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The true entrepreneur is one who is endowed with more than average capacities in the task of organizing and coordinating the various other factors of production. He should be a pioneer, a captain of industry. The supply of such entrepreneurship is, however, quite limited and all are not endowed with such talent.

Traits of Entrepreneur

The modern entrepreneur is one who detects and evaluates a new situation in his environment and directs the making of such adjustments in the economic system as he deems necessary.

He conceives a new industrial enterprise and displays considerable initiative, grit, and determination in bringing his project to fruition. Thus, a successful entrepreneur must possess the following traits of an entrepreneur:

1. Mental Ability
2. Clear Objectives
3. Business Secrecy
4. Human Relations Ability
5. Effective Communication
6. Technical Knowledge
7. Decision Making
8. Energy
9. Risk-Bearing

Mental Ability

Mental ability consists of intelligence and creative thinking. An entrepreneur should be intelligent and must have an analytical mind. He should have the capacity to engage in the analysis of various problems and situations in order to deal with them.

The entrepreneur should anticipate changes and must be able to study the various situations under which decisions have to be made.

Clear Objectives

An entrepreneur should have a clear objective as to the exact nature of the business, the nature of the goods to be produced and ancillary activities to be undertaken. A successful entrepreneur must have the objective to establish his product in the market, make a profit, and render social service.

Business Secrecy

An entrepreneur must be able to guard business secrets. Leakage of business secrets to trade competitors is a serious matter that should be carefully guarded against by an entrepreneur. Here the entrepreneur should be able to make a proper selection of his subordinates.

Human Relations Ability

The most important entrepreneurial traits contributing to his success are emotional stability, personal relations, consideration, and tactfulness. In other words, maintenance of public relations or human relations most often makes the difference between the success and failure of an entrepreneur must have good relations with his customers in order to gain their continued patronage and win their confidence in his product.

He must also maintain good relations with his employees if he is to motivate them to higher levels of efficiency. An entrepreneur who maintains good human relations with customers, employees, suppliers, creditors, and the community, in general, is much more likely to succeed in his endeavors than an individual who does not practice good human relations.

Effective Communication

The “gift of the gab” is a must for a successful entrepreneur. Good communication also means that the entrepreneur has the ability to put his point across effectively and with clarity. Communication must be to the point, crisp and convincing. Communication ability is the secret to the success of most entrepreneurs.

Technical Knowledge

Entrepreneurs are dealing with situations where sophisticated technology is involved. The entrepreneur must have a reasonable level of technical knowledge. This is one trait that entrepreneurs can acquire if they try hard enough.

Decision Making

Running a business requires making a number of decisions. Hence, an entrepreneur should have the capacity to analyze the various aspects of the business to arrive at a decision.

Energy

As constant attention is required for the successful running of the business, an entrepreneur must have sufficient energy to work hard for long periods.

Risk-Bearing

‘No-risk, no business’ or ‘no-risk, no gains’. There is an element of risk in every business, hence an entrepreneur should be prepared to accept failure in its proper perspective and view failure as a challenge and opportunity.

Apart from these basic traits, Robert D. Hisrich has identified a few more entrepreneurial traits. In his opinion, the entrepreneur must have adequate commitment, motivation, and skill to start and build a business.

It is his responsibility to determine if the management team has the complementary skills necessary to succeed. Hisrich feels that the entrepreneur must possess the following traits in addition to those mentioned in the preceding paragraphs:

1. Motivation
2. Self-Confidence
3. Long-Term Involvement
4. High Energy Level
5. Trouble-shooter
6. Initiative
7. Goal-Setter

Motivation

An entrepreneur must build an efficient team, keep it motivated, and provide an environment for individual growth and career development.

Self-Confidence

Entrepreneurs must have the mental capacity to face any situation. They should also have the ability to inspire others. They must have the confidence in themselves and the determination to achieve their goals.

Long-Term Involvement

Entrepreneurs must be committed to long-term projects which require continuous and consistent involvement.

High Energy Level

The success of an entrepreneur demands the ability to work long hours for sustained periods of time.

Trouble-shooter

The entrepreneur must possess the trait of the proverbial “trouble-shooter”. He must have the ability to identify where a problem is and suggest on-the-spot solutions.

Initiative

The entrepreneur must have initiative, accept personal responsibility for actions, and above all make good use of resources. It is this trait that gives the entrepreneur the courage to risks and learn from failures.

Goal-Setter

An entrepreneur must be able to set challenging, but realistic goals. These personal traits can go a long way in the all-round progress of a nation.

These personal traits make an entrepreneur a successful person. However, it must be stated that no entrepreneur possesses all these strengths. No entrepreneur is born with all these traits. It is possible for him to acquire these traits if the environment is suitable for this purpose.

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