While the definition of entrepreneurship has stayed constant for decades, the possibilities for aspiring entrepreneurs has changed dramatically. Entrepreneurship is more alluring than ever and with today’s technology, life as an entrepreneur might be easier than you think.
Image Credit: Unsplash
Options available today for entrepreneurs have exploded and the barriers to enter entrepreneurship have been removed. The traditional definition doesn’t really do the career move justice — entrepreneurship is just as much about transforming the world to solve big problems, initiating social change, creating an innovative product or presenting a new life-changing solution.
Entrepreneurship lets people take their careers and dreams into their hands and lead them in the direction of their choice. It’s about building a life on your own terms with no bosses, no restricting schedules, and no holding you back.
Thinking about becoming an entrepreneur in 2020? Here are five skills every entrepreneur should have:
-
Self-management skills
Self-management means taking responsibility for your own actions and doing things as well as you can. It’s about staying organised, offering ideas to any project, and being the boss of you — not a team or company.
The three main elements of self-management are:
- Initiative
- Organisation
- Accountability
Having initiative allows you to work without being told what to do. Organisation means you can plan your time, prioritise goals and make a plan for getting things done. Accountability ensures you are self-driven and happy to learn more, improve your skills, take risks and commit the time it takes to achieve your entrepreneurship goals.
-
Communication skills
Every entrepreneur needs to be a good communicator. Effective communication ensures that employees, investors, customers, creditors, peers, mentors, and all stakeholders are on the same page (or at least a similar one) as you.
A good aim is to master all forms of communication, from one-on-one and in-person conversations to group conversations, written communication, email, and online messages – all the way to body language, listening and public speaking. Communication doesn’t just mean speaking, it means taking the opportunity from every interaction.
-
Problem-solving skills
Critical thinking is the ultimate key to problem-solving. Critical thinking enables you to identify problems and turn those problems into opportunities. Decision-making is another element of problem-solving that should be mastered, allowing you to analyze possible solutions and then arrive at a decision quickly.
You can then move on to the next step of growing your business without divagating in a constant loop of ifs and buts. The faster and more effective your problem-solving is, the quicker the execution process begins.
-
Basic financial skills
Your success as an entrepreneur comes down to a lot more than just outstanding products and services. You must also know how to keep your finances in order. Credit is one of the most important financial concepts to understand when starting a business as your credit rating will determine your eligibility for many financial opportunities. Strong credit is an abstract representation of your financial responsibility.
Budgeting is another crucial element for successful entrepreneurship. Understanding the budget means having a complete picture of your finances. To stay on top of the budget you should know how to keep accurate financial records ready for review at the end of each quarter.
One of the first things you should do is acquire skills in basic finance so you can monitor the flow of money, assets, profit vs loss, EBITDA, liabilities and any aspect that gives your business a viable place in the economy.
-
Efficiency skills
Increased efficiency takes time and dedication to implement. You’ll need to create new habits that will eventually become natural tendencies. To get started you can:
- Let go of perfection. Perfection is an illusion that causes stress. Letting go of crippling expectations helps you to embrace setbacks, stop fearing failure and not waste time. Treat yourself with kindness and focus on progress rather than perfection.
- Tweak time-management practices. Familiarise yourself with processes like chunking to group tasks together based on the outcome. You might like to use chunking to organize your day, placing tasks like answering emails and following up on phone calls toward the beginning when you are fresher. Move errands that don’t require a lot of thought to the end of the day.
- Learn to say no. Don’t be set on multitasking to prove that you’re capable. Some tasks should be delegated or said “no” to. Freeing up your schedule allows you to focus on elements of your business that really matter.
Efficiency skills reduce stress by managing work-related tasks in a timely way. It’s not just about being more productive — efficiency also leaves you with more free time to spend however you like.
