Starting a small business isn’t child’s play

Just what attributes does someone need to have when starting a small business? For one, it is definitely a good thing to have a formal education backing them up. Mind you, Steve Jobs and Bill Gates have made plenty of fame and money for themselves without a proper education, so I could be wrong on this one. Having money too helps a great deal, and even on this example I could be proven wrong. Steve Jobs and Sam Walton started out with nothing in their pockets and look at their legacy now. To sum it up then, there is no definitive answer to this question. But there are preferable qualities that individuals should hopefully have.

An entrepreneurial streak

No matter whether you feel entrepreneurs are born or made, the one commonality that you cannot ignore is the fact that the urge to be an entrepreneur has something to do with genetics. For example, genes that make you more extroverted have been proven by research to help in salesmanship. Traits such as these are vital for the entrepreneur, and even something like dyslexia has been found to be more common in the best corporate titans, with prime examples of this being Charles Schwab and Sir Richard Branson.

A support system

If your near and dear ones don’t support your decision, good luck with starting a small business. Crazy work hours and a lack of social life can devastate your relationships, so you need to have family and other loved ones on board with your decision. And if you like vacations, I have news for you. You can forget about it. Entrepreneurs sometimes have workweeks of 80 hours and sometimes more than that, so be ready for this.

It’s not all about money

Bill Gates and Warren Buffett are richer than most Americans could ever dream of being, but they have reached a point where money no longer motivates them. They are huge philantrophists and you too might reach a point some day when wealth interests you more than riches. Don’t mix those two concepts. If you’re in it just for the money, don’t turn to entrepreneurship. It might not be for you. Which brings me nicely to my next point…

Passion

Don’t just think you’ve made something better. Believe it with all your heart and know that it will make the world a better place. This is why I love Steve Jobs so much, he doesn’t just build great devices, he is so wildly passionate about building them and knowing that he is doing something immense that it rubs on everyone he articulates this vision to. Infect people with your passion and you will have a whole lot more going for you than just people working for you or customers buying your products.