Understanding exactly what kind of attitude and work ethic you need to set up a business and achieve success is important to know if you want to be an entrepreneur.
These 10 steps will give you some idea of the mindset you’ll need to adopt, plus more besides.
Keep reading to find out if you have what it takes to make it in the entrepreneurial world.
Step 1. Work like retirement is just around the corner
If you want retire early then it’s entirely possible if you’re a successful entrepreneur. But to achieve an early retirement you have to be prepared to put in the hard work and save your money. You’ve probably already got a good work ethic, but you also need to enjoy working hard so it doesn’t feel a chore. When you want to retire it will be on your terms, not because your age dictates it.
Step 2. Stayed focused on what you’re doing
Successful entrepreneurs tend to be single-minded individuals with an unshakeable belief in what they’re doing – think Richard Hendricks in the TV series Silicon Valley who believes in the value of his Pied Piper program no matter what obstacles he encounters.
Step 3. Don’t deliberate on decision-making
Thanks to technology, businesses today move at a much quicker pace than they did 50 years ago. So the importance of moving fast and improving quickly can’t be underlined enough. If you can’t make decisions on the fly you’ll be left behind.
As Mark Zuckerberg says: “Move fast and break things. Unless you are breaking stuff, you are not moving fast enough.”
Step 4. Solve people’s problems
Being open to innovative ideas, whether they’re yours or someone else’s, can help kickstart your career as an entrepreneur. The next time you hear “I wish I had this product (or service) it would make life so much easier” think of what you would need to do to create said product or service, and if it would appeal to others.
Inspiration is all around you, you just have to open your eyes and ears.
Step 5. Be instinctive yet tenacious
There’s no time for inflexibility when you’re an entrepreneur because you need to constantly learn and adapt to different situations. You also have to have a strong element of tenacity to drive your cause. Most importantly you need to listen to your instincts if you sense red flags about a project or person who may stop you reaching your goals.
You have to be able to determine whether a transitional bump is the failure of your new business or a stepping stone to success.
Step 6. Don’t let ‘no’ determine your fate
Successful entrepreneurs never take ‘no’ for an answer when asking for help. They refuse to let someone else be the roadblock to their dream. They simply look for an alternative route and chalk up any let downs or disappointments as a learning experience to gain resilience.
Step 7. Practice self-care
Whether it’s taking time to meditate or hang out with friends, you need to set a good work-life balance as an entrepreneur. Burnout is an all too common reason why business owners fail. As the CEO of a company you need to listen to your body and care about your health because no one else is going to.
Step 8. Take action, don’t hypothesize
You can spend too much time perfecting the plan rather than taking action. Successful entrepreneurs can identify a window of opportunity and act accordingly, while others are still preparing a PowerPoint presentation.
Understand that business plans are important but a great strategy alone won’t secure a deal, you need to be able to calculate the risks involved and take action.
Step 9. Inspire others with your passion
Successful entrepreneurs are excited about their ventures. Having a passionate belief in what you’re doing inspires potential investors and partners to work with you and grow your business.
It comes back to staying focused and identifying exactly what you’re striving to achieve and always looking to turn obstacles into opportunities.
Step 10. Work with smart people
Last but not least, you need to employ smarter people than yourself. Successful entrepreneurs are usually smart cookies but you also need to surround yourself with even smarter people, people that can help you grow your business and take it to the next level. Whether this is employing an accountant, technical staff or even admin staff, always hire the smart ones and you can’t go wrong.
Matt Ramage has been marketing websites for over 20 years. He loves helping businesses improve their user experience and searchability on the Internet. Matt now heads Emarketed which is located in Los Angeles, California. They specialize in SEO, social media marketing and web development.