Want to become a successful entrepreneur? My friend Joe Kapp suggests the following:
Change your mindset and start thinking like a successful entrepreneur by asking these six secret questions they ask themselves!
Based in part on research by Dr Saras Sarasvathy, a professor at the University of Virginia, the following common themes emerged after interviewing successful serial entrepreneurs of companies worth $200 million to $6.5 billion. This set of questions, adapted from her research, outline how budding entrepreneurs can use entrepreneurial thinking to increase the likelihood their new endeavor has the best possible chance for success.
- What have I got that can get me started today? Far too many people never move from wantrepreneur (wanting to own their own business) to actually becoming an entrepreneur. They get caught in the trap of the “I’m just not ready yet” phase. By constantly waiting just one more day, just one more week, many hopeful entrepreneurs never actually get started. Successful entrepreneurs just get started. They utilize what they already have available to advance a new business idea and don’t wait for the future.
TAKE ACTION: Examine the resources you have available right now. What skills, people, and experiences are currently at your disposal that can help get you started on your new business idea or venture? Get started with the resources you currently have and don’t wait.
- What am I willing to risk and how can I minimize that risk? The old adage nothing ventured, nothing gained definitely rings true in entrepreneurship. Successful entrepreneurs learn to recognize “acceptable loss” or the capital they are able and WILLING to accept as a loss in a new venture. Risk is a part of starting any business enterprise. Successful entrepreneurs mitigate their risk and evaluate what they are comfortable with losing that will not put their family, lifestyle, reputation, or financial stability at risk.
TAKE ACTION: Avoid all or nothing risks and instead place small, incremental “bets”. This can be anything from starting an online store with only a few new products or purchasing older used equipment that will get the job done. Take small, pragmatic risks and as your business grows, so will your threshold of acceptable risk.
- With whom can I successfully partner and leverage their resources to get me where I want to be? Something often eschewed by budding entrepreneurs is the importance of developing strategic partnerships and relationships. There is a perceived risk that by talking to others that someone going to “steal” their idea. This risk very rarely plays out and the reward of forming early partnerships can far outweigh potential negatives.
TAKE ACTION: Build early partnerships, increase stakeholders and cobble together a team of supporters. These supporters can be anyone from venders and suppliers to family and friends. Obtain early customer commitments to reduce the uncertainty of sales and collect pre-sale commitments.
- How can I turn obstacles into opportunities? Ask any successful entrepreneur and they are likely to tell you their biggest success came on the heels of an unexpected failure. The key is that successful entrepreneurs learn how to leverage “failures” for opportunity. For example, if a supplier drops out at the last minute, look at it as an opportunity to widen your circle and work with new sources. The new supplier may bring with them a new set of products that could turn into a hit – an opportunity you may never have discovered otherwise.
TAKE ACTION: It is important to make space for unexpected surprises. Assume that something will arise for which you have not planned and you may be forced to pivot your business model in unexpected ways.
- How can I control the future instead of trying to predict it? Most successful entrepreneurs are fairly conservative. Successful entrepreneurs rarely like to engage in a guessing game of how the future will turn out. Instead they actively work to bring about the future they want to see happen.
TAKE ACTION: Learn to be an active, intentional participant in driving your business and life forward. Focus on the progress and goals that you can control to ensure each step is advancing your business idea.
- How do I keep myself motivated to persevere? While not part of the Dr Sarasvathy’s research, based on our experience, we added the importance of personal motivation and resiliency. Few success stories are devoid of failure somewhere along the line. It is the actions you take after the failure that determines a successful outcome. Walking away from a venture is easy. Sticking to a business idea after getting knocked down takes courage, gumption and perseverance. Successful entrepreneurs have internal motivation to get back to work after they’ve experienced failures. The key to success is not that you will do the successful thing every single time, but instead learning to get back up and keep moving forward after failing.
TAKE ACTION: Find your personal motivation and drive. Identify what keeps you focused on your business and leverage it for success. Surround yourself with people who will help you recover quickly and keep you motivated.
In the end, whether you work for a large corporation, a non-profit or are a burgeoning entrepreneur, employing an entrepreneurial mindset can help drive greater opportunities for personal and professional success. Success is about combining a mindset with a chain of intentional actions. Actions that are pointed towards achievement and that are driven by motivation, resourcefulness, and resiliency. Ultimately, if you want to be a successful entrepreneur, then simply learn to think and act like one. Do not hesitate – and take the future into your own hands!
Portions of this article were originally published in The Huffington Post 4.19