Whenever we hear the word entrepreneur, we always think that it is simply being a businessman. What is a businessman? A businessman is someone who creates a business, someone who creates an opportunity and gets paid for doing it.
In order to fully understand what entrepreneurship means we have to understand where the word comes from.
Entrepreneurship comes from the French word “Entreprendre” which translates English to “Undertaker” or “Adventure”. Hence, being an entrepreneur is being an undertaker or an adventurer. An entrepreneur is someone who finds opportunities to improve the lives of others, to fulfill a need, or to solve a problem.
Also, as they say, the mother of all learning is curiosity. We’re all naturally born to be curious about the world. This is just how we are as humans. The moment we were born, we are curious about “Who is this person holding me?” We want to grasp the things within our reach, we want to try and munch on everything we get a hold on, thinking whether it’s edible or not. As we grow, we try to explore things, learn more about the language of our parents, understand the world, and be happy. We were all naturally meant to be curious, that’s just how it is.
But what sets an entrepreneur apart from others? This curiosity that they have, they have cultivated it to such an extent that they are willing to invest, risk, and try their luck at discovering something new, doing something that has never been done before, or trying out something that has already worked for others, wondering if it will also work for them as well.
What are the key qualities of an entrepreneur?
1. Curious – This is the top 1 skill of an entrepreneur. As we’ve discussed above, curiosity is always where entrepreneurs start. Necessity could be a driver, but definitely, in order to fill this necessity, they have to think of a probable solution and act towards its achievement. In this process, their curiosity to fill a need is what drives them to succeed.
2. Systematic – An entrepreneur should be organized and systematic in his approach. For an entrepreneur, this is always a phase of determining whether a certain idea will succeed. Running tests such as feasibility studies or surveys provide entrepreneurs with knowledge of the market and the circumstances surrounding their idea.
3. Adaptable – A very important factor for the continuity of the success of an entrepreneur lies in his ability to adapt to the ever-changing environment in the industry he pursues. There would be a lot of considerations in moving forward and that, should circumstances change, an entrepreneur must be quick to pivot towards a next plan and must have prepared multiple plans in case the first few plans fails.
4. Decisive – An entrepreneur should be quick to act. This is a common hindrance to most people. “What if it doesn’t work out?”. “What if I lose all my money”?. These kinds of questions pop out of the heads of many and ultimately, stops them from pursuing their ideas. Also, even a successfully established business will face roadblocks if the decision-making process is slow.
5. Team-player – An entrepreneur recognizes that they are full of flaws. No one can be perfect and a single person cannot accomplish everything. Understanding this, a good entrepreneur finds and establishes a good team where each member complements the others, covering the weaknesses through their collective efforts and maximizing their strengths. Also, it is important that the people who surround you have a common goal. This will ensure that everyone’s efforts and skills are fully directed towards one direction.
6. Risk-aware – Being an entrepreneur is about being able to weigh risk properly. As the saying goes, “The greater the risk, the greater the rewards”. Most of the time, establishing a business and being an entrepreneur feels like gambling since the risks are high, but there may be a hidden gold mind waiting to be found. Knowing when to push through with an idea, maximize opportunities, and minimize risk, an entrepreneur will most likely get good deals and be able to sustain the business, even through tough times.
7. Fail-proof – An entrepreneur should be comfortable with failure. He should be seeing failure as a means to learn, and grow. Failure means that you’re trying, and that, with the right set of skills, the right team, and diligence in pursuing an idea, eventually, all efforts will be rewarded and the goal will be achieved.
8. Determined – In relation to number 7 above,number being fail-proof, an entrepreneur needs to be determined. He must be able to persist through the hardest times, through dozens, hundreds, or even thousands of failures. The key to this is to be resilient. Just like how the bamboo bends and sways with the strong wind, only to come back tall and proud, an entrepreneur should be dynamic, not easily swept by circumstances, and is always on the lookout for great opportunities, even through tough times.
9. Innovative – With curiosity comes innovation. When an entrepreneur is able to reimagine the world around him, and convert his ideas to reality, he’ll be ahead of the pack. Effectively determining what the world needs, something that isn’t still available now, something that no one is still doing, that’s what it means to be innovative. The mindset of “Why fix it if it’s not broken?” is foreign to a good entrepreneur, and instead, he always thinks about “how do I do this better?”.
10. Planner – An entrepreneur should be good at planning ahead. This is especially true for the long-run. Planning long-term ensures that things are well-prepared for, risks are managed, and the business will go on towards its goal. It is easy to start a business without careful planning, but what’s difficult is to grow it to a sustainable level.
Definitely, everyone has a shot at becoming an entrepreneur. Skills may be learned and resources to start one may be raised. However, nobody said it will be easy. You have to ask yourself, “Am I ready?”.
