Business

10 Skills You Need to Be the Next Great Entrepreneur

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Startups are the new kind of business every individual wanted to start.

Becoming a successful entrepreneur involves a lot of effort, factors like taking risks, raising capital and moving past disappointment isn't enough. Now with the rapid growth of trends and changing business dimensions, today's entrepreneurs have to learn different skills, other than basics, to stay afloat.

After reading dozens of studies, I have compiled a list of qualities that help you becoming a great entrepreneur. Read on!

next_great_entrepreneur1. Resiliency

Striking it out on your own and raising capital for a new untried venture involves a healthy degree of risk.

And risk means that things can and at some point probably will not go according to the business plan. Resiliency is a quality that will help successful entrepreneurs push through even "when the outlook is bleak".

2. Long-term Perspective

While being a successful business person requires a good understanding of the present and an ability to make quick decisions, it also involves a keen ability to see the future.

Overnight success can take up to 10 years to achieve.

Patience and a long-term vision of where the organization must head is key to running a successful ship.

3. Pin-Pointing Goals

Being talented on a multiple levels is all part of the job description as an entrepreneur.

Along with a healthy long-term perspective, you will also need a clear-cut focus on the very next step. Being able to tune out distractions as see your way to the ultimate end goal is an important business building skill.

4. People Skills

Being the captain means that you have people working with you and for you.

A quality entrepreneur can identify the people he or she needs to bring on board. This to find the right vendors, resources and, of course, employees.

After you have picked out the right people for the current scale of the company, the business leader must do just that: lead well.
Imperative skills include:

  • Delegation
  • Communication
  • Honesty

5. Know How to Sell

Forbes points out that "Every entrepreneur is a sales person whether they want to be or not."

This is because in raising funding and bringing people onboard, you are essentially selling your ideas along with a product or service.

And your audience will be varied including customers, investors and employees.

While a knack for sales comes naturally to some, it is important for any entrepreneur to be able to represent his or her brand with conviction and passion.

6. Never Stop Learning

A common quality of some of the most successful people is their passion for learning.

Realizing that you don't know everything takes humility, and that might just save your endeavor in the end. "The truly educated never graduate," says a popular bumper sticker from the Northern Sun.

And it is an excellent adage for dynamic business men and women who should always keep up on market news, changing industry trends, advances in technology and up to date systems and programs.

7. Self-Reflection

Make sure that you allow yourself the time and the courage to think about the past and allow your reflection to inform future decisions.

Allotting time for this kind of productive rest will also keep your ideas fresh and prevent the danger of physical and emotional burnout.

8. Personal Responsibility

As the head of a start-up, it is necessary to delegate to others but ultimately assume a degree of self-reliance.

At the end of the day, you will take the brunt of responsibility for either failure or success. Sometimes this might mean drawing from your own personal finances or taking an to cover finances.

Other times, it will mean representing the company at important events.

This doesn't make you autonomous. But entrepreneurs should learn how to depend on themselves and refrain from blaming others.

9. Confidence in Decision Making

There is something to be said for going with your gut. Balancing between wise counsel, information, reason and instinct is all part of decision making process.

And as an entrepreneur, one of the largest parts of your job is simply making choices at every turn. These include decisions for everyday operating tasks as well as choices about goals and directions.

And once you have been decisive, it is important to keep moving with confidence and not waste time second guessing and over analyzing.

10. Wise Courage

"Being a daredevil in high school or college does not guarantee that you are going to be a great entrepreneur," writes Neal Jenson for the Huffington Post, "though it may help."

A fearless person might not be that smart.

So an entrepreneur needs to balance between realizing that which is frightening and then stomaching anxiety to make courageous moves.

Successful business people recognize the risks, but choose to act in spite of them.

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About the author

Zohaib Akhlaq

Zohaib Akhlaq  is the founder of  HowEntrepreneur.com  where he teach entrepreneurs and startup owners something new daily. You can follow him on  Facebook,  Twitter  and  Google+.