“The true entrepreneur is a doer, not a dreamer.” – Nolan Bushnell
The decision to become an entrepreneur can be an exhilarating one. While it brings with it the excitement of building something from scratch. Entrepreneurship can also be extremely stressful and full of challenges.
Constant roadblocks can often be discouraging. Only relentless impresarios, who are disciplined and determined enough, can survive the potential pitfalls of entrepreneurship.
Regardless of the industry, some of the challenges faced by entrepreneurs are similar in nature. These include engendering team management, hiring the right people, keeping eyes on short and long-term goals, and so on.
Most of these challenges can be dealt with easily by creating certain entrepreneurial habits.
Here are 7 crucial principles every aspiring entrepreneur should follow to overcome challenges in his/her path of success:
- Learn the Art of Self-Promotion
One of the biggest success mantras of highly successful entrepreneurs is their effective self-promotion. They always have their business on their mind and promoting it comes naturally to them.
Whether it is selling your idea to key stakeholders or telling people how your organisation can benefit them, promoting your business is a key element of entrepreneurial success. Succinctly conveying business strengths is an art that is developed through practice.
Self-promotion requires entrepreneurs to be unabashed and vocal about their achievements. The more people know about the business, the better are the prospects of getting new opportunities.
- Spend a Little ‘Me’ Time Everyday
A little time of solitude can prove to be extremely productive for an entrepreneur.
In a world where we are constantly connected, spending some quality ‘me’ time allows continuous flow of thoughts without interruptions, thereby offering a great professional advantage.
A little solitude helps in not only organising thoughts and ideas, but also in increasing emotional intelligence that further helps in efficient people management. According to research, 90% of the highly successful entrepreneurs have a high EQ.
Spending alone time everyday helps entrepreneur with self-reflection, boosting self-esteem, and coming up with creative ideas that aid in better decision making.
- Stay Disciplined
Whether it is in your business or personal life, discipline is the key to success. Until an entrepreneur is mindful of the significance of time management, achieving success can be difficult, if not impossible.
Having a clear understanding of the time needed for completing each task and creating a disciplined schedule lays the foundation for success.
It is imperative to realise that discipline is the bridge between an entrepreneur’s vision and accomplishments. Discipline is the push that drives a plan into fruitful action, without which it is near impossible to transform dreams into reality.
- Hire Smart
Good employees are essential to the success of a business, which makes the hiring process extremely crucial. While there can be no sure shot way of hiring the right employee, and every entrepreneur must look for some basic characteristics required every candidate.
These include the right attitude, focus, and aptitude. If an employee is the right fit for a department, positive changes will be reflected soon and this will reconfirm that the hiring was right.
Hiring is a continuous process in a growing organization. Different positions require different specializations. While it is great to hire a specialist, it may prove to be expensive for a small business, at least initially.
Looking for generalists that can serve multipurpose can be an effective choice for a business in the early stages.
- Use the Power of Communication
Effective communication is vital for any business, big or small. How good you are at getting your point across can be the decisive factor in acquiring or missing a profitable opportunity.
Flawless communication is vital within the business as well. Good communication fosters a healthy working relationship between you and your employees and assists in creating a better work environment.
Communication in business can be both, verbal and non-verbal. Eye contact, body language, and facial expressions also help in creating a positive first impression about your business. They also determine how your employees see you as a visionary.
- Prepare for Unexpected Hiccups
A business is always subjected to several challenges.
From losing a client to an unexpected fire outbreak in the office place, anything that isn’t planned for can turn business operations upside-down. Intelligent entrepreneurs are always prepared with a contingency plan to deal with unexpected situations.
An entrepreneur is the captain of the ship, his panic-stricken decisions can throw the entire team into a frenzy. Having a good contingency plan to mitigate sudden challenges helps in dealing with and getting past the situation.
Further, a sound contingency plan not only minimises losses, but also maintains the team’s focus on recovering from the situation and prevents panic.
- Keep Learning
It is imperative for entrepreneurs to keep learning and adding skills to their resume. Learning does not come only through formal education, but experience too is a great teacher.
Reading self-motivational books can help in keeping the entrepreneurial spirit high. Autobiographies of successful entrepreneurs offer insights for combating challenging scenarios.
While it is good to have specialists to handle areas where entrepreneurs don’t have expertise, relying too much can make them dependent. Researching and understanding areas that concern the business is a great way of acquiring knowledge.
Entrepreneurs who keep learning about the various verticals of their business have a better understanding of the challenges faced by employees. This helps in taking informed decisions for the overall improvement of the business.
Conclusion
Running a business is one of the most exciting adventures anyone can embark upon. An entrepreneur with a focused plan of action, clear goals, and an open mind-set provides a solid base for a business.
The attitude of the entrepreneur reflects in the working of the business as a whole.
A few crucial habits of entrepreneurship can be instrumental in determining the direction a business takes. The above-mentioned vital principles can help in ensuring entrepreneurial success.