Are you an Entrepreneur? Here’s what can break or make you

Written by  Ruth Olurounbi

Some people have always dreamt of being entrepreneurs and when they finally got the nerve to start their own business, the feeling of accomplishment can be quite exhilarating. But business owners have said that the very thing that led to their success could also lead to their downfall. John Patrick Pullen, a writer who covers for publications such as Fortune, Men’s Journal, and Boston Magazine identified three traits that can make or break an entrepreneur. He listed them as: passion, confidence and representativeness. Balancing these three, Harvard Business School professor and author of The Founder’s Dilemmas: Anticipating and Avoiding the Pitfalls That Can Sink a Startup, Noam Wasserman, said “is the critical art for founders to have,” Pullen wrote for Entrepreneur.

Entrepreneurs said that passion is undoubtedly one of the motivating force to establishing and getting the business running. They concluded that an entrepreneur needs a good dose of passion for his business success but if left unbridled, can do more harm than good for the business. Muyiwa Olaitan, CEO of Nu World, who had been into Public Relations with major outfits in the country for 11 years before starting his business said being passionate about your company is a definite plus but as a business, owner, it is expected to be put in reins to avoid the “company looking skyward, while ignoring obvious obstacles at eye level,” as Pullen puts it.

As far as confidence goes, few people have been able to master the thin line between the endearing confidence and the flat-out-putting overconfidence. When managed wrongly, business owners say confidence can lead to clients to have wrong impression about your person, which may eventually rub off on your business. “Confidence as key characteristic can carry startups when morale is low, enabling founders to persevere in the face of adversity or doubt. But merging high confidence with strong passion can be dangerous,” Pullen said, while he quoted the Harvard professor as saying this means “founders are only looking at the rosy scenarios. They definitely tend not to look at worst-case scenarios, potential pitfalls and ways in which bumps in the road can lead to shattering the dream.” Bose Olanihun, CEO of Button said what helped her manage her business well was to set realistic goals for her business.

There are always one or two things to learn from the past, granted. But “being overly reliant on knowledge gathered in previous endeavours can also cause entrepreneurs to underestimate future obstacles,” Pullen said. While it is important not rely heavily on past knowledge and experience, it also important not to abandon them.

Source: Tribune