The Psychological Key to Entrepreneurship
The psychological key to entrepreneurship is important. Nowadays, being an entrepreneur is often presented as the key to success. In this context, it seems that even salaried employees need the skills of an entrepreneur. How do people get there?
The generations that have recently entered the rat race and those that will do it soon find inspiration in the biographies of people like Steve Jobs and Bill Gates. They consider them an example of the fact that not every great project has funding at the beginning.
In addition, their path is often simplified and reduced to their willpower or attitude, even though factors like luck and chance also played a significant role in their success.
“To have a great idea, have a lot of them.”
-Thomas Edison-
The key to entrepreneurship
Phenomena such as globalization, the advance of technology, and labor flexibilization have led to drastic changes in the way people work.
Not so long ago, people spent their entire careers in the same company and even in the same position. Work was much more industrial. However, employers fill many positions with “nomads” these days.
Young people’s wants
The new generations don’t aspire to return to the past. In fact, this generation grew up with an abrupt technological advance that allows other forms of work. It seems that their main desire is to be their own boss.
Young people grew up with the idea that they’re free and able to create or choose the places in which to invest their effort and enthusiasm. In addition, t here’s a growing awareness of the fact that people spend a good part of their lives at work. Thus, they want the conditions to be good there too. In this regard, many people consider starting a business. So why not create the right conditions for it?
What’s entrepreneurship?
Nowadays, people understand that entrepreneurship is mainly about starting a business of their own. The common belief is that you must visualize a market niche, create the right material conditions to exploit it, and manage the resources in order to achieve it.
The psychological key to entrepreneurship
As the title of the article metaphorically explains, an entrepreneur isn’t only an idealist but also an executor. It’s someone capable of executing their ideas.
In this regard, a successful entrepreneur is one who can make the most of their ideas, while respecting the conditions imposed by their circumstances.
The ability to calculate risks and identify innovations that might work from those that may not are among the skills one must have to be a successful entrepreneur. Thus, there’s a person who knows how to choose which battles to fight, postpone, or discard in its development.
The entrepreneur’s skills
An entrepreneur must have knowledge in several areas to manage a project, in addition to having a vision. A frequent criticism of the current educational system is that some careers have few opportunities or that the content is far removed from market demands.
In this regard, the technical skills one could include within the psychological keys to successful entrepreneurship are:
- Project development.
- Group management.
- Economic and financial knowledge.
- Ability to sell an idea.
- Search for allies.
- Teamwork.
The emotional skills of an entrepreneur
In a world where the offer is wide and the demands aren’t subject to patience, the entrepreneur’s path has also been transformed. The already consolidated entrepreneurs usually notice it. Thus, they must be able to face frustrations and obstacles, since the beginning is usually plagued with them.
In addition, curiosity sometimes manifests as discomfort. The early stages of a project can be particularly uncomfortable. For this, the following emotional and personal traits add to the psychological key of the entrepreneur:
- Overcoming obstacles.
- Frustration tolerance.
- Emotional intelligence.
- Openness to experience.
- Perseverance.
- Hard work.
- Risk management.
The key to emotional intelligence
Although there’s no perfect entrepreneur profile, emotional intelligence is usually a trait. This characteristic dates from the ability to adapt to various situations and respond accordingly at an emotional level.
It’s also a fundamental quality to lead groups, contact the right people and empathize with those who are there along the way. In short, it’s a way to effectively interact with the environment.
Work: today’s sacrifices are tomorrow’s gains
Entrepreneurship also means having the ability to sacrifice time, relationships, and space. A job as an employee allows you to have a life after you finish your work duties.
However, being your own boss means that you’ll have to do any pending task, regardless of the time. Entrepreneurship requires 100% of your time and effort.
The key to entrepreneurship, a way to get ahead
Rewards are rarely immediate in entrepreneurship. Therefore, you need to be patient.
In this regard, there’s a common factor in the biography of many successful entrepreneurs: they had to invest many hours in the early stages of their projects.
Not surprisingly, entrepreneurship is a mechanism for social advancement and a natural outlet for those who value autonomy above all. Taking the above into account, the psychological key of entrepreneurship is being committed to an idea. In other words, to bet on decisions and invest a series of resources in a somewhat uncertain horizon with blind faith.