Do you have the skills needed to be an entrepreneur?

What does it take to be a successful entrepreneur?

The team at Fingerprint for Success is dedicated to your success. So, we’ve put successful entrepreneurs under the microscope for 20 years and studied what it takes to become successful.

Here’s what our research tells us:

• Successful entrepreneurs are 30% more likely to think big and 40% more likely to take initiative.
• A successful entrepreneur is also more likely to be motivated by money and ROI than an average worker.
• Successful entrepreneurs think in broad terms rather than focusing on excessive details and structure - it's a motivation related to venture success.

This gives us the traits of successful entrepreneurs: they see the big picture, get the wheels turning, and plan on the fly so they don’t get bogged down by excessive structuring. What’s more, their motivation for money and the desire to reap results keeps them ploughing.

You need to follow suit if you want to be a successful entrepreneur.

Key skills from famous entrepreneurs

Let's get started by looking at some of the most successful business owners. It's an amazing opportunity to dissect key lessons in entrepreneurship that you can actually apply to your own journey.

So, what can we learn today about becoming a successful entrepreneur? Let’s see:

Brian Chesky on business potential:

If we tried to think of a good idea, we wouldn't have been able to think of a good idea. You just have to find the solution for a problem in your own life. – Brian Chesky, CEO of Airbnb

Airbnb disrupted the traditional way to travel. So how did it come about?

The founders, living in San Francisco, were struggling to pay their rent. They noticed due to a large design conference, all of the hotels were booked. They noticed the potential for a business and the rest is history.

The top reason why businesses fail is because there’s no market need for their idea. In fact, 42% of startups fail because of this.

So, the take-home message is simple – to be a successful entrepreneur, look for a pain point that you can solve. In other words, we need to solve a problem that needs solving, not only a problem that’s interesting to solve. (Although F4S has found both are key to entrepreneurial success.)

So, how can you put this into action for yourself?

When you have an idea baking in your head, go on and share it with your target market. In our mighty list of entrepreneur resources, we’ve noted a resource called Ask Your Target Market. It enables you to survey your audience and learn how ripe your idea is and how well the market would receive it.

Anne Sweeney on defining business success:

“Define success on your own terms, achieve it by your own rules, and build a life you're proud to live.” – Anne Sweeney

The takeaway? You’ve got to work your way up by cherishing your unique traits. In fact, your strengths, the passion to grow, and the motivation for financial success make a powerful trio.

Discover your unique traits and develop your soft skills :

Learn more about your strengths and weaknesses. An entrepreneurial lifestyle is hard work. Tools like the F4S platform can help you uncover your motivations and achieve your goals through personalized coaching.

Jack Ma on passion:

“In carrying out e-commerce, the most important thing is to keep doing what you are doing right now with passion, to keep it up.” – Jack Ma

This one’s a no-brainer. But, one that’s vastly under-appreciated. If you think the drive to make more money or a name for yourself will keep you going through the rocky terrains of entrepreneurship, think again.

Nothing fuels you as passion does.

Not sure what you’re passionate about?

Pinpoint your passion:

1. What is it that you’ve been dedicated to since your childhood?
2. What is it that comes naturally to you?
3. What is it that you’ve been known for or credited for since your childhood?
4. How do your current strengths align with your business idea? Start by jotting your strengths, then analyze how they connect with your idea.
5. What is it that you’d pursue even if it didn’t pay off from early on?

This last question, in particular, is crucial. What is something you’ve been doing for a long time and can continue doing even when the odds are stacked against you?

Taking the free F4S assessment can also help you pinpoint exactly what motivates you (and what drains you) so you can pick a business that aligns perfectly with your passions.

Zig Ziglar on the achievement of goals:

“Unless you have a definite, precise, clearly set goals, you are not going to realize the maximum potential that lies within you.” ― Zig Ziglar

This is another quote for successful entrepreneurs that rings true. In fact, setting sail without knowing your destination is a fool’s journey to nowhere.

In contrast, clear goals give you a target. Once you’ve set this target, you can easily focus on it instead of on a hodgepodge of I’m-not-sure-what-I-want-to-achieve amalgam.

And according to science, setting goals can make you 10 times more successful than moving forward without them.

Here's how to set effective and attainable goals:

• Get clear on your passions and what truly motivates or energizes you.
• Brainstorm and let all your ideas out on paper so you can see the gaps in your thinking.
• Bounce around ideas with others you trust if brainstorming alone doesn’t help.
• Prepare a plan based on the idea you’ve shortlisted with SMART goals and execute without overthinking them.
• Take our free Goal Catcher coaching program.

Walt Disney on getting started:

“The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing.” – Walt Disney  

Often the overwhelm can bite at you and chain you down to a stop. This is a common struggle, so if you’ve been there, you’re certainly not alone.

To jumpstart things, it helps to read these words by Zig Ziglar on repeat: “You don’t have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great.”

The best part? In F4S’ 20-year study on the world’s top entrepreneurs, it was discovered that successful entrepreneurs are 40% more motivated to turn their ideas into action than the rest of the population.

Here are a few ideas to help you get the ball rolling:

• Think critically about what’s holding you back and address the culprit before it paralyzes your plan beyond repair.
• Run your idea(s) through a shiny object syndrome test.
• Start with a lean version of your idea so you can test and improve it before scaling things.
• Take our free Start Fast coaching program. It's designed to help you jump in and turn your ideas into action.

