and shouldn’t take – which, unfortunately, is a learning curve. Some people are naturally good at making these sorts of decisions, others, go through a steep learning curve.
Either way, you’ll need to remain optimistic and know that even if something doesn’t work out, you’ve now learned from this mistake and can use this new information to move on.
4. Learn how to hire the right people
Start by getting a great partner.
here’s a lot of research and many opinions about how many CEO’s is too many, and what is the optimal combination to have a successful startup?
Research has shown that startups are more than doubly likely to succeed when there are two founders as opposed to one. Adding in a third or fourth in our opinion will open the doors to a lot of politics where 2 could gang up on the third etc. The thought ‘too many cooks in the kitchen’ springs to mind. That’s not to say that there aren’t plenty of successful startups with 3 or 4 founders or that being a single CEO will lead to failure.
Overall, having a second opinion and set of hands, especially in the early stages of your business, can really help. And if you really do want to go at it alone, you’ll definitely need to hire some employees to help you out. Be sure to fill your team with people who believe in your vision, and have great character – very important at the early stages. Remember, you can teach people skills, but you can’t change someone’s character.
By filling your team with positive vibes and determined individuals, you’ll surely be setting yourself up for success.
5. Successful entrepreneurs are doers – be a doer!
Elvis was spot on, “a little less conversation a little more action”. Talking only delays action.
If you’re wondering how to become a successful entrepreneur, stop wondering and start doing. It’s easy to get weighted down by planning and researching (though of course important), talking, meeting and blah blah blah. The problem arises when you start talking about the same things over and over, running in circles without taking a decision.
Take a decision and go for it. If you want to know how to become a successful entrepreneur, you’ll need to stop wondering how and simply start doing – you’ll learn along the way.
6. Focus on one thing at a time
Are you a tab collector? If you’ve currently got way too many tabs open and are attempting to get a number of pieces of work done,
– while responding to your emails
– while keeping up with social media
– and while texting your loved ones
– you’re a multitasking tab collector – and when it comes to being successful and productive, this isn’t necessarily a good thing.
It’s estimated that only 2% of the population are actually successful at multi-tasking. In other words, try focusing on one thing at a time, and watch as your productivity soars.
Being an entrepreneur, your life will feel like a hundred and one things are all happening at once, and though multitasking is an important factor, it’s more important to maximize your time by focusing and completing one thing at a time.
In fact, the American Psychological Association (APA) found that 40% of productivity can be lost by simply switching tasks – even if it’s just glancing at your email. While important to promptly answer your emails, there’s no need to get back to people within 2 minutes. Finish the task your on and create time allocations in your day specifically for emails to increase your focus.
7. Plan your finances
MONEY. Although it isn’t all entrepreneurs goal to make money, many wish to simply fill a void and find satisfaction in growing a business from nothing, money is used to measure success and at the end of the day, you’ll need some money to make more of it.
Many entrepreneurs will start off by using their very own savings, or that of their family’s which is risky business and not an option for everyone. Make sure you have a well-thought-out plan and consider getting your funds from a variety of sources to minimize the risk.
You can get business funds from a mixture of:
- Savings
- Family and friends (though head caution here and get everything in writing)
- Business loans
- Start-up loans
- Credit cards
Become can help you to find the best funding to suit your needs. From startup loans to business loans, Become has over 35 lending partners and be given a tailored funding plan.
We hope you found these tips to become a successful entrepreneur useful. If you have anything to add, please feel free to tell us in the comments below.
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