Are you a pupil, student, or young professional and would like to join the executive suite? Then it’s important to find out if you’re an entrepreneur at all.
Be your own boss
A few decades ago, this was a plan reserved for business professionals. A lack of expertise is often cited as an argument against young entrepreneurs. However, both theories in the form of studies and practice in the companies themselves demonstrate that this is not one of the most important characteristics of corporate management. Because experts can be integrated into a company. You can add, change or replace the staff. However, the entrepreneur type is not replaceable. It is – regardless of the industry – characterized by special properties.
Seven characteristics distinguish an entrepreneur today. These are described below – including a small test for you to see whether you have these properties.
Characteristics of a good entrepreneur are:
- Endurance
- Resilience
- Consequence
- Empathy
- Critical ability
- Interaction
- Creativity
Endurance
It is not for nothing that it is pointed out that independence consists of the two terms “self” and “constantly”. In particular, the “constant” is the focus of an entrepreneur. There are no regular working hours that bosses can claim for themselves. You can determine this persistence, which is the be-all and end-all for a self-employed boss, by honestly evaluating yourself. Have you been satisfied with the bare minimum during your school days, studies or training or are you the type who can bite through when things get difficult?
Resilience
Resilience is a fairly new term relating to the skills of people in general and bosses in particular.
Resilience is the ability of a person to demonstrate resilience to negative changes in a private and professional context and to deal with these things without being harmed.
You can easily test whether you are more resilient. Do you allow yourself to be discouraged by a setback or are you a person who then really gives his best? Are you someone who can develop particularly well through challenges and obstacles? Then it could be that you are an entrepreneur with high resilience.
Consequence
One of the positive traits of successful bosses is that they assertively pursue a goal that they have in their sights. Nothing is given to you in business. There is high competition across industries – including unfair competitors – and customers have a limited number. A clever strategy is important for the success of a company – and carrying it out is the be-all and end-all. A good entrepreneur is characterized by sticking to his line. Test yourself: Have you pursued your goals in school, in sports, or another area, or are you more of a volatile type?
Empathy
Empathy shows empathy for other people and a positive attitude towards people. Sometimes this is more important than leadership. Because when employees have the impression that they are valued as a person, they can do more. Do you appreciate other people? Does it matter to you that people with whom you spend your free time and job feel comfortable?
Ability to criticize
Accepting criticism is anything but a negative quality. Because justified criticism for us is the valuable support that we can develop (also professionally). It is also linked to respect for the opinions of others. Can you be criticized without putting you in a bad mood?
Interaction
The ability to interact (and cooperate) with other people is one of the most important characteristics of a good entrepreneur. This applies to dealing with the employees, but also with customers, banks, media representatives, and business partners. Appreciate yourself to be honest: Are you more of a loner or do you love to work in a team?
Creativity
Sometimes it’s the creative solutions that make a company what it is. With a healthy dose of thinking differently, you can make your company unique. Do you have ideas, inspirations, innovations from time to time in school or at university for which you have been praised?
Whether you are a good entrepreneur depends on your type. For an objective test, a visit to the career counseling of the employment agency is recommended.