The road to entrepreneurship is often a treacherous one filled with unexpected detours, roadblocks and dead ends. There are lots of sleepless nights, plans that don’t work out, funding that doesn’t come through and customers that never materialize. It can be so challenging to launch a business that it may make you wonder why anyone willingly sets out on such a path. Despite all of these hardships, every year, thousands of entrepreneurs embark on this journey determined to bring their vision to fruition and fill a need they see in society. They open brick-and-mortar businesses, launch tech startups or bring a new product or service into the marketplace. What does an entrepreneur do?An entrepreneur identifies a need that no existing businesses addresses and determines a solution for that need. Entrepreneurial activity includes developing and launching new businesses and marketing them, often with the end goal of selling the business to turn a profit. An entrepreneur who regularly launches new businesses, sells them and then starts new businesses is a serial entrepreneur. Additionally, although the term “entrepreneur” is often associated with startups and small businesses, any founder of a successful household-name business began as an entrepreneur. If you want to become an entrepreneur but worry you don’t have the money for it, your finances don’t have to stop you from achieving your goals. Many entrepreneurs seek the initial funding for their pursuits from external sources such as angel investors, who may provide entrepreneurs with capital to cover startup costs (or, later, expansion costs.) If you can demonstrate a high growth potential for your business, you can also turn to a venture capitalist, who offers capital in exchange for receiving equity in your company. Examples of successful entrepreneursMany household-name businessmen exemplify entrepreneurial success. Here are just a few examples:
What motivates entrepreneurs to venture forth when so many others would run in the opposite direction? Though each person’s motivation is nuanced and unique, many entrepreneurs are spurred on by one or more of the following motivators:
How to become an entrepreneurIf you’re contemplating entrepreneurial activity, you should first identify which of the above motivators serve as your guiding force. Then, consider if you have the specific character traits and attributes that will enable you to thrive as an entrepreneur. To help you determine if you’ve got what it takes, here’s what 25 company founders and business leaders told Business News Daily about what they think makes a truly successful entrepreneur.
Paula Fernandes contributed to the reporting and writing in this article. Quotes have been edited for brevity and clarity. Some source interviews were conducted for a previous version of this article. |