The Psychology of an Entrepreneur
Last week, I had a meeting with a woman who had been an employee to a social media company we have used for many years in downtown Toronto. She and some co-workers decided to open their own social media shop. I ventured into her small, overheated office in the entertainment district where she has set up shop. She quickly rose from her chair and stumbled between a hand shake and a hug with the awkwardness of someone who had not yet got her bearings on this new world of entrepreneurship.
I asked her how she was doing and heard the common mix of anxiety and exuberance in her voice. It’s a strange cocktail of emotions for individuals who are embarking down a path of becoming an entrepreneur. Most often, there is an initial anxiety and worry about whether a good decision is being made, whether they will be successful, if they can do this!!!! Some describe, as this woman did, feeling like she was standing on a plank facing the depths of an abyss but she couldn’t be happier taking on the opportunity to do something for herself.
I have been talking to another woman who is a friend of mine and has a very successful career in the medical field. She would like nothing better than to spend time in the kitchen making her homemade pimento cheese to sell it to local restaurants and grocery stores.
Recently, I spoke to a 19 year old guy who wants to start a heavy equipment business. When sitting and talking to him, he stated that he has planned out the next few years of his life. He intends to work for someone else in the industry and learn not only the heavy equipment operation but also absorb as much of the business from the business owner himself, he is taking night school courses in business administration and lives at home to save money towards his first piece of equipment.
I spoke to a young woman who is 22 years old and in her third year of University. She is fluent in three languages and while attending full time studies, she and others she has hired provide English as a second language tutoring. She not only is earning money while she tutors but also from the other students she has hired to teach English.
I, myself became an entrepreneur in my mid twenties and have supported new entrepreneurs my entire career. What I have found is that there are common threads of personality to entrepreneurs. They most often are leaders within their peer groups whether it’s within the framework of friendships or work environments; they tend to be very social and outgoing people and often are the ones that think outside the box. Entrepreneurs tend to be risk takers and see opportunities where others see obstacles. They are often the people who think of better ways of doing things or question the way things operate within existing frameworks.
Without exception, becoming an entrepreneur takes a lot of grit, hard work, perseverance, creativity and determination however it also provides freedom, financial rewards, personal growth and most importantly self fulfillment .
Passion is most often the driving force behind someone becoming an entrepreneur. Their success is not driven so much by the idea of financial success but more so by the pursuit of their passion.
Entrepreneurs are resilient and in the face of setbacks or failures will dust themselves off, pick themselves up and persevere on after a loss occurs. As an entrepreneur, you will have bad days, steps backwards and have times where you will want to pull out your hair from utter frustration but know that you will move forward. Entrepreneurs have an uncanny motivation that keeps pushing them forward, to learn and grow from mistakes and misfortunes and to adapt to doing it better next time.
Being self-confident and self-motivated are also key traits for the majority of entrepreneurs. They have strong convictions that their ideas or visions are not only good but exceptional. Entrepreneurs have very high scoring in both of these areas through personality testing.
Flexibility and adaptation to changes are another notable trait of an entrepreneur. Directions can alter, competitors often change the landscape, personalities can clash and financing can tighten. Entrepreneurs look for solutions and modify their pathways quickly with a changing environment.
Motivation is another trait where an entrepreneur is constantly looking for new or expanding opportunities, to make things better, faster, easier and more accessible. The entrepreneur’s mind is busy and always thinking of opportunities to better their business and their customer’s experience.
Whenever I am introduced to new people, they often want to sit down and tell me their dream. I hear what they are passionate about or a business idea they have and want to pursue.
Individuals who become entrepreneurs take their passions and dreams to become the best of who they are and provide this to the world.
I hope this blog assists those who wish to become entrepreneurs. If you follow your passions and your heart, the power of your vision will take you to unbelievable self fulfillment.
To quote a few entrepreneurs who have followed their passion:
Tony Hsieh, CEO of Zappas “Chase the vision, not the money, the money will end up following you”
Mark Cuban, AXS TVChairman & entrepreneur “Always look for the fool in a deal. If you can’t find one, it’s you.”
Drew Houston, founder of Dropbox “Don’t worry about failure, you only have to be right once”.
Jack Dorsey, Twitter co-founder “Make every detail perfect and limit the number of details to perfect”.
I hope this post has been of assistance to you. If you would like to proceed with a small business registration or incorporate, Ontario Business Central can help you get started in the following Provinces:
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BRITISH COLUMBIA INCORPORATION
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