By Adnan from Blogtrepreneur
When Yaro asked for readers’ contributions for July, I decided that I should really dig deep into my entrepreneurial spirit to ask myself How Do You Become A Successful Entrepreneur? Now this article definitely is not the be all and end all of ways to become a winner in business online or offline, but some of the points I will make should help you to firmly establish yourself in the world of entrepreneurship, and should hopefully distinguish you from the huge crowd of money-making hopefuls.
Successful entrepreneurs need to see success. Many of the top businessmen around have seen a product and the associated success that could possibly come with it. Take Michael Dell for example. He believed in the potential of computers way ahead of his time, and built a business from his dorm room. Once you have managed to visualize your success, planning the road to this achievement is a must.
If you don’t plan extensively about your new idea or concept, without thinking ahead, you might encounter unforeseen difficulties with management or cashflow. I recommend using a business plan which incorporates:
- What your product/idea is.
- How does it differ from other products and how will it make you become successful.
- Who your audience is.
- What money you need to spend in terms of product cost, advertising, shipping, staff, and so on.
- What profits you are hoping to make.
Perseverance is also key in becoming a full-time entrepreneur. For me, this is essential especially in the blogging field, as in order to maintain a good readership and a good income if you are using ads on your site, you need to post regularly and with quality content. Bloggers in particular are more likely to experience burn-out if they work too hard, and can also experience a drought in terms of traffic if they slacken the pace. A true entrepreneur will be able to prevent the feeling of being burnt out, if they know what their goals are, and if they love the task of always having to meet deadlines. Discipline is also the key in this field, as an entrepreneur must work hard in order to achieve. We often see “Get Rich Quick Schemes” and let me tell you that in 99.9% of these cases, obtaining money quickly is just not possible. I have finally learnt (through many financial losses) that only discipline and hard work can result in rewards.
Tied in with this is the recognition that you, as an entrepreneur, never consider failure as an option. Too often these days, have I seen businesses or individuals deem themselves failed if they have not achieved a set of targets. Failure simply is not a word in the dictionary of an entrepreneur, as even if a project is not going well, an entrepreneur will find new ways of coping with the situation and will adjust his aims to fit in with the task in hand.
Entrepreneurs also need to manage their time properly. There’s no point in spending a whole day over a task, when in reality it will be cheaper and more effective to hire someone to help you with a certain task, thus enabling you to produce more profit. Delegating jobs and staff and being able to manage as well as bringing in the bucks is a true mark of an entrepreneur and one who knows what he is doing.
A successful entrepreneur must have an air or a grace about him that will demand respect from other individuals. I would like to say that I am a very friendly person, always looking for new contacts and always trying to network with others who share similar skills and attributes. At the same time, you must also conduct business in a very formal way, being punctual, polite and remaining cool under pressure.
Even with all these points, I feel that I have only scratched the surface on the make-up of a true entrepreneur. You may have other qualities which you might deem important, so please let me know if you think I have missed any out. Successful entrepreneurs are never secure in their field, although this may be the same with other bog-standard jobs, however the rewards that can be obtained from having the mentioned attributes can be really substantial. By working hard and never giving up, you are bound to become a successful entrepreneur, all you have to do is believe.
Adnan
www.blogtrepreneur.com
Getting burned out — Indeed this is a dilemma that some entrepreneurs face. Especially if they have given such big efforts in the beginning but they could not sustain it. That or they work too hard early on instead of pacing themselves. Maybe it’s because the desire to see the results drive them to do that? I don’t really know. It is still on a case to case basis 🙂
Thanks for your comment Clair. I think that so many people have said that blogging can be an extremely easy way to make money, that these people have tried to get hundreds of dollars in a couple of weeks. When they realise that they’ve only made a few dollars, after writing so many articles, they experience burn-out, and have no desire to carry on blogging.
It really depends on what your motives are for blogging.
Very nice post…I agree, entrepreneurs and self starters have a certain air about them. It definitely takes long hours, work and dedication to your dream to become successful. If you truly believe in your goal and reaching it and you put yourself to it, then great things will come.
Work For You
“All you have to do is believe..” — and have a good idea with a well thought out strategy :).
“I have not failed 1,000 times sir, I have discovered 1,000 ways it will not work”
—Thomas Edison
Keep up the good work Yaro!! Love your site!!