Ellen DeGeneres on seeing the big picture:

“I work really hard at trying to see the big picture and not getting stuck in ego. I believe we're all put on this planet for a purpose, and we all have a different purpose... When you connect with that love and that compassion, that's when everything unfolds.” ― Ellen DeGeneres

Another one of the first steps to becoming an entrepreneur is thinking big. Getting caught up in the details is similar to getting stuck in quicksand – you keep drowning, losing sight of your direction.

This doesn’t mean you need to start big. Instead, start small, but think big.

If you’re struggling with thinking big,  here is a basic rundown:

• Stop idealizing perfection and learn to delegate what you can’t do yourself.
• Ask yourself big picture questions like ‘what can be the possible consequences of X,’ ‘what is it that you’re not asking yourself,’ and so on.
• Give yourself some thinking time and journal your thoughts to connect them to your big picture.
• Take the free Big Picture Thinker coaching program. 90% of our users achieve their goal when they complete the coaching program.

Ralph Waldo Emerson on finding your biggest advocates:

“Our chief want in life is someone who shall make us do what we can. This is the service of a friend. With him, we are easily great.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Let’s be honest: achieving things on your own can triple the tough times. A supportive network or a trustworthy friend can, however, make all the difference by offering emotional, appraisal, and informational support. Find advocates who will be by your side.

Don’t have an extensive network to lean on? Here are some ideas to create business relationships:

• Work with a career coach. Here’s scientific proof: individual and group coaching can help you beat procrastination (Walt Disney would agree). What’s more, folks who join group coaching also end up widening their knowledge pool and hitting their goals. In a HBR survey, respondents overwhelmingly agreed that coaches helped them reach their potential.
• Build a support network. This won’t be hard as the internet is working wonders in connecting people from various walks of life. Michelle Duval, Founder and CEO of F4S, recommends EO and YPO as good forums for entrepreneurs to check out.

Arianna Huffington on failure:

“We need to accept that we won't always make the right decisions, that we'll screw up royally sometimes – understanding that failure is not the opposite of success, it's part of success.” – Arianna Huffington

Arianna isn’t alone in experiencing failure. Walt Disney has a similar tale – he was fired from one of his first animation jobs. And, here’s the shocking bit – the editor told him that he, “lacked imagination and had no good ideas.”

Lucky for us, Disney didn’t give up.

So, how do you make friends with failure? Here are some useful tips:

• Understand that failure is inevitable. In fact, a first-time entrepreneur’s chance of success is only 18%. But once you study the lessons you learn from a failed project, your odds of success increase to 20%.
• Don’t be afraid of failing. Sure, it stings but a mindset change is a rescue operation from all the hurting. So, the best you can do is think of failure as a stepping stone to progress – an experiment you’re supposed to learn from.
• Every time you falter, sit down to bawl (or scream or whatever your response is) but no longer than a day or two. Then, get back and make notes of what you learned so you don’t repeat those mistakes again.

Jim Rohn on opportunities for growth:

“Formal education will make you a living; self-education will make you a fortune.” –Jim Rohn

81% of learners throughout the world think education will become more “do-it-yourself” in the future as people choose short courses, online learning, and self-teaching over formal education.

If you’re naturally curious, you’ll make an excellent life-long learner. Learning to satisfy your curiosity makes learning enjoyable and helps you retain more of what you read.

If don’t tend to have a curious spirit, try this instead:

• Take a page from Richard Branson’s book and challenge yourself. He shares, “My biggest motivation? Just to keep challenging myself. I see life almost like one long university education that I never had -- every day I’m learning something new.”
• Make it a habit to learn from podcasts, books, newsletters, and blogs. We’ve put them together in this list.
• Set small learning goals so learning doesn’t become a chore.

Business skills of successful entrepreneurs: What does 20 years of research tell us?

The team at Fingerprint for Success is dedicated to your success. So, we’ve put successful entrepreneurs under the microscope for 20 years and studied what it takes to become successful.

Here’s what our research tells us:

• Successful entrepreneurs are 30% more likely to think big and 40% more likely to take initiative.
• A successful entrepreneur is also more likely to be motivated by money and ROI than an average worker.
• Successful entrepreneurs think in broad terms rather than focusing on excessive details and structure - it's a motivation related to venture success.

This gives us the traits of successful entrepreneurs: they see the big picture, get the wheels turning, and plan on the fly so they don’t get bogged down by excessive structuring. What’s more, their motivation for money and the desire to reap results keeps them ploughing.

You need to follow suit if you want to be a successful entrepreneur.

Do you have the necessary skills for entrepreneurs?

Take the free F4S assessment to uncover your highest motivations - and your blind spots. You'll discover how you compare to the world's top business owners to get a peak into your future success.

For example, you might find that your big-picture thinking skills fall outside of the ideal range for venture success. Knowing this is an essential skill of entrepreneurs, you can begin improving it or find a partner with this skill to support your vision.

Then with our free AI Coaching, you can develop the technical skills (and soft skills) to jumpstart your professional growth. We believe that anyone can be an entrepreneur and that the first step is learning more about yourself. From there, you can develop the skills you need to make the career choice that's best for you.