3 signs you’re NOT an entrepreneur, yet

Keep calm and Hire yourself...

It seems that everyone is trying to become an entrepreneur these days, and we support that movement. In fact, we believe that the changing economic landscape will require people to become more entrepreneurial.

But of course, becoming an entrepreneur is in no way as easy as they make it seem on television. Entrepreneurs share certain characteristics that set them apart from those who work as part of larger organizations. Whether or not they’re born like that or become that way over the course of their lives is another topic, although I believe it is primarily the latter.

After more than a decade of being an entrepreneur and meeting some of the best in the business, I have a strong idea as to what makes us tick. More importantly, I can quickly spot tendencies in people that let me know that they are not ready to be an entrepreneur.

You are probably not ready to be an entrepreneur if:

#1 You can’t stand the thought of someone not liking you

Creating and running a business is about pushing boundaries and challenging the status quo. It also requires quick thinking and decisive action on a daily, if not hourly basis. Every waking moment of your life revolves around making the best possible choices for the company. Somewhere along this path you are going to face choices that will make someone unhappy. If the discontent or disapproval of others makes you uncomfortable, you might want to rethink starting your own business.

#2 You look forward to the end of the day

Nothing tells me someone is not really an entrepreneur faster than the following comments” I can’t wait for Friday” or “I can’t wait for this day to end.” The concept of a workday and “time off” means very different things to an employee versus and entrepreneur. If you ask any of the great entrepreneurs out there, they will tell you that the day never really ends and that they wish that there was actually more time in the day to work on their businesses.

#3 You place blame anywhere but the person in the mirror

A simple way to spot someone that might be fooling themselves into thinking they are an entrepreneur is hearing them place blame anywhere but themselves. The blame game often permeates in large organizations and corporate America. But, all it does within a startup is create dissent in the ranks. The truth is that as an entrepreneur, everything is your fault. You built it, you profit from the end result, you run the show and you make the decisions. Placing blame on anyone but yourself is a losing battle.

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Good leaders generally avoid all the tendencies on this list. They don’t need to be liked, they don’t check out until the job is done, and they truly embrace accountability. If you’re honest with yourself and these characteristics don’t apply to you, you will have a bright future as an entrepreneur. If not, don’t worry, anyone can get there it just takes time and hard work.