Characteristics of successful entrepreneurs
Entrepreneur characteristics
An entrepreneur is someone who sets up and runs their own business. Doing this means they may accept financial risk, such as losing their own money if the business fails, and reputational risk, because people may judge them if it goes wrong. Successful entrepreneurs often share a set of characteristics, and each one helps in a different way.
The characteristics and how they help
| Characteristic | How it can help |
|---|---|
| Creativity | Produces new ideas for products, branding and marketing, and finds ways round problems. |
| Innovation | Turns an idea into a new way of doing things, so the business offers something rivals do not. |
| Risk-taking | Calculated risks let the entrepreneur seize opportunities that cautious rivals avoid. |
| Communication | Explaining ideas clearly to customers, staff and lenders means everyone understands the plan. |
| Negotiation | Reaching agreement with suppliers, lenders or landlords often wins better terms. |
| Confidence | Believing in what is being sold helps them present ideas, persuade others and make decisions. |
| Determination | Keeps them going after rejections and setbacks, which most new businesses run into. |
Why a combination matters
Different situations call for different characteristics, so one on its own is rarely enough. Someone opening a small bike repair workshop might use creativity to dream up a collect-and-return service, negotiation to agree a fair rent on the unit, and determination to keep going when the first few months are quiet.
These characteristics can increase an entrepreneur's chance of success, but they do not guarantee it. A well-run business can still struggle because of a rival cutting prices, a supplier letting them down or customers simply not wanting the product, so skills raise the odds rather than settle the result.
Practise this
Cambridge National Enterprise & Marketing · 1.1 Characteristics of successful entrepreneurs