P.S. It’s weird how sometimes you are put in the right place at the right time. I stumbled into razor scooters by accident from a backpage article in the WSJ in 6-2000. Thought they were a total joke. Did some research, knew they were going to be a wild ride and at the peak around Feb 2001 we were shipping over 100 a day with an average profit of $20 each after all the smoke cleared. It was a fad sure, but it was also a wild and crazy ride all from buying a WSJ that I never buy. I sometimes wonder what providence guided me to buy it that summer day.
Dear Yaro,
As a person who’s very ambitious as also very much dealing with the questions ‘How can I become successful’ and who has a tendency to procrastinate reading your article is very helpful.
You really hit the nail on it’s head at the part where you talk about vision and also where you say that ‘get money quick’ is usually impossible. I think the ‘quick fix’ doesn’t exist either.
I actually would like to ask you for some feedback. I am an marketing student in Europe (The Netherlands) who has the goal of a successful career in the Gaming Industry (XBOX360 etc.). As a tool to express myself and my views on gaming and as a networking tool I’ve started a blog http://xtrafly.spaces.live.com I would love to use this blog as a basis but I wonder if I’m going about it right. I would love for you to take a look and give me some feedback, your blog looks really professional and you obviously know what you’re doing!!
Thank you for your article.
Greetings,
Marchiano ‘FLY LACOSTE’ Loen
Hi Marchiano,
I have simple advice for you – read my Blog Profits Blueprint to help with your blogging goals…and move your blog away from spaces to wordpress too!
Hi Yaro, Thanks for this Wonderful Site, Really Liked ur Work!!! I Admit that recently i’m really BURNED OUT (and thatz the main Reason I have Landed up on this Site), I work as a Freelancer, Working for Local and Offshore Customers from INDIA.
I’ll Like to Share my Problem With You and all the Readers of this Site…. I know what my GOAL is and How to Accomplish it, and it is also TRUE that i Really work Hard to Get there. But Sometime (Usually) I miss DEADLINES a Lot, Causing me Big Losses. Do you Guys think, It is the Problem Caused by that i’m not “Disciplined”, I’m an Experience Coder, When i Evaluate Myself, I found that i was more Successful when i used to work for someone else. And now When I’m Working for Myself, i don’t what happened, i usually get bored, and want to Run Away and leave my Business behind.
Can you guys GUIDE me what to do?
I would like to share a short story about it…
Brittany always loved going to sports events and concerts, but she always settled for the cheap seats because there was no way she could afford to pay a broker 3x face value for good seats! she couldn’t believe it when she searched and saw tickets selling for 3x face value (or more!) Then it donned on her that she could be doing the same thing, making good money doing it, and enjoying games and concerts even more with the good seats she would be able to get. So she decided to start buying and selling tickets back in 2006 to help put her through University (UFV), while she got her business degree. She love following the ticket marketplace and buying great seats and being able to make double her money or even more. It’s a really exciting business and perfect for anybody in University, or that wants to work at home, or doesn’t have a lot of money to start up their own traditional business. She bought her first pair of tickets for $150 and started reinvesting her profits so she could buy and sell more and more.
Learning this business took a lot of hard work though, because there was no guide out there to show her how buy and sell tickets successfully…
Source: The Ticket Broker Guide
Maybe you just want to make a little extra cash on the side. Becoming a ticket broker is fun and exciting, and the best part is, you can do it from the comfort of your own home!
This guide will teach you how you can become a ticket broker so you can buy and sell concert tickets and make money doing it.
Learning this business it´s easy, because exist a guide to show her how buy and sell tickets successfully… Source: The Ticket Broker Guide
I think this is all great information, right now I am a senior in high school taking an career planning class which for me is not that bad. I put myself in a terrible situation though, I didn’t stay on task with the things that i had to get done. I have to write my own business plan and submit a discussion about entrepreneurship.
I didn’t get to finish the last comment. I am using this as one of my main sources of information for it.
tanx for ur word of courage which u hv motive my spirit
That’s right, we need first to see what real success is. We can’t become a truly successful entrepreneurs if we are heading to the right meaning of entrepreneurial success. We need to have the right journey, but we also assure to have the right destination.
Hello Thomas as wel as the others. Surely, just like many people out there, i have big dreams for myself which involve entrepreneurship, even though i have been through alot of downfalls. I have all my ideas set up & know how to get there & atm trying to convince my parents that right now is the right time..however, there’s a slight problem, i’m still a teenager & my parents still think its best i complete atleast highschool 1st. Also they don’t think i have much self-displine for me to make this work but i gurantee you, there is nothing more i ever wanted in life as much as this & i believe in myself than ever before, i just want them to do the same. Q: Do you think i should wait it out till am done with school or just risk it all & go for it? Please, i’m counting on your opinion.