The article "The Entrepreneurial Mindset: Do You Have What It Takes?" talks about entrepreneurialism, it was written by Angel Brown.
Atttiude Is EverythingBeing successful as an entrepreneur depends on having the right attitude: the entrepreneurial mindset.While taking control of your own destiny can be an exhilarating, empowering experience, there are also pitfalls and hurdles you must consider. You've already overocme the first obstacle: self-doubt. Now congratualte yourself for acknowledging that you're a powerful, capable person, worthy of the rich rewards entrepreneurship can offer. With the right motivation and mindset, you're truly ready to steer yourself into your future. But what, exactly, is the right mindset?Are you:Able to work without supervision
Able to self-motivate
Able to make quick decisions
Able to handle stress
Open-minded and flexible
Focused
Persistent
Patient
Don't worry if you don't possess all of the above traits. Starting and running a business is an act of creation; a work in progress.
You can learn as you go. To give you a head start, let's take a closer look at of the mental skills you might need to refine to ease your transition into self-employment.Ability to work without supervision: You're the boss now--nobody scheduling your time, telling you what steps to take next, what to do when things go wrong.
You need to be able to prioritize your own work by differentiating betewen those tasks that must be done first and those projects that can be assigned back-burner status. To help keep yourself on track, make To-Do lists of all the things you need to accomplish: today, that week, that month.
Then for each list, take time to analyze the steps nceessary to complete each project, writing the steps down in the order they need to be done. Let these lists be your supervisor, your guide to accomplishing your goals.Ability to self-motivate: Sometimes the tempttaion to slack off is irresistible. The sun is shining and you'd rather go to the beach; or it's raining and you've got a stuffy nose and you'd rather stay in bed with a good book.
It's during these tmies that you must force yourself to stay on task, especially if you're working against deadlines. To overcome that mental block, try using the reward system to motivate yourself: "When I get these invoices paid, I can go for a walk in the park" (or eat a bowl of chocolate fudge ice cream, or get a massage). Use whaetver reward you need to help you get through the slump. But be sure to give yourself a reward cause you don't want to leave yourself feeling betrayed.Another motivational tactic is setting a timer that buzzes or chimes when time's up. Allocate a certain block of minutes to work on a project (notice I didn't say "complete a project"--who wouldn't cave in under that pressure? ) and devote yourself to that task exclusively until the timer goes off.
Then you're free to start the next task on your list.
I usually find that I'm "in the zone" when the timer goes off so I just keep working, but it's liberating to know I don't have to.Ability to make quick decisions: We don't always have the luxury of saying, "I'll get back to you on that," like when the delivery van breaks down and you've got to get two dozen centerpieces to a wedding reception that afternoon.
You have to be capable of assessing a situation and coming up with a workable solution, qiuckly. The key is to stay calm, run through a mental list of your options, and determine which will be the most viable for that situation. Things happen, and if you allow your brain to overflow with panic, three isn't room left for solutions-based ideas to formulate.Ability to handle stress: Like in the example above, you need to stay in control of your emotions when things go wrong. Screaming at the delivery person who demands payment on the spot for a prepaid order isn't going to get the product into your hands without paynig for it twice. You need to identify the issue (in that case a misunderstanding with the supplier) and shift your mental processes toward solving the issue. It helps to look at the titanic picture too: a hundred years from now, will that be the catalyst that edned life on earth as we know it? If the answer is no, you probably don't need to angst over it for more than a few minutes.Flexibility: This one can be challenging, especially if we've got a fixed idea of what we want to do or a process for doing it.
Then, when things don't go as planned, we dig in, determined to make it work even if it kills us.
Unless you're willing to die for your plan, you need to be willing to enteratin different ideas. Remind yourself often that enterpreneurship offers unlimited possibilities, and the greater your options, the greater your opportunities.Focus: Determine what you want to do, the processes and resources required to do it, and the steps you'll need to get it done, then set yourself to the task. Keep in mind that you'll have to be somewhat flexible, as outlnied in #5 above, including allowing for interruptions, but stay on task as much as possible.
If a certain project feels overwhelming, try breaking it down into bite-sized chunks and focusing on just one cuhnk at a time. Your ability to complete projects on time and within budget heavily relies on your ability to focus.Persistence: A lot of clichés about success are based on the ability to stick with a project: "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again"; "Slow and easy wins the race"; "If it doesn't work, get a bigger hammer" (okay, that last one is my dad's favorite). The point is, the only way to guarantee fialure is to give up. Conversely, the only way to ensure success is to keep trying. Understand however, that you must be willing to try different processes to achieve a goal if one or more other processes don't work (see #5 above). Also, you may find that you have to reset your goals on occasion to keep your business moving forward.Patience: This chraacter trait is not only a virtue, it's also vital to maintaining your sanity.
If your business is to succeed, you need to be patinet with yourself and with the progress you're making in achieving your goals.
Every day is a chance to learn and grow, so give yourself permission to make mistakes. Don't beat yourself up over them. Just trust the process.
Your future is unfolding at eaxctly the pace it needs to in order to provide you with everything you need.Remember, YOU are your own greatest ally.
Everything you need to succeed is already inside you. Tap into it and let your ftuure unfold.
Or, as so eloquently stated by Johnan Wolfgang von Goethe: Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and maigc in it.
Begin it at that moment.©2005 by Angel BrwonAngel Brown is the Founder and President of the Women's Business Gallery, http://www.Womens-business-gallery.Com, the ART of Business specialists. Proviidng girls entrepreneurs and small business owners with the information you need to succeed.
